The Tallest Mountain

Huaraz, Peru – Easter Week, Mountains, And Eating Guinea Pig

Plaza de Armas - Main Square

Plaza de Armas – Main Square

Huaraz is a city 3200m/2miles above sea level. It was my introduction to the Peruvian Andes.

I ended up here by default. I had nowhere to be for Semana Santa (Easter Week) and I had to depart for my next stop from Huaraz.

It’s hard to believe I spent a week in Huaraz as it didn’t seem that long. There were a lot of interesting things happening for Easter Week as you’ll see below.

First, though, in the van on the way from Casma one of my anthems came on the radio randomly! I never thought I’d hear this song while driving through the beautiful Andes!

Altitude Sickness

When I first got to Huaraz I felt fine. But a few hours later I felt like crap. I was tired, sluggish, and it felt like there was pressure behind my eyes. I realized I had altitude sickness, going from sea level to such a high altitude in just a three hour drive.

There’s not much you can do to overcome altitude sickness. Just wait, drink a lot of fluids, and in Peru/Bolivia drink lots of “Mate de Coca” – or tea made from the leaves of the coca plant (where cocaine comes from).

I was back to normal by my third day.

Mountains

Huaraz is famous for its mountains. Some of the highest peaks are nearby and it has the highest concentration of mountain peaks. Many people come here to hike and trek and climb the mountains.

The Mountains In The Distance

The Mountains In The Distance

The Tallest Mountain

The Tallest Mountain

Food

Trying Guinea Pig For The First Time

Trying Guinea Pig For The First Time

In Huaraz I tried a specialty from there “picante de cuy” or spicy guinea pig. I hadn’t tried it before despite seeing it already on the Colombia-Ecuador border and at Mitad del Mundo (the equator) in Ecuador.

I guess I wasn’t paying attention when they brought it to me. You can see the paw on the plate, which I recognized immediately. It wasn’t until later that I realized I was eating the head as I saw the signature two big teeth..

I wouldn’t say guinea pig is my favorite thing in the world and it was hard to tell what was edible and what wasn’t. It seemed mostly like chicharron, but it was ok.

Trying Guinea Pig For The First Time

Trying Guinea Pig For The First Time

Where Chicken Comes From

Where Chicken Comes From

Otherwise, you can see a picture of a shop selling chicken here. I have to say, I really like that people here see where meat comes from. It doesn’t come in nice packages here. You see the chicken hanging or you go to the market, where it smells horrible, and buy your piece of cow.

As I’ve said before, I’ll be a vegetarian after this trip is over. The smells in the markets in Casma and Huaraz only served to reinforce this as I’ll never be able to forget them. Below a picture of a roasted pig in the street – presumably being sold piece by piece.

Roasted Pork On The Street

Roasted Pork On The Street

To end on a better note, here’s a gigantic glass full of “surtido” or a mix of fruits turned into a juice. Very nice!

A Gigantic Glass Of Juice

A Gigantic Glass Of Juice

The world is my garbage can

I wrote a Que Caro Es Ser Pobre post a while back with this title, and I have periodically talked about this problem in various articles. But when I saw this sheep it just hurt me to see it having to navigate its way around all the garbage to eat some grass. Sad.

Sad

Sad

Processions

Huaraz is a pretty religious city and many tourists visit it for Easter to take in the festivities. I think the processions are the main outlets for this showing of religious support and adherence.

There was a midnight procession that was supposed to be the best, but I missed it as it was the night before I left and I didn’t feel good. This not feeling good turned into a full-fledged return of my amoebas/giardia for the third time. I don’t know why they always seem to strike when I’m going to travel 8+ hours on a bus..

Anyway, unfortunately I missed the main procession, but below are two that I did catch.

Procession 1

Procession 2

Conclusion

Huaraz was definitely an interesting place to visit. If you like hiking and trekking then it’s a must visit! Even if you don’t, it’s definitely beautiful, has a mix of cultures as many people come from the highlands to work there.

The best time to visit is June. It rained pretty much every day I was there, but predictably it occurred in the afternoon. The rainy season is my shadow!

Unfortunately, I left Huaraz with horrible stomach problems, but more on that once I get to Yauya…

Thanks again to Ben at Benkawasi for letting me stay for free and write an article about his awesome hostel!

4 replies

Trackbacks & Pingbacks

  1. […] there was the night bus from Yauya to Huaraz. You leave Yauya at 9pm and arrive in Huaraz at 5am. Along the way you pass through the Cordillera […]

  2. […] with herbs and vegetables. To be honest, I didn’t like it as much as the guinea pig I had in Huaraz. But the rest was […]

  3. […] my stomach didn’t cooperate at all when I was in Yauya. I either caught some stomach flu in Huaraz, or some amoebas that have been with me for a while acted up. Either way, I was a mess.To get to […]

  4. […] And My Life Being Threatenedby Adam Pervez on May 16, 2012in PeruTweetTweetWhile staying in Huaraz I went on a two-hour hike by myself to the nearby Incan ruins of Willkawain.I was given a ski pole […]

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