Arequipa

Budget Travel, Travel

So, while I was in Huanchaco I figured that it’s not very likely that I’ll ever be returning to Peru. With that in mind, I decided that maybe I should divert from my coastal route and venture inland and have a look at Machu Pichhu. The recommended, albeit longer route would take me well south of Lima along the coast and then back northeast to the town of Arequipa. From Arequipa the next major stop is Cusco and from there transport to Machu Picchu can be arranged.

Arequipa, the White City
Arequipa is a popular tourist destination, second only to Cusco. It’s called the white city because many of its buildings are constructed of sillar, a white volcanic rock that is mined nearby. It’s a wonderful example of a Spanish colonial city and if it had been the first one I had been to, I would have probably been impressed. Jaded? Probably.

While I was impressed with the cleanliness of Arequipa and with the quality of my lodging, Arequipa didn’t really offer me too much more, granted, I didn’t give it much of a chance. There are some interesting things nearby such as the Colca Canyon; which is one of the deepest canyons in the world and home to the Andean Condor. There is also some world-class river rafting nearby. Perhaps I will have to give it more time on my return trip.

The most significant self-discovery of my trip so far came when I was hit up to donate to some organization that is trying to keep kids off drugs. A noble pursuit, sure, and also if a donation keeps someone from growing up to be a bus-robber or something, then it’s probably well worth whatever the donation is. I have a real problem with all of this though.

My first encounter with my feelings on the subject hit me on my ski trip to Kashmir. While I was in Delhi awaiting further transportation to the Kasmir Valley I took a bit of a tour of the old town. A rickshaw driver (pedaler?) took me to a Jain temple (Jainism is a Dharmic religion with many parallels in Hinduism). The walls of the temple were lined with gold, many of the accouterments of the building were made of gold. There was surely enough gold in this temple to feed several generations of underprivileged Jain children.

Not to get too deep into my own spiritual beliefs, suffice it to say that there was a time in my life where I believed that there was some nobility to eastern religions. That changed a bit when I learned that the Buddhists, Hindus…what have you, aren’t really much different than the Catholics, Protestants or whatever. When a Buddhist family has a sick child they can ask a holy man to pray for their sick child. Of course, these prayers will have a greater effect if accompanied with a little money. Wealthy families can, of course, pay more to the holy man, so wealthy children have a greater rate of survival (couldn’t have anything to do with greater access to medical care and proper nutrition could it?).

So, back to Arequipa. In Peru, and in fact in every Latin culture I can think of, the Catholic church is a powerful force and a very important part of daily life. The church obviously has access to vast amounts of money judging by all the wonderful churches that have been built. So, how is it that such a powerful force with such far reaching political and social influence allow children to end up as drug addicts in the first place? At the very least, the church could do something, ANYTHING to discourage procreation by people who lack the resources to properly care for their children.

It was with that thought that I had to tell the solicitor, “NO!!”.

And just now, I noticed my friend, Kimber’s status on facebook:

“True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar….it comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.” ~ MLK “Beyond Vietnam” speech

Will @ December 12, 2009