Día de la Cancíon Criolla

Underneath the railway arches between Brixton and Camberwell, South London is an unlikely context for a Peruvian festival. Nevertheless, last evening's event was a magical, if somwhat chilly journey to the coastal regions of Perú, where passions are hot and the music and dance genre is decidedly lively.

Although here in the UK we are increasingly celerbrating Halloween, a large number of Peruvians enjoy Día de la Cancíon Criolla with its combination of African, Spanish and Andean influences.

The tradition dates to 1944 when the Peruvian government announce that it would hold a special celebration of Criolla music and dance. Generally, in Perú this refers to the culture of the costal regions and in particular Lima.

The venue, Inca Arch, is very atmospheric, with arched walls of victorian brickwork merging with icons from the Inca and other historic periods. The evening's entertainment included a rich mix of a musical trio, exciting dancers, a latino disco and 'comida tipica'. The participants, nearly exclusively Peruvian all spoke in Spanish so it felt natural to practise my speaking and listening among this warm and friendly group.

There was another more serious objective of the evening, to raise funds for the Peruap Project so we heard from its organisers and a senior Peruvian embassy official.

Unfortunately,  I had to leave early but the party was set to go on into 'la madrugada'

There are some additional photos here

Visit to Asturias

I had been thinking about a visit to Asturias for some time and finally made the effort to book flights via Easyjet to Asturias Airport for about £65 return. I rented a car for the week, Skoda Fabia and set of for Cangas de Onis which is a sort of gateway town for the Pico de Europas but also convenient for the coast. I stayed for 4 nights in one of the many tourist hotels just about 3 miles outside the town. It was quiet with a steady flow of couples and the odd over-night coach party taking advantage of off-season deals. 

My first excursion was La Ruta del Cares. This is a spectacular walk following Rio Cares with the path cut into the sides of the mountain. It is a long walk and you really need 2 cars to manage it properly but I went more than half way from Poncebos to Cain. After an initial climb the path is level and good and one is treated to breathtaking views, occasional tunnels and the feeling of risk as the path gives way at its edge to deathly drops. There were a good number of walkers and welcome cafes at Cain with a circular walk above the village. In all including my return by the same path I did around 32Km which was probably too much for the first day.

The next day I opted for some seaside and visited Llanes a pretty village with a harbour and fluvial river. From there I opted for a circular walk nearby taking in some rugged coast line, impressive blowholes where water enters the cliffs and passes through caves; on rough water days finds it way out in tall spurts via these 'bufones'. Finally, I headed off for  Ribasadella a rather swanky coastal resort with a great beach and where I had bacalao a la plancha followed by a scary drive along winding country roads in the dark.

On other days I completed different walks, enjoying some great autumn sunshine and the changing  colours of the trees and bracken.

Later that week I visited Olviedo and was shown round this very stylish and historic city by my friend Asun. The city is quite compact and has a very nice pedestrianised area, markets and on the day I was there, traditional music and dancing. We had lunch in quite a posh restaurant and there was a festival which meant that Callos was on the menu - the jury is out on this interesting Asturian treat!

After Olviedo I moved to another national park and stayed in the region of Leon just south of Peurto de Somiedo. I found a very nice pension for only 20 euros a night and enjoyed more walks in the mountains including one to Valle del Lago a most beautiful valley.

On the last day I visited Cangas del Narcea which isn't too interesting but has a great tourist office and a selection of walks and I found an entertaining circular one which took me  through forests of chestnut trees and offered easy-to-pick blackberries along the way.

On my return to the airport I travelled the first 60km on near empty roads and enjoyed winding down from the mountains. As the rain set in it felt as if I had at least glimpsed some of what the region has to offer but it is definitely worth another visit.

More photos here

Dubrovnik

I had never been to Croatia but found it to be a great place with beautiful scenery and a tremendous history. I went with my wife and we had some of the most amazing meals overlooking a fantastic coastline.

Recent visits

I am still planning on a trip to Perú just after Christmas but have recently been back to Spain and then to Croatia.

The trip to Spain was a parallel universe experience as I contributed to an English language immersion experience in an isolated hotel in Extramadura. This turned out to be quite entertaining as duties only extended to talking in English in 50 minute 1:1 conversations and during informal sessions like at mealtimes and around the pool. Other than fares it was free and as you can see I met some splendid people and made some new friends!

Luckily I had some additional time in Madrid and managed some cycling and witnessed the Spanish enjoying their impressive European cup win.

An idea for the next trip

I haven't really looked at the blog for some time nor thought of writing in it But as summer begins here in the UK I am already anticipating a long and cold winter and the need for something to look forward to. I believe I will go back to Perú just after Christmas through January and part of February. The rough plan at the moment is to spend a few days in Lima, pass on through to Piura in the North where I will establish a base. From here it seems possible to reach beach mountains and jungle and this will offer different dimensions for what I expect to be around a 7 week visit, returning to the UK for the beginning of Spring, in time to work up my cycling fitness which I will undoubtedly lose while away. And of course I have to be back for t my wife's 60th Birthday which is on the 23rdFebruary.

