Archaeological Headlines

The Utah Historic Preservation Office and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced their plans to nominate archaeological and rock art sites in Nine Mile Canyon for the National Register of Historic Places. Energy companies are drilling in the canyon, and vibrations and chemicals from the heavy equipment could damage the rock-art panels. This editorial calls for the end of truck traffic in Nine Mile Canyon.
Here’s a summary of what preservationists have tried to do to save Ireland’s Hill of Tara from highway construction. Their new argument suggests that the downturn in the country’s economy requires Ireland to save its historic resources as tourist destinations.
Peru’s foreign minister, Jose Antonio Garcia Belaunde, attended negotiations in New York City with representatives from Yale University. Last spring, Peru threatened to take Yale to court in order to secure the return of artifacts from Machu Picchu. “The fact that the minister feels that it’s appropriate for him to intervene suggests that there is a desire to reach an understanding,” said Yale archaeologist Richard Burger.
New Bedford, Massachusetts, became an economic superpower known as the Whaling City in the nineteenth century, and then a center for textile production. Industrial archaeologist Mark Foster saved 1,800 books and ledgers in the Merchants Bank from rare book dealers, and got them into the hands of the New Bedford Whaling Museum’s librarian.
A Roman villa has been unearthed at a supermarket site in Budapest.

ASP Women's World Championship to be held in Mancora, Peru

Máncora, a pleasant and peaceful Peruvian place in the Piura region, will be scenario of the World Championship Tour .The 18 best world surfers will be present in this northern beach to compete, from November 3 to 8, in the sixth season of this championship.This competition can set the recovery of our main surfer, Sofía Mulanovich, to first place in the world ranking, but the most outsanding of the event is that Peru will be shown again as a tourist destination to practice surfing.“It shows us on the world screen of surf. People already speak about Máncora as a destination for this sport. It is like a chain, since they associate surfing with this part of the Peruvian north. I am a witness of how the fishermen's cove has been developed and turned into a pleasant beach", said the representative of the Commission for the Promotion of Peruvian Exports and Tourism (PromPerú), Maria Seminario.In addition, she said that due to the level of this championship, she hopes that during this week the surf world will comment on this tourtnament. "It will also be fabulous if Sofia (Mulanovich) achieves the title, it would really help", she added.

South Western grad hopes to inspire orphans with photography

Seth Shimkonis want to help the orphans of Peru tell their own own story.
In November, the 2000 South Western High School graduate will travel to Arequipa, Peru, for six months to teach the children of New Hope Children's Home the art of photography.
Arequipa is the second largest city in Peru, home to thousands of orphans according to UNICEF.
New Hope Children's Home began in 1995. More than 50 children, ranging in ages from 2 to 20, live there.
Eventually Shimkonis hopes to develop a program similar to Kids with Cameras. That program was created from the documentary film "Born into Brothels," which follows children who live in the red-light district of Calcutta. The children were given cameras to document their lives and surroundings, and the photos were then sold, with proceeds going toward the children's education.
"I'm still redefining it and figuring it out," Shimkonis said. "But I just wanted to bring something down to the kids."
Shimkonis, a 27-year-old professional photographer, traveled to the children's home in January on a mission trip with Liberti Church. During his 10-day trip, Shimkonis said he and 15 other people spent time with the kids doing arts and crafts, playing games and just giving them as much attention as possible.
Shimkonis said almost every person on the trip took a digital camera, and the kids were fascinated with them.
He said the kids loved taking photos of themselves and always wanted to play

Come along on exotic and wonderful adventures

I T ALL SOUNDS so exotic--trekking
through lost cities in Peru, sitting at the feet of storytellers in bustling Moroccan bazaars, and making a pilgrimage to India's sacred river.
If your kids have a taste for adventure, introduce them to author-illustrator Ted Lewin and his wife Betsy, who have chronicled all these experiences and more in dozens of books for children.
Their latest journey took them across the world to the deserts and steppes of Mongolia, where they met a nomad family and traveled with them to the annual horse racing festival.
In their new book, "Horse Song: The Naadam of Mongolia," the Lewins take readers on a journey through the vast landscape of southern Mongolia to the Gobi Desert. There they witness the heart-stopping excitement as 9-year-old Tamir competes in the race on his half-wild horse.
Betsy Lewin, famous for the hilarious picture book "Click, Clack, Moo," provides cartoony spot drawings of the people and animals, while her husband's gorgeously colored watercolors are particularly effective at conveying action and landscape. Together, they have created a book that brings a little-known corner of the world to life.
Horse fans and adventure lovers alike will be drawn to Tamir's story.
In 1911, Yale professor Hiram Bingham went to Peru in search of Vilcapampa, an ancient Inca city which had been hidden for generations by vines and trees.
Lewin tells the exciting story of Bingham's journey through remote canyons, past thundering rapids and over cliffs. At last their young Peruvian guide led the party to massive stone staircases and enormous temples covered by mosses and thickets.
It was not Vilcapampa but Machu Picchu, "a city lost in time, a city lost in the clouds."
Lewin retraced Bingham's steps to prepare for writing and illustrating "Lost City, The Discovery of Machu Picchu," walking the Inca trail, exploring sacred valleys and high pastures, even sitting in a little cantina where Bingham had stopped.
His trademark watercolor illustrations show the grandeur of the dramatic landscape, contrasting with close-ups of Bingham and the young boy who led him to his historic find.

ENVIRONMENT: Amazon Increasingly Oily

LIMA, Aug 28 (Tierramérica) - More than 180 oil and natural gas fields extend across the western Amazon, shared by five South American countries and threatening biodiversity and indigenous lands, warns a study by U.S.-based organisations.Peru is the most worrisome case: 72 percent of its jungle territory overlaps with plans for exploiting fossil fuels, says the report "Oil and Gas Projects in the Western Amazon: Threats to Wilderness, Biodiversity and Indigenous Peoples", published Aug. 13 by the open-access online scientific journal PloS ONE. Blocks for oil and gas extraction cover an area of more than 688,000 square kilometres in the Amazon regions of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil, and there are at least 35 transnational corporations operating them, according to the researchers, who come from Duke University in North Carolina and the non-governmental organisations Save America's Forests and Land Is Life. The concessions overlap "the most species-rich part of the Amazon for amphibians, birds and mammals", states the text. "The western Amazon is the world's most biodiverse zone, especially in amphibians," one of the co-authors, Clinton Jenkins, an ecologist at Duke University, told Tierramérica. One can find more than 600 species of trees in a single hectare, while in the entire United States there are perhaps 800 tree species, he noted. Any biologist who visits those areas will find species never before described by science but which are well known to the local indigenous inhabitants. It is very difficult to travel there, and dozens of uncontacted indigenous groups live in the area, people who are almost completely isolated from modern civilisation, Jenkins added. Peru "is the most alarming case," says the study's lead author, Matt Finer, chief ecologist at Save America's Forests. One of the biggest challenges is to keep track of the oil and gas projects that have mushroomed in this country since the research began, in 2005. In early 2005, at least 15 percent of Peru’s Amazon jungle region was affected by oil exploration and drilling, a proportion that rose to 25 percent over the course of that year and to 50 percent in 2006. So far in 2008, oil industry activity has reached the point that it affects 72 percent of Peru’s rainforest, with 64 oil fields on 49 million hectares. Fifty-six of the fields were set up in the past five years, 20 are located inside protected areas, and 17 in proposed or existing territorial preserves for protecting indigenous peoples who seek to maintain their isolation. But Peru's deputy ministry of Energy, Pedro Gamio, says that less than five percent of the land granted in concession to the companies is being exploited, and the government usually designates large blocks because the companies are making high-risk investments with a mere 10 to 15 percent probability of success. "Peru is the least explored part of the region, because of the political pendulum that has hurt us. Unlike Colombia or Brazil, our country has missed out on the opportunity to attract investment," Gamio told Tierramérica. According to the Ministry of Energy and Mining, concessions were granted for 84 fossil fuel projects by the end of 2007, 19 of which are in the process of drilling and 65 in the phase of exploration. Finer pointed out that conflicts between the oil companies and indigenous communities have grown as the number of concessions has expanded. Peru has recently seen intense protests in Amazon jungle provinces against two decrees that promote private investment in native territories. The decrees were eventually struck down by Congress. Although there are few areas where drilling has actually begun, exploration itself has impacts on the jungle, such as deforestation to build heliports and camps or to create access routes, said Finer. In fact, the main concern is the construction of roads, according to Jenkins. Once there are roads, settlers begin to arrive, the same pattern that has been seen in the jungles of Brazil, said the environmentalist, who teaches part of the year at the Nazaré Paulista Institute of Ecological Research, in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. The Ministry of Energy and Mining in Peru says there are regulations in place that require the oil companies to first utilise river and air travel, as well as already existing roads. Even for exploration, the plans should involve prior consultation with and approval by the affected indigenous communities, according to International Labour Organisation Convention 169, which Peru has ratified. "According to Convention 169, the indigenous peoples pre-date the conformation of the government and as such they should be consulted… but here the opposite occurs, undermining our consecrated rights," Alberto Pizango, president of the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest (AIDESEP), told Tierramérica. In the opinion of deputy minister Gamio, "if we don't make an effort to find out the extent of Peru's fossil fuel potential, future generations will judge us, asking why we didn't take advantage of this opportunity when petroleum was the star in the global economy." The world's growing energy demand is a big incentive for companies based in the United States, Canada, Europe and China to search for fuel, says the report. The environmental impact studies are not sufficiently independent for them to be convincing for local communities, because they are contracted and paid for by the oil companies and usually do not take into account the interrelation of impacts. "There is no large-scale analysis of two, five, 10 or 20 lots at the same time," said Finer. Protected areas in Ecuador and Bolivia are not free of oil exploration or drilling either, as evidenced by Ecuador's Yasuní National Park and Bolivia's Madidi National Park, say the researchers. The Ecuadorian government divided nearly 65 percent of its Amazon region into petroleum blocks. The area is home to 10 indigenous groups. But in 2007, the authorities set apart a special 7,580 square km area in the Yasuní Park in order to keep its oil resources in the ground in exchange for compensation from the international community. In Brazil, the government issued 25 blocks in 2005 that surround the natural gas fields of Urucú and Jurua in the north-western state of Amazonas. The National Petroleum Agency has announced its intention to explore Acre state, also in the Amazon region. In Colombia, 35 exploration and drilling fields are located inside or near the department of Putumayo, on the border with Ecuador. The authorities opened a new round of bidding in the same area. Despite that fact, more than 90 percent of Colombia’s Amazon jungle region is free of oil industry activity, according to the study. "I drive a car, so I can't say they should ban petroleum and gas," admitted Jenkins. But, he added, the use of natural resources in the Amazon rainforest must be community-based and environmentally sustainable. (*Stephen Leahy contributed reporting from Toronto. This story was originally published by Latin American newspapers that are part of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news service produced by IPS with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme and the World Bank.) (END/2008)

Machu Picchu guide shares its lore, rituals

The remote city of Machu Picchu was abandoned after the Spanish arrived in Peru in the early 16th century, and the conquistadors never found it.
How things change.
Now, the Incan empire’s most mysterious and sacred city is visited by close to 1 million tourists a year, and increased development in the nearby tourist town of Aguas Calientes has prompted fears among conservationists and the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which monitors such sites around the world.
So, what’s the allure of Machu Picchu? Well, our guide gave us bits and pieces of insight throughout our hike and an hours-long tour of the citadel. How much time do you have?
The mystique
Archaeologists have debated the city’s purpose for almost 100 years. Some say it was a prison, others a school. Many also believed that the nearly inaccessible town was a defensive stronghold. The consensus? Most now believe that the immense site was a sacred retreat for the ninth Incan king, Pachacutec.
Who discovered Machu Picchu is also up for debate. Hiram Bingham, an American historian and Yale professor, has long been credited with rediscovering the city in 1911. But recent claims have suggested that German businessman Augusto Berns found and looted the ruins in 1867. So, although Bingham wasn’t the first to "discover" Machu Picchu, he was the first to excavate the site and present his findings to the rest of the world. He also brought many artifacts back to the United States in 1912; Yale agreed last year to return them to Peru.
The rituals
Machu Picchu’s sacred district is home to the site’s most prized archaeological treasures, including the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of the Three Windows (no one knows its purpose) and the ritual Intihuatana Stone. Most of the Incan empire’s Intihuatana stones were destroyed by the Spanish, but Machu Picchu’s remained intact until 2000, when it was damaged by a falling crane used in the filming of a beer commercial. Don’t miss the breathtaking Temple of the Condor; the condor’s head and feathers are carved into a rock on the ground, and two mostly natural rock formations make its wings.
The construction
The Incas were incredible masons; the walls at Machu Picchu were built with finely shaped rocks that fit together perfectly. The mortarless technique used throughout the empire served them well; the buildings still stand hundreds of years later in the earthquake-prone area.
The mountain in the background
All the famous photos of Machu Picchu show a steep peak rising behind the ruins. That is Waynu Picchu, and if your legs haven’t given out you can make one more serious climb. Hikers must sign in at a checkpoint before starting; get there early because only 400 can go up each day. They don’t want your name simply to record who’s making the hike, they need to know who to look for if you don’t make it back down.
One of us on this trip is quite afraid of heights, and just getting through the last day of the Inca Trail was hard enough. The other considered going up, but was not too upset to have missed it when she heard tales of ropes, ladders and extraordinarily steep stairs from our fellow travelers.

Charity pair have mountains to climb

EXETER climbers Carl Chudley, 26, and his colleague Neville Mogford are organising a marathon mountain climb around the world.
Starting next April, they intend crossing four continents in six months.
They will start in Russia, climbing Mt Elbrus, then travel to Nepal to climb Mera, followed by Kilimanjaro in Africa and ending in Peru to climb the Machu Picchu ruins.
If they have the time in between they will look to complete further climbs en route.
The pair are looking to raise £50,000 with a minimum of £30,000 going to aid the vital work of Voluntary Service Overseas.
Carl said: "While on our treks we will visit some of the sites VSO has in Africa, Peru and Nepal.
"We are doing this as we believe the work VSO is doing is amazing and is making such a difference. At present, we are still seeking financial support from corporate sponsors but believe we will easily hit our target and exceed it.
"Our first event will be an 80 and 90s quiz night at Exeter Phoenix on September 29, 8pm to 10pm. The entrance fee is £20 per team and sponsor forms are available by emailing ."

oneworld to promote tourism to Peru

The world's leading quality airline alliance, oneworld®, is putting its weight behind one of the biggest yet campaigns to attract visitors to Peru.
It is linking with PromPeru, the country's national tourist organisation, to encourage people across all 150 or so countries served by the alliance's airlines to take their holidays in one of Latin America's most attractive, fascinating and welcoming countries.
It is believed to be the first time any airline alliance has worked in this way with any national tourist organization in either South or North America and follows the success of similar joint programmes last year between oneworld and the tourism organizations in Japan and Budapest.
Peru's leading airline, LAN Peru, is an affiliate member of oneworld, along with its Latin American sisters LAN Ecuador and LAN Argentina and, as a full member of the alliance, Chile's LAN Airlines. oneworld partners American Airlines and Iberia also serve Peru.
Other oneworld carriers with direct flights elsewhere in South America include British Airways and Japan Airlines, with Qantas launching services to Buenos Aires in November.
oneworld's other members - Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Japan Airlines, Malév Hungarian Airlines and Royal Jordanian and around 15 other affiliate carriers - offer excellent connections to Peru from all around the world in combination with these on-line partners.
Between them, these airlines carry 320 million on around 9,000 departures a day serving almost 700 destinations in nearly 150 countries, with the smoothest possible connections between all flights operated by all oneworld members.
oneworld is the only alliance with any airline members based in South America - and its Visit South America pass is an ideal way for travellers outside the continent to travel around Peru and the rest of the region.
LAN Peru serves 13 airports across the country. With its fellow oneworld members, it links the capital Lima non-stop with Los Angeles, Mexico City, Miami and New York in North America, with Madrid in Europe, and with around ten other gateways across South America, including Santiago, Buenos Aires, Guayaquil, Quito, Caracas and Sao Paulo.
Each oneworld airline worldwide will support the Peru drive in different ways, with the programme worldwide aimed at generating around US$1.5 million worth of exposure.
Some of them will offer special fares or frequent flyer bonus miles to Peru. Most will carry adverts or editorial coverage in their in-flight magazines, on their websites and in communications with members of their frequent flyer programmes. Others will work with tour operators or co-sponsor events or trade shows.
oneworld Vice-President Commercial Nicolas Ferri added: "Promoting travel to Peru is a great way for all the oneworld member airlines to highlight one of the alliance's most amazing and attractive home countries, our leadership as an airline alliance in Latin America and also the great value and flexibility offered by our Visit South America fare. We are delighted to be working with PromPeru in making the year ahead what will hopefully be the best yet for inbound travel to this fantastic and fascinating region."
PromPeru's Director of Tourism Promotion Mara Seminario said: "PromPeru is thrilled to work with the oneworld alliance, which connects international travellers to the world's greatest tourism destinations. Last year, Peru received a record number of visitors, after promoting the country's amazing culture, heritage, biodiversity, and cuisine throughout the world. The oneworld alliance will lead to sustained tourism growth in Peru for the years to come."The oneworld-Peru promotion is being supported by two special websites - www.oneworld.com/promo/peru is available now. PromPeru's own tourism website is available in English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish

'Four day hike but I don't like walking'

A CLEVEDON woman will be lacing up her hiking boots and heading for the Lost City of the Incas to raise money for charity.Gail White, aged 30, of Westfield, will be trekking through Peru and Machu Picchu for four days in May in aid of the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI).The adventurer needs to raise £2,000 before she heads off to the picturesque destination and has started making and selling her own jewellery for the cause.She said: "This is going to be hard for me because I don't like walking. We're going to be hiking for six-10 hours a day for four days and part of it is 2,400m high."I've always wanted to see the fantastic country and Machu Picchu."I'm doing it in aid of the RNLI because I'm not a particularly good swimmer and they do a job I could never do. "I'm full of respect for them, they do a really good job round here."Gail has cycled from London to Paris for charity and pedalled across Poland and she is looking forward to the new challenge.

oneworld to promote tourism to Peru

It is linking with PromPeru, the country's national tourist organisation, to encourage people across all 150 or so countries served by the alliance's airlines to take their holidays in one of Latin America's most attractive, fascinating and welcoming countries.

It is believed to be the first time any airline alliance has worked in this way with any national tourist organization in either South or North America and follows the success of similar joint programmes last year between oneworld and the tourism organizations in Japan and Budapest.

Peru's leading airline, LAN Peru, is an affiliate member of oneworld, along with its Latin American sisters LAN Ecuador and LAN Argentina and, as a full member of the alliance, Chile's LAN Airlines. oneworld partners American Airlines and Iberia also serve Peru.

Other oneworld carriers with direct flights elsewhere in South America include British Airways and Japan Airlines, with Qantas launching services to Buenos Aires in November.

oneworld's other members - Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Japan Airlines, Malév Hungarian Airlines and Royal Jordanian and around 15 other affiliate carriers - offer excellent connections to Peru from all around the world in combination with these on-line partners.

Between them, these airlines carry 320 million on around 9,000 departures a day serving almost 700 destinations in nearly 150 countries, with the smoothest possible connections between all flights operated by all oneworld members.

oneworld is the only alliance with any airline members based in South America - and its Visit South America pass is an ideal way for travellers outside the continent to travel around Peru and the rest of the region.

LAN Peru serves 13 airports across the country. With its fellow oneworld members, it links the capital Lima non-stop with Los Angeles, Mexico City, Miami and New York in North America, with Madrid in Europe, and with around ten other gateways across South America, including Santiago, Buenos Aires, Guayaquil, Quito, Caracas and Sao Paulo.

Each oneworld airline worldwide will support the Peru drive in different ways, with the programme worldwide aimed at generating around US$1.5 million worth of exposure.

Some of them will offer special fares or frequent flyer bonus miles to Peru. Most will carry adverts or editorial coverage in their in-flight magazines, on their websites and in communications with members of their frequent flyer programmes. Others will work with tour operators or co-sponsor events or trade shows.

oneworld Vice-President Commercial Nicolas Ferri added: "Promoting travel to Peru is a great way for all the oneworld member airlines to highlight one of the alliance's most amazing and attractive home countries, our leadership as an airline alliance in Latin America and also the great value and flexibility offered by our Visit South America fare. We are delighted to be working with PromPeru in making the year ahead what will hopefully be the best yet for inbound travel to this fantastic and fascinating region."

PromPeru's Director of Tourism Promotion Mara Seminario said: "PromPeru is thrilled to work with the oneworld alliance, which connects international travellers to the world's greatest tourism destinations. Last year, Peru received a record number of visitors, after promoting the country's amazing culture, heritage, biodiversity, and cuisine throughout the world. The oneworld alliance will lead to sustained tourism growth in Peru for the years to come."

TWO North Anston colleagues have returned from the trip of a lifetime - having raised thousands of pounds for a cancer charity.
Bob Mulgrew and Andy Wellwood battled illness and injury to complete the Inca Trail, mustering more than £6,000 sponsorship for Marie Curie between them.The challenge took the pair through the sacred valleys and stunning towns of the Andes, concluding in the city of Machu Picchu in Peru."It was tremendous, probably even better than we expected," said Bob, of Rydal Close. "I don't think I could ever go away and just sit on a beach ever again.""It's a magical place, and the scenery was stunning. The air was so clear and you could see for miles. We had the perfect weather with blue skies every day. We passed quite a few of the Inca ruins, and the higher we got the more dramatic they became. Some were just unbelievable."The group transport manager for North Anston steel stockists Cogne UK was joined by colleague Andy Wellwood on the adventure.Bob and Andy, who works in sales, celebrated landmark birthdays this year, turning 50 and 30 respectively. They wanted to mark 2008 with something out of the ordinary.About 14 trekkers were in the group, raising £40,000 for various good causes overall. The pair agreed that everyone pulled together to make sure the challenge was a success."Only me and Andy knew each other, but everyone got on so quickly and gave everyone else support," said Bob. "I was intending to do it anyway, and I'd almost booked it before I came across the Marie Curie website."A friendly kickaround with local children ended with a trip-threatening leg injury for Bob."I play football regularly and know a bit about sports injuries," said Sheffield resident Andy, formerly of Kiveton Park. "I could see it was quite a bad one, but by the same token I knew how determined Bob was to do the trek.""Later, there was a bug going round the camp that I caught. I felt awful, was losing sleep and couldn't enjoy the last day in Machu Picchu as much as I wanted.""But it's battling through things like these that gives you even more of a sense of achievement. When we finally reached the peak, it was really quite emotional. We've decided we'd like to do something similar every year."Marie Cure is one of the country's biggest charities, employing more than 2,700 healthcare workers and helping 27,000 terminally ill patients. It provides free high quality nursing to give people the choice of dying at home supported by their families.Almost three-quarters of its money comes from fundraising events and challenges like Bob and Andy's adventure.

The go-to places of the year

So how does one really come up with a list of the year’s 10 places to visit? Taking it from the experts, I suppose. And that’s exactly what The Daily 10 did. We compiled the opinions of everyone authoritative enough—from the New York Times to vehement travel bloggers—to make a list that is updated and will not make you think, “But I already knew that!” We made sure that in a world where everywhere has practically