There were civilizations in Peru before the famous Inca, who were actually rather late to the scene because about 3500 years ago, 20 kilometers outside of Cajamarca, existed the ancient city, Cumbe Mayo; famous for its rock formations, petroglyphs, and aqueducts. The entire place is forested with remarkable volcanic pillars, called Los Frailones, some as high as 18 meters. The guide told us a story about how they were actually warriors, disguised as nuns, who were found out and turned into the stone.
Doing the entire few miles with a 1-year old was more fun then you might think. At one point we had to crawl through a narrow slit in the rocks.
All along the way, local women, sometimes with their children, had set up blankets to sell us trinkets. One enterprising young girl ran ahead to where she knew we would stop and began singing a local song, after which she solicited handouts.
Cumbe Mayo means “narrow river.” The 9 kilometer canal is cut out of the volcanic rock and is remarkable straight with smooth sides and sharp right angles; a little too perfect to be so ancient, but there are lots of places in Peru like that, just too well constructed to be believed. The canal feeds water into a large reservoir that provides water for cultivation all those millennium ago.
Cumbe Mayo, Peru
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Martin Hash
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Cumbe Mayo, Peru
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