Chiclayo

I got to Chiclayo and very quickly found out the guide books all need to be updated for this city.  The first two hostels I tried to go to were both closed and one of them had been gone a year and there is now a department store there.  My cab driver tried to get me to stay at a pretty iffy looking place and it was s65 which was much more than I was used to paying.  I told him I wanted a nice place for s30-s40 and he took me to a hotel which looked much better for s40.  

I got a room and had to tell them I would pay later as I was completely out of money.  They let me have the room and I set about getting to know the area a bit by walking around then got down to the business of getting some money which I finally accomplished around 1:30 pm.  I had to get an advance on my credit card because I lost my debit card by leaving it in the cash machine.

Founded as "Santa María de los Valles de Chiclayo" in the 1500s, the name was shortened to just Chiclayo around 1835. Chiclayo is one of the most important urban areas of Peru. It has grown to become the country's fourth largest city after Lima, Arequipa, and Trujillo, which I will be visiting next. The city has a population of 738, 000 with the metropolitan area reaching almost 1,000,000.

re-enactment of a Sican Tomb

showing what and who were in the tomb and the placement of bodies and objects

Depiction of anotrher tomb

A gold head dress

The museum I went to today was the Museo National Sican.  The Sican culture succeded the Moche culture in the area but they were no-where near as developed as a culture. 

The 'Moche civilization existed in the area from the years A.D. 100 to A.D. 800 occuping the territory which is now the northern coast of Peru in the Ancash, Lambayeque, and La Libertad regions of Peru. The area of current-day Chiclayo was part of this civilization.

I decided I would have to go on a shoestring budget from now on to try and conserve the rest of the cash I have in case I can´t get any more before leaving the country.  I decided to try and get to the museums and tourist sites outside of town on my own instead of taking a tour to save money. 
My plan is to take collectivos instead of the pricey tours.  The tour I wanted to take included the Museo National Tumbas Reales de Sipan, dedicated to the tomb of the Lord of Sipan, the Museo National Sican, and the Tecume Pyramids complex, all of which were up to 22 miles out of town.  One of the guide books, borrowed from my friend Mitchell, told me how to do it.  I would do it in two legs, two days.  Today was  Museo National Sican, which was in the outlying town of Ferrenafe.

I had to go to a an area where the collectivos congregated to pick up people going out of town to the Northeast.  The collectivos are vans that are operated like a bus without a schedule or an exact route that go to outlying areas for about s2, or abour .70 cents.  They try to get a full van of about 14-17 people plus they can put supplies on the roof.

The Moche culture had a high understanding of hydraulic engineering as evidenced by their canal system which allowed them to use rivers to irrigate their land. This allowed them to have a surplus of crops and a solid economy allowing their society to develop. The Mochicans also used copper in the fabrication of weapons, tools, and ornamental objects and are considered the best producers of ceramic artifacts because of the elaborate designs of their pottery. These designs represent religious themes, humans, animals, and scenes of ceremonies and myths reflecting their perception of the world. They are noted for their expressiveness, perfection, and realism. I really got interested in the Moche culture and civilization when I went to the Rafael Herrera Museum in Lima and wanted to see more of what their culture was about.  Besides, there is supposed to be an awesome museum here dedicated to the Lord of Sipan, a tomb to rival King Tut.