April 1, 2011 - My mind must be playing tricks on me was I really in South America just last month participating in ACEER s Sustainability Field Study in PERU? It is now early April and it is a Zoo where I work! Actually, it is I am the Sustainability, Compost & Recycling Coordinator for Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in Ohio, www.clemetzoo.com, and we are intently getting prepared for our busiest time of year. We are open year-round (except for Christmas and New Year s Day), but our eventful season starts now and really kicks off with the annual EarthFest Party for the Planet celebration for Earth Day. Also, this year on May 5 th, we are excited to be opening a brand new exhibit called African Elephant Crossing, www.africanelephantcrossing.com, which will be a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified project. The Zoo s management team has been creating the next master plan for our organization and sustainability will be a key focus. Well, back to Peru I have been trying to find the time to reminisce and ponder all of the details of this well planned, very full, 11 days (including 2 travel days to and from the USA). We traveled through the desert coast (which makes up about 12% of Peru s topography), into the rainforest (61%), high into the Andes Mountains (27%), and back to the coast again while learning about the history, cultures, and sustainability successes and challenges of this country. Our trip started on March 3, 2011, with an 8 hour flight from Newark, NJ arriving late in the evening in Lima (population ~9 million), the capital and largest city. We (myself, 4 students and 3 professors from West Chester University in PA, led by Paul Morgan) spent the first full day with thoroughly guided tours around Lima, including visits to an archeological museum, a cathedral, and the San Francisco Monastery and catacombs (ancient, human-made underground passageways for burial).
In the late afternoon, we met with the Vice Minister of the Environment, Mrs. Ana Maria Gonzalez Del Valle Begazo, at the Ministerio del Ambiente. This office was formed on May 13, 2008 to be the governing body overseeing the National Environmental Policy of the country. There are 4 key policies that detail the guidelines for essential environmental management in Peru: 1. Conservation and Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Biodiversity 2. Integral Management of Environmental Quality 3. Environmental Governance 4. International Environmental Commitments and Opportunities Our first day concluded with watching a beautiful sunset on the Pacific Ocean at El Parque del Amor or Love Park in Miraflores, Lima. Every day to follow was just as worthwhile as this first day! Next we flew to Puerto Maldonado (population ~92,000) a tropical hot and humid frontier town at the confluence of the Tambopata and Madre de Dios Rivers in southeastern Peru for an overnight before heading to our excursion with Rainforest Expeditions. Here we visited 3 schools that the ACEER Foundation partners with to provide support for environmental education.
We also witnessed the building of the Inter-Oceanic highway a direct commercial link between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans across the South American continent which crosses right through the region. This highway threatens to have a negative environmental impact on the Tambopata National Reserve as well as the social and economic norms of the region. We were supposed to visit the site of a gold mining operation, but it was unsafe for us to go there. Since February, Peruvian security forces had been shutting down and destroying illegal mining operations, where dredging for gold damages the fragile rainforest ecosystem. Illegal mining accounts for nearly ¼ of gold production in Peru, which is the world s 5 th largest producer of this metal. We visited with the Esa Eja Community in Infierno the indigenous people that partner with Rainforest Expeditions to operate a sustainable ecotourism business since 1989.
The realization of our goals, objectives, and perhaps of our dreams depends on the heart and strength, which we put in everything we do! The next 4 days & 3 nights were spent in the rainforest at Refugio Amazonas. This lodge is one of 3 operated by the Esa Eja and Rainforest Expeditions. Our journey began with a two and a half hour boat ride down the Tambopata River. It is always exciting for me, since I work at a zoo, to see animals in their natural habitat. We were not disappointed! Along the riverbank in several different spots we saw pairs or families of Capybaras, the world s largest rodent.
