Saturday in Trujillo, Peru

Trujillo is the third or fourth largest city in Peru (1.5 million people).  It’s in the northern area of Peru, and it’s in the desert area of this part of South America. 

Today’s excursion included visiting the city’s main cathedral.  It was very busy, and workers were preparing the church and the town square for the Pope’s visit next week (January 20).  The church has beautiful frescos or murals on the inside.  The Trujillo’s City Square was closed with grandstands being constructed for the Pope’s visit and sermon. 

The next stop on the tour was the Moche Museum.  Prior to the Incas, the Moche people constructed a temple for both the Sun and the Moon.  I was able to see the artifacts (no pictures) and then toured the Temple of the Moon that is under excavation.  The Temple of the Sun was visible, but not open for any tours at this time.  The Moche practiced human sacrifice.

The terrain of Peru was very different from what I expected...much drier.  The area reminded me of Oman on the  Arabian Peninsula.

Tomorrow I will be leaving and flying from Lima to Cusco to begin the journey to Macho Picchu.  I better get packing.

 

The outside of the city's main cathedra.  They are spiffing it up for the Pope's visit next week.

The city's main square was closed and grandstands were being constructed for the Pope's visit.

The cathedral has beautiful murals on the ceilings.

Here I am outside the Museum of the Sun and Moon.  The Moche civilization (100AD to 700 AD) predates the Incas (late 1400s to mid-1500s).

A local dressed as a citizen of the Moche civilization (700 AD).

It's quite a trek up to the Temple of the Moon.

From Wikipedia:  Moche iconography features a figure which scholars have nicknamed the "Decapitator"; it is frequently depicted as a spider, but sometimes as a winged creature or a sea monster: together all three features symbolize land, water and air.

Human sacrifice was practiced.  Note the next photo which shows that this was the altar for executions by the Moche priests.

Sacrifices were made related to weather (desire for rain) and after war.

The Temple of the Sun with the city of Trujillo in the background.

The Temple of the Moon was constructed in 7 levels, and each level had drawings depicting elements of the culture.

It was nice to return from the heat of the desert to the ship.

Here you can see the desert conditions.  The only arable land is long the river which is used for irrigation.

It's Saturday and a summer day in Trujillo so many folks were enjoying the beaches.

One more look at this part of Peru before sailing away to our next port of call in Peru.