Blogs

The last few days in Pisac, Peru, have felt like a whirlwind. We’ve visited many amazing sites while also making time to connect and be with each other as a group. Since I’ve been here, though, I’ve observed a paradoxical town that caters to new-age tourists and the market vendors who sell them the things […] read full post >>

Pisac is situated within one of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen. Being from a mountainous region (as a good portion of us are), it’s quite fun to compare the mountains of home to the Andes. As much as it pains me to say it, these staggering peaks may take the cake. At […] read full post >>

am i gonna be a hippie in 15 years? read full post >>

week3—Stars, Cusco, and Me— experience blog #3 – My last night in Cusco, we went to the planetarium. We met the staff at the park—which is a common experience, I’ve now learned—and our group, along with the rest of the tourists were herded into vans. We drove up the windy ways up to Saqsaywaman and […] read full post >>

So much has happened in this past week, I don’t know where to start or what to write about. We went to Rainbow Mountain, Planetarium Cusco, the Pisaq ruins, Chincherro, Urubamba, Moray, Maras, Tambomachay, and Puka Pukara. I think my experience at Planetarium Cusco will always stick with me. not that any of these other […] read full post >>

When I first checked the schedule and saw that we were spending 12 days in Pisac, I was surprised and wondered how we would fill our time in a tiny town with only a dozen streets!? It’s only been three days and I feel like I’ve had a weeks worth of experiences. Between the ancient […] read full post >>

The last few days in Pisac I’ve had the opportunity to visit a few different Incan ruins in both Pisac itself and in the surrounding towns. Each time we’ve visited I’m struck by the same awe but also an odd sense of confusion or “inquietud” which is a word I seem to only know in […] read full post >>

(This is gonna be a bilingual post !) We’ve talked a lot about indigeneity and how we make/unmake it, but we haven’t talked much about the gray area that exists between those two extremes of indigenous and “not”. According to the RAE, “mestizo” means “Born of a father and mother of different race, especially of […] read full post >>

My last few days in Cusco were calm yet eventful. Notable encounters were when a group of us went up to Aura Restaurant and stumbled upon a street of vendors who were travellers selling their handmade products. I wasn’t planning on getting anything but this one Quechua lady was very persistent and showed me a variety of the belts she weaved. Whether they were ALL handmade or not is debatable but I wound up buying a belt. She first demonstrated the weaving process and described the different types of belts and the dyes that were used. It was fascinating watching her weave and finish up the belt that I chose for myself. It was initially difficult for me to find a belt with a pattern I liked because I am partial to more muted colours and Incan colours and patterns are bold and bright. It was very nice speaking with the Quechua lady despite our back and forth with the price, but in the end, she was very happy with her sale and I am happy with my 35 sol belt. read full post >>

Earlier we talked about the distinction— if any— between colonizing civilizations and empires. I think a way of discussing this is to think about whether there is a distinct colonial logic, or a logic of empire building and if they are different. While we cannot read Garcilaso at face value, there are a lot of […] read full post >>