We arrived at the simply beautiful, 32 room lodge, which is tucked away in a clearing surrounded by jungle. Our time in the rainforest went too fast for me. I wish we had at least one more day to experience the sights, sounds, and smells. I m not a huge fan of very hot and humid weather (the temperature was around 86 with about 90% humidity!). Our amusing guide, Cesar, said they have two seasons, "rainy" and "not so rainy!" I don t think my hair or clothes were completely dry the entire time in the forest, but the cold showers were always quite welcome. I was able to ignore the slight, unpleasant feeling because it was just so exciting to be there. Throughout our stay, we enjoyed many hikes and boat excursions (even at night) to discover the flora and fauna of the region. One walk included an ethno-botanical tour to learn about the medicinal and healing values of many of the plants - about 25% of rainforest plants are used in modern pharmaceuticals. We discovered biodiversity at every turn: o A pair of Hoatzins (left), birds unique to the Amazon o A very colorful, strange looking caterpillar (right)! o walking and chocolate trees (pictures next page) o footprints of the Coati and Tapir, two South American mammals o immense, mature brazil nut trees that grow 200-250 years old o termite and cicada mounds o a Whip-tailed Scorpion and a friendly Spiny Rat, who licked my boot o Leafcutter Ants and extra large, Bullet Ants (right) that can produce an extremely painful 24-hour sting o dead finger and other fungus growing on fallen trees that don't reveal tree rings because the seasons don't change much here o heard the calls of a Screaming Piha, a Laughing Falcon, Titi and Howler monkeys
Cesar eating Termites! Chocolate (Cacao Bean)! Rainforest trees, vines, mosses, fungus, and epiphytes. A walking Palm Tree! View from the 82 ft. high canopy tower, which we also climbed on a night hike. Bird of Paradise flower
The day we left the rainforest, March 8th, we took a boat for two and a half hours and flew for a little over 1 hour to get to Cusco. Here we met the other half of our group, 7 students and 2 professors from Penn State University, who had stayed at Rainforest Expedition's Tambopata Research Center lodge for the first part of this trip. Together we took a bus ride for about 2 hours through the Urubamba Valley. Our guide, Juan Trujillo, talked about the indigenous people of the mountains - the Quechua; their religion - Catholicism and traditional Andean; their language - ~60% Quechua and also Spanish; the crops they grow - potatoes, coca, corn, coffee, quinoa; and the animals they raise - llamas, alpacas, and guinea pigs, which they eat (sheep and cows for meat were brought by the Spanish). Juan also discussed the Forests for Water project in the San Salvador area. The changing climate and deforestation in this area have resulted in dwindling water supplies. A seasonal glacier, the Apu Pachatusan (meaning Sacred Mountain), is in danger of vanishing. This local reforestation project will improve access to water, capture carbon dioxide which affects the climate, and provide environmental and social benefits for the local communities and the region. We stopped for a visit at a school in the community of Lord of Juanca. After a welcome by the mayor and singing by the school children - 3 songs interspersed by our group singing Old MacDonald had a Farm...with a guinea pig, of course... cuy cuy here, cuy cuy there... and a round of Row, Row, Row Your Boat - we each planted a tree with a student who chose us. Iban and I planted an Escallonia species.
This night, we stayed at Hotel San Agustin, where Shaman Lucas performed an ancient ceremony, a ritual for reciprocity between humans and the Gods. "It's all about balance and giving back to Pachamama, Mother Earth", he said. The next morning we had an early start and it was raining. We had beautiful weather the entire trip so far, so nothing to complain about, but I worried that our views would be obstructed. We took a bus to catch the Inca Rail train in Ollantaytambo which took us to Aguas Caliente, where we would check into our hotel and then catch another bus to follow the switchback road up to Peru s most famous archeological site, Machu Picchu. The train route follows the mighty Urubamba River, which lends its power to the 90- megawatt Machu Picchu hydroelectric station (which will soon be increased with an additional 107 MW). Luckily for us, the weather cleared just as we arrived! The "Lost City of the Incas" was rediscovered (with the help of a young local boy) by Hiram Bingham, a Yale University professor, on July 24, 1911 and further explored with the expertise of National Geographic. It truly is a beautiful and mystical place. Pictures do not do it justice.