Well that is the initial idea so we'll see what gives!

In the meantime check out a couple of photos of me in Florida, Mallorca and Valencia.

La ultima semana

As I enter the final week of my stay here in Perú it feels like I have judged it about right. I have sort of run out of things to do without traveling 10 or more hours by bus and this is not to my liking. Equally, I am beginning feel in need of more direct contact with family and friends and to pine for a few home comforts.

That said the week has not been without interest. Bruce Perú as an organisation has continued to bemuse me and whilst I have enjoyed my volunteer experience I need some time to reflect on its value to the children and general situation in this fascinating country.

I have begun to feel impotent as to the varied needs of the children and families and this was brought home on Tuesday when we visited the mother of Jobita and her younger sister. The family lives across the valley necessitating a tough descent and climb to some adobe houses high in the adjoining hill. The house was small comprising one room and a yard - there is a mud floor and several cuy (guinea pigs) hiding underneath the two beds. In the room Jobita's mother was lying in some pain. Evidently she has recurring stomach problems and had been passing blood. We found a taxi and took her to our helpful doctor who diagnosed a severe infection in the reproductive organs and we transported her to hospital where she was admitted for bed rest, tests and treatment. It turned out her husband has a drinking problem and Jessica, the teacher reproached him forcefully with his failings towards his family and he was duly contrite;
Unfortunately, the next day the mother discharged herself against advice and we are now unsure of what to do.

Lessons have been going OK but I have become increasingly concerned as to the lack of reading material and today bought several books to begin a class library. I also snapped individual and group photos which I have had printed, one for each child, and tomorrow I will take in a cake and say my goodbyes.

Otherwise the week has been without incident except Ivette the volunteer director fell on her face getting out of bed and seriously bruised her nose. She also went to the doctor but thankfully nothing was broken. Also today, Mia Mullarkey from Ireland turned up – she had been a previous volunteer director and had returned to collect some luggage. Maybe she is a distant cousin and by further coincidence she will share with me the same flight to Madrid!

Last evening we went to a great restaurant to say goodbye to Hailey the most longstanding volunteer, a charming 19 year old. The restaurant also has some volunteer projects attached, mostly for children and had a marvelous decor something like a children's wonderland with masses of soft toys and some great models suspended and periodically diving down from the ceiling. The top floor was a mass of cushions apparently for those with more amorous intentions!

Shopping, shaving and cycling

Shopping is never my favourite activity but today I began Looking for Christmas gifts. My first stop was at the weaving centre in Avenida del Sol. This offers authentic traditional goods and promises to support the local craft traditions in in remote communities in a sustainable way . There is a museum and and each article depicts the name and photo of the artisan and where he or she works. I bought some items here - they are somewhat more expensive thanusual but I managed to get a 10% discount for a cash sale. After this I explored the Artisan outlets further along the avenida. These sell lots of product and by bargaining you can achieve up to 50% reductions on the opening price. Prices are in any case quite cheap but the quality is correspondingly less high.

I also went for a haircut, taking advantage of the cheap and excellent barbers. This time I had a wet shave as well, my first ever, and a real experience. The chair was a bit like an old fashioned dentist chair and I was tilted back almost horizontal. In fact I was shaved twice, firstly with a razor blade fixed to a cut throat type frame and then with a cut throat razor. The result was outstanding and I emerged with face smoother than I can remember.

On Sunday I hired a bike, another Scott. My plan was to ride out to the East of Cusco to Tipon where there are some extensive ruins . The first part of the ride was easy, riding out through the Cusco Suburbs on the main road to Puno. This road is normally very busy but on Sundays less so. On clearing the towns there is a marginal lane for cyclists and about a 3% downward incline making for some fast riding. Eventually I turned left onto a track that headed up steeply for 4 km to the ruins. I had to push the bike a few times but received some applause from tourist cars coming the other way.

On paying my 10 soles entrance fee I left the bike and climbed a series of terraces with clever irrigation channels. At the top I was rewarded with some great views of the ruins and the community below. It was almost lunchtime so I enjoyed the exhilarating downhill ride with the expectation of finding a restuarant below. There were many but they all turned out to be cuyerias, or guinea pig bars and I decided to pass on this and and pushed on further. It was another 20 km to Urquos, a substantial town with a Sunday market. I found a Polleria that allowed me bring my bike into the restaurant and I had fried chicken and chips.

Afterwards I explored the market a bit and then found a bus to take me back to Cusco. In all I probably did 70km and found I had used 2000 calories with a new maximum heart rate of 150 bpm, still somewhat short of my usual high water mark.

Finally, after a shower I opted for the local English bar, the Real McCoy which has wireless, good local beer and apple crumble!! Hey!