Peru is one of those places on earth that I’ve long wanted to experience, one that everyone should know and recognize for its significance to the world. The catch is, I knew little to nothing about Peru throughout the majority of my formal education. The name Inca appears in most mentions of imperial conquest and expansion, but very little in relation to their immense civic and logistical achievements. In other words, the indigenous culture of Peru is one that, if nothing else, is crucial to the world as we know it today. In this post, I’d like to detail certain aspects of the Inca and Peru that impacted my life over those years without me ever knowing it!
One of the most striking aspects is that Quechua terms, which you and I use in everyday life, have diffused into the English language since the Spanish colonization. For example, jerky! Who knew that one of my favorite snacks was invented by the Inca? Another is Peruvian music and traditional melodies. One of my favorites, and one of the most popular folk groups of all time, Simon and Garfunkel covered El Condor Pasa. Originally written in 1913 by Daniel Robles, a Peruvian songwriter, for performance in the play of the same name. The song’s soaring melody captured something mystic and beautiful, even under the phenomenal lyrics that Simon added to the piece. Now I know that the sound I heard was so familiar because of its roots in Andean folk tradition!
The Inca Empire was the largest in the Pre-Columbian Americas, both by population and land-area. It was said and documented that the Inca emperor could instantly muster the greater part of a quarter million troops at any time he needed them. The size, structure, and influence of the Inca cannot be overstated, and yet meaningful interaction with their history avoided me in formal settings. It was only when I picked up Kim MacQuarrie’s The Last Days of the Incas last summer that I truly dove deep into my interest. It was also shortly after that when the opportunity of CPSC 106 in Peru came to my attention.
So here I am! I doubt I’ve ever been this excited for a trip before. The few times I’ve left the safety of the mainland USA, it’s been to go to the beach: Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, and the Virgin Islands are experiences I will never forget. However, beach towns are homogeneous all across the world! You can get a taco in South Carolina that you could also get, notably better-tasting, in Puerto Rico. I guess the point I’m trying to make is that venturing deep into the Andean highlands is not something I’ve done anything like, nor is immersing myself in an entirely new atmosphere and culture. It is tantalizingly close, and I cannot wait to look back on the documentation that I will create here. For my worldview, I anticipate it to be a sort of pachacuti, the Quechua word for a massive upheaval and change!