A trip I´ve long too long to do...
Q´eswachaka. The festival of the reconstruction of the Inka bridge over the Apurimac River.
It takes a litlle bit over a day of traveling: a regional bus, a local bus, another bus, and finally a combi that agrees to pick me up do the trick. And with all these help, I can make it a day earlier to the site. I say the site because I didnt know what I would find and it turns out there was nothing much to be found...
Its awfully quiet. The walk down to the river basin lets me enjoy the panorama. Just green and brown, no houses around. Just the ones where the combi dropped us off at the end of the road and then the 5 lonesome ones by the basin. It's their smoke that lets me know there is some life in the area, other than, that there is nothing: no sound at all.Almost a deadlike feeling to the place. There is a small hotel that is being constructed. Its getting dark so the guard lets me sleep in one of the areas where the floor is almost finished, no roof though...
.... 8pm makes dark, and then 7 makes light. Bright and early the sun arrives, and with it, a non-stop march of people coming to reconstruct the bridge. I figured out later that noone lives here as the 5 communities this bridge serves are atop the mountains sorrounding it. Descending from the 4 corners, I figure them coming from the 4 suyos to build history again.
On his back each comunero (who has walks of up to 4 hours to get here) brings 40mt of hay braided rope. Hay. They will use it to make the new bridge. A bit of that together we are stronger feeling....
Day one. First: roll call, we take all these braided ropes and put them together to make some thicker ones, and then these together to make some even thicker. Thick and strong enough to stand the weight and the weather....
Incesantly pulling all day: the ropes have to be tight, otherwise they will lose their strenght. So we pulled and pulled and pulled....
and if day one was a lot of pulling, day two awaits with its fair share as well. But first some distractions are in order, We now have to make the ropes cross the abiss created by the river. (Mainly) older and (definitely) drunk men stand on one side of the abyss, near the edge, and start throwing smaller ropes that will be then used to carry the thicher ones we had braided the day prior. Not an easy task though. It´s about 40mts from edge to edge and given the condition of the "throwers" is borderline impossible. But this is vital part of the festival as well: all around me, people start chattering, picking favourites, even betting on some, discussing the best strategy to be used, etc. It´s a party and they enjoy every minute they can of it. Finally the rope gets across and the thick ropes get carried through. It´s time now to cut down the old bridge :)
Back to pulling again ;)
the ropes must be tense to withstand the weight...400 kgs they will take, just about a man, his llama and his coca ;)
tiring, borderline exhausting but seeing the bridge take shape is more than a reward
and then the third day, truly eye candy, the braiding of the bridge.
The " engineer" comes in, and, in full attire, start walking up and down the rope and the braiding and finishing of the bridge begins. Itll be about 6 hours and 3 pays to the Pachamama (that translates to about 6 bottles of wine, 3 barrels of chicha and plenty beer) before he can finish. The way he moves across the unfinished bridge is astonishing. Like a true magician.
The engineer and his helper braid away skillfully and gracefully for the rest of the afternoon with people celebrating on both sides of the bridge. 5pm comes and, with them finishing, its time for me to go, but I can go with a joyfull though:
Q´eswachaka. Connecting people without technology :D
sorry for the lack of pics, they used no technology whatsoever to build the bridge, so I didnt use mine either, meaning no camera ;)
but i did do a drawing :))
Q´eswachaka. The festival of the reconstruction of the Inka bridge over the Apurimac River.
It takes a litlle bit over a day of traveling: a regional bus, a local bus, another bus, and finally a combi that agrees to pick me up do the trick. And with all these help, I can make it a day earlier to the site. I say the site because I didnt know what I would find and it turns out there was nothing much to be found...
Its awfully quiet. The walk down to the river basin lets me enjoy the panorama. Just green and brown, no houses around. Just the ones where the combi dropped us off at the end of the road and then the 5 lonesome ones by the basin. It's their smoke that lets me know there is some life in the area, other than, that there is nothing: no sound at all.Almost a deadlike feeling to the place. There is a small hotel that is being constructed. Its getting dark so the guard lets me sleep in one of the areas where the floor is almost finished, no roof though...
.... 8pm makes dark, and then 7 makes light. Bright and early the sun arrives, and with it, a non-stop march of people coming to reconstruct the bridge. I figured out later that noone lives here as the 5 communities this bridge serves are atop the mountains sorrounding it. Descending from the 4 corners, I figure them coming from the 4 suyos to build history again.
On his back each comunero (who has walks of up to 4 hours to get here) brings 40mt of hay braided rope. Hay. They will use it to make the new bridge. A bit of that together we are stronger feeling....
Day one. First: roll call, we take all these braided ropes and put them together to make some thicker ones, and then these together to make some even thicker. Thick and strong enough to stand the weight and the weather....
Incesantly pulling all day: the ropes have to be tight, otherwise they will lose their strenght. So we pulled and pulled and pulled....
and if day one was a lot of pulling, day two awaits with its fair share as well. But first some distractions are in order, We now have to make the ropes cross the abiss created by the river. (Mainly) older and (definitely) drunk men stand on one side of the abyss, near the edge, and start throwing smaller ropes that will be then used to carry the thicher ones we had braided the day prior. Not an easy task though. It´s about 40mts from edge to edge and given the condition of the "throwers" is borderline impossible. But this is vital part of the festival as well: all around me, people start chattering, picking favourites, even betting on some, discussing the best strategy to be used, etc. It´s a party and they enjoy every minute they can of it. Finally the rope gets across and the thick ropes get carried through. It´s time now to cut down the old bridge :)
Back to pulling again ;)
the ropes must be tense to withstand the weight...400 kgs they will take, just about a man, his llama and his coca ;)
tiring, borderline exhausting but seeing the bridge take shape is more than a reward
and then the third day, truly eye candy, the braiding of the bridge.
The " engineer" comes in, and, in full attire, start walking up and down the rope and the braiding and finishing of the bridge begins. Itll be about 6 hours and 3 pays to the Pachamama (that translates to about 6 bottles of wine, 3 barrels of chicha and plenty beer) before he can finish. The way he moves across the unfinished bridge is astonishing. Like a true magician.
The engineer and his helper braid away skillfully and gracefully for the rest of the afternoon with people celebrating on both sides of the bridge. 5pm comes and, with them finishing, its time for me to go, but I can go with a joyfull though:
Q´eswachaka. Connecting people without technology :D
sorry for the lack of pics, they used no technology whatsoever to build the bridge, so I didnt use mine either, meaning no camera ;)
but i did do a drawing :))
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