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Editors’ note: The Sacred and the Profane

Dear Readers,
Time runs, and now we are on the third month of the year!, after the hustle of the end of the year, and the carnivals, now it is time to take a breath, and slow down. It is time to prepare ourself for easter. For us, the peruvians, it is a special holiday, we are devoted people, and this is the time to reflect.
Peru celebrates some 3,000 festivals a year. Most of them are held in homage to a patron saint and are part of the Christian calendar adopted in colonial times, although they have blended with the magical beliefs of ancient forms of worship. These religious festivals occur alongside pagan celebrations dating back to ancestral myths in native communities in the jungle, as well as dozens of festivals created over the following centuries.
In our mountains, Ayacucho city is the place where this festival takes place. Celebrations start on Palm Sunday, dramatizing Christ's Passion. All the people participate in the processions. There is a handicraft fair with the participation of the handicraftsmen of the location. The people dance and sing all night to receive Easter Sunday; simultaneously, there are bullfights and horse races.
So, take your time and breath with a little of appeasement.
Regards
José and Cynthia

Main Article: The incense aroma of Ayaucho

Peru is an eminently catholic nation. It is because of this that in cities where the rhythm of urban life turns men into slaves of routine and in the smaller towns, of a people with hands furrowed through working the land, a different atmosphere prevails on the days when the life, passion and death of Jesus Christ are relived.
Holy Week is one of the religious dates venerated in Peru with great devotion. Processions, carpets of flowers, an aroma of incense, sorrowing hearts, slow paces, grief-stricken by the death of Jesus, temples alight with candles welcoming devotees begging pardon for their sins, are but a few of the scenes reproduced in every corner of the nation.
And yet the celebration also abounds in unique features, typical to a nation where western and Andean blend and merge; and it this merge that gives the Holy Week such a special aspect...the procession slowly advances; suddenly the bier bends forward in a sign of greeting. In the distance, a peasant, eyes a brim with tears, looks on and crosses himself. The green flow of coca showing on his lips.
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In Peru's rural areas, the way people dress makes an important distinction, as a result of the blend of pre-Hispanic influences with the European clothing that the natives were forced to wear during the colonial era?

Thanks to the recent archaeological discoveries of musical instruments, experts now know that in Peru, music has been played at least as far back as 10,000 years ago?

Peru boasts one of the most exquisite and varied cuisines on Earth, as local chefs have succeeded in adapting a diverse variety of native ingredients while remaining open to outside influences?

See the Pictures

The handicrafts form Ayacucho

Ayacucho is the capital of peruvian handicraft and has been home to many of the country's most distinguished artisans including weavers, potters, silversmiths, sculptors and painters. The most impressive artistic products this area have are:
Retablos:
Colorful wooden boxes ranging from the size of matchbox to a meter or more in height, containing intricate papiermache models representing Peruvian rural scenes or the nativity.
Constitute one of the artistic manifestations that characterize this area. The retablos in the past were basically altars and portable chapels.
Sculpture:
Peru is home to a white alabaster stone known as Piedra de Huamanga, it is a soft stone found only in quarries nearby the city of Huamanga in Ayacucho. Ranging from luminescent white to a subtle shade of pink, the beauty and texture of the huamanga stone is provided by its calcium carbonate crystals. Given its translucence and captivating appearance, this material has been used since colonial times as one of the most characteristic Ayacucho handicrafts. Piedra de Huamanga carvers carry on a centuries old tradition, dating back to Inca times, when artesanos were respected members of Inca Society.

Updated News about Peru

Lonely Planet chooses Peru as third more important tourist destination
The prestigious tour guide Lonely Planet chose Peru as the third best tourist destination to visit this year, according to its annual "Top Destinations for 2004" survey. For Lonely Planet, the amazing and varied remains of great civilisations and their landscapes turn to Peru as a fascinating country. For the second year running the top destination was New Zealand, thanks to its attractive landscapes and the aid of the film trilogy of "The Lord of the Rings". The survey is polled from the global collaborators and staffers of this guide. Mr. George, publisher of the magazine, affirms that South America is one of the most voted regions in the survey and that Peru is the outstanding country within the continent. According to the guide, our country is "the jewel in South America's crown, mostly for Inca remains but also for history, architecture and sense of adventure."

INC establishes regulations to protect Cuzco's archaeological zones
The National Culture Institute establishes a set of regulations governing visitors' behavior at the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, Sacsayhuaman and other archaeological sites. Tour guides have the obligation to teach visitors to respect the characteristics of the site. Visitors must stay on the paths and other established spaces while touring the sanctuary. Climbing up on the walls is forbidden, as is smoking, drinking alcohol or lighting fires at archaeological sites. Visitors are recommended to wear sneakers or rubber-soled shoes. Failure to heed these rules will result in the cancellation of the rest of the visit, while those found responsible may receive a sanction according to law.
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