Back in Lima today after four days and three nights at Qoyllur Rit’i. We got great material (interviews, photos, video), and all of us survived, but it was an ordeal.
- photo c. Jorge Vera 2006
Bitterly cold temperatures (-10 degrees Celcius), sleepless nights accompanied by constant drumming, dynamite being set off helter-skelter. Having to re-set up camp ourselves in the dark due to our arriero‘s incompetence (tents pitched at angles, facing wind). El Fotografo passing out due to exertion at high altitude….I could go on and on.
But on the plus side — we met a great comparsa from Cusco-Santiago, who welcomed us into their rituals and let us understand the remarkable faith that drives pilgrims to make this perilous journey to a glacier’s edge.
They even dressed me and El Hijo up as Capac Qolla (rich llama traders) and taught us to dance while cracking a leather whip.
Such is the strange, surreal world of Qoyllur Rit’i.
Related posts:
- “All Hail the Glacier Gods”: El Fotografo’s MSNBC Pix of Qoyllur Rit’i Back in December, msnbc.com published a photo story on Qoyllur Rit’i...
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4 responses so far ↓
1 Stuart // Jun 11, 2009 at 10:36 pm
Wow.
2 Ward Welvaert // Jun 12, 2009 at 10:03 am
Several of my friends who went to Qoyllur Rit’i left Cusco in the evening, arrived at Qoyllur Rit’i around 11:00pm, walked up the mountain in the middle of the night, and attended mass in the morning before returning the next afternoon.
I was told this is the “easier” way to visit Qoyllur Rit’i, so you don’t have to walk up the mountain in the heat of the sun or camp out in the freezing cold.
Or, maybe they’re not tough like you guys
3 Ward Welvaert // Jun 12, 2009 at 3:01 pm
Wait… should I have mentioned all that before you guys went to Qoyllur Rit’i
4 Barb // Jun 13, 2009 at 11:24 am
Yeah, Ward, that strategy works for lots of pilgrims. El Fotografo was talking about doing a one-day trek and back, but that wouldn’t have given us the time to do interviews, etc.
Thanks for mentioning this easier way. Maybe it’ll help a reader who wants to go next year.