Juan guided us through an excellent tour of the ruins, taking us to all the highlights: o the agricultural section with it's steep terraces, where a variety of crops could grow because of the different micro-climates and elevations o the quarry of huge white granite boulders o the Sacred Square o the Temple of Three Windows near the Main temple (below) o the Sacred Stone near Wayna Picchu, the iconic mountain in the background o the House of the Mortars in the industrial zone (above) o the Temple of the Condor o the sacred ceremonial springs o the Sun Temple o the Royal Mausoleum (right) and Palace
Our time here went too quickly as well. After the guided tour, we were free to explore on our own. Many of us chose to walk to the Sun Gate. Hikers, who follow the Inca Trail, reach Machu Picchu via the Sun Gate "Intipunku" (right), located high above the ruins at 8,692 ft. At the start of our hike, I was delighted to meet some of the local residents, the wild llamas (left). The breathtaking view from the top - almost literally because of the high altitude - was amazing and well worth the 1 hour, warm and sunny, all uphill trek. Back in Aguas Caliente, after a short rest at the hotel, we went shopping, sightseeing, and had dinner. In the morning we were off to visit Cusco, the historic capital of the Inca Empire, a World Heritage site, and the oldest inhabited city in the Americas. Our 2nd to last day in Peru: Our trip is winding down, but there's still more to see. We took the train back to Ollantaytambo and then a bus to Cusco following a different route. On the way we stopped at a roadside Chicharia (bar) to sample the home-made chicha or corn beer, a fermented beverage made from maize, and played a coin toss game called "toad".
Once in Cusco (altitude 11,200 ft., population ~350,000), we had a walking tour of the main square area. We visited the market where the locals meet to socialize and shop. It was quite interesting to experience the sights, sounds, smells, and see the variety of goods souvenirs for tourists, all kinds of fruits, vegetables, breads, herbs, meats - but there s no refrigeration! and even an organ section - no part of an animal is wasted
Our trip leaders gave us the opportunity to practice the local languages of Quechua and Spanish (Where can I find? Dónde puede encuentro? ) by sending us on a market scavenger hunt to acquire various items. One group had a frog on their list and came back with a live one, which we had seen, both dead and alive, at one of the stands. Our guide didn t want to sell it back to the market, so he said he would take it home and liberate it : ) The rest of our evening and the next morning before our flight back to Lima, we were free to walk, eat, shop (spend our last Peruvian currency, nuevos soles), and sightsee on our own. The Cathedral of Cusco on the Plaza de Armas was built in the shape of a Latin cross in a very ornamental Renaissance style between 1560 and 1664 on the foundation of Inca Viracocha's Palace. The architecture is a mix of Incan and Spanish. On our last morning in Peru, there was some concern of whether our final dinner arrangements for that evening had been changed. On March 11th, during our stay in Aguas Caliente, there had been a devastating 8.9-magnitude earthquake and tsunami in Japan. This is one harsh example of how we, the world, everything in it is connected. Within 24 hours of the tsunami, those same Pacific waves reached the western shores of North and South America, including Lima, where we would fly home from.
Coastal high rise apartments, an outdoor mall, dirty ocean waves, and the lower beach access road which had been closed earlier due to 4' high waves. An opportunistic seagull was feasting on some of the ocean wildlife that had washed up on the break wall. Our farewell dinner was held at La Rosa Nautica restaurant, built on a pier in the Pacific Ocean. The Minister of the Environment and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Antonio Brack, joined us and we had an interesting presentation by Patricia Majluf about a sustainable fishing project currently underway. One last Pisco Sour (the national drink), a visit from several Inca Terns (below), and another amazingly beautiful sunset ended our wonderful stay in Peru before our overnight flight back to the USA. Nancy E. Hughes April 2011