CAJAMARCA - HOT WATER FOR THE INCAS

The city of fate

Cajamarca looks like a pretty colonial town, perched in the northern Andes of Peru - things happen slowly around here and many Peruvians come here to relax in its hot springs and clear mountain air. However, behind its quiet facade, Cajamarca hides a darker secret: this is where the history of America, and indeed the world, changed forever.

On November 16th 1531, Francisco Pizarro and a small band of Spanish soldiers met the ill-fated Inca Atahualpa in Cajamarca and after what we will loosely term 'negotiations' had broken down, seized him and took him prisoner. This obviously caused huge consternation among the Inca's people, perhaps mainly because the Spanish had actually dared to touch the Inca - something absolutely forbidden in Inca society!

Look at a holiday in Cajamarca

The Ransom Room

Eventually, Atahualpa secured his release by promising Pizarro he would fill the room in which he had been held prisoner once with gold and twice with silver. You can still visit the so-called Ransom Room and you can even see on the wall the line to which Atahualpa promised to fill it. Obviously, hindsight is a wonderful thing but given Pizarro's character it won't come as much of a surprise to you that, having secured what was literally a king's ransom, Pizarro promptly had Atahualpa killed.

Apart from the ransom room, one of the main attractions in Cajamarca is the Baños del Inca, or Inca Baths - hot springs with medicinal qualities which were highly prized by the Incas and which today make a great place to relax and unwind in the warm water and Andean sunshine. If you fancy something a little more strenuous then the countryside around is beautiful and there is some great walking to be had in the Porcón Farm area, or you could visit the Mirador de Santa Apolonia which offers a fantastic view of the city and the valley around.

Pre-Inca Cajamarca: Cumbemayo and Otuzco

Cajamarca has no date for its Spanish foundation because, although today it is one of the most colonial-looking of the Andean cities, the Spanish moved into what was already an important Inca city. The Incas themselves had taken over the city from the Caxamarca culture which had dominated the surrounding area for the previous 1000 years. They were a warrior culture but also fine ceramicists and left behind many interesting sites.

Chief among these is the Caxamarca site at Cumbemayo. Widely held to be the biggest megalithic (Stone Age) construction in the Americas, it consists of the 'Sanctuary' (a large outcrop in the shape of a head which has some important petroglyphs), a pre-Inca aqueduct which still works and runs for nearly a mile, and a series of ceremonial altars which lie next to the aqueduct. The site is also very near to the 'Stony Forest' of the Frailones - a huge set of strangely-weathered rocks that look like monks.

You can also visit the famous Otuzco Windows. About 5 miles from Cajamarca, this is a Caxamarca burial site, with hundreds of small funeral niches in which mummies are believed to have been placed. From a distance, the niches, which are all crowded together in the rock faces look just like little windows (ventanillas in Spanish) and so this is how the site got its name.

The Cajamarca Carnival

Cajamarca is a lovely and tranquil place... except during Carnival! The city is famous for its annual celebrations, which involve the whole city and surrounding area, and if it fits in with your schedule then we know you'd enjoy it. The celebrations last for a whole month but you may decide to miss the eight days in the middle - in some ways they're the most lively but you also risk getting soaked with water in the traditional Cajamarca Carnival greeting! The only other tricky part about the carnival is when it starts - this changes from year to year but is usually around the end of February and beginning of March. If that fits in with your travel plans why not get in touch and we can let you know the current plans...

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