The daily diary of a wandering restaurateur
October 30 - Patacancha
Patacancha is a long way from what passes for civilization. It takes about an hour to drive up here over a rough dirt road ... and takes the locals about two hours to walk down into Ollantaytambo. The women and young girls in their normal daily dress. This village is removed enough from modern influences that they still retain their traditional ways. How long that will last, though, is in question.
The houses are mainly of stone with thatched roofs. More modern structures are made of mud bricks with a tile roof. A one-room house like this would be the home for a family of six and a few of their animals. There is no heat except for what is retained in the stones and what comes from the cooking fire that blackens the inside of the thatch with smoke.
A couple of shots inside one of the homes. On the left is the cooking area. On the right is a sleeping shelf padded with animal skins. The parents would probably sleep here with the children on the dirt floor.
Washing wool in the river prior to spinning it into yarn. Handing out the bread was everyone's highlight! They have wheat in their diet but not bread for some reason. As a result, bread is a treat they do not see bread other than when a tour van like ours shows up or when they make the 4-5 hour round trip walk into town, both of which are rare occurrances. Once the word spread that someone is handing out bread, the children appeared from everywhere!
Whenever we travel, it is always more about the people than the places. Here are some of the locals we met today.
© 2004 Restaurant Doctor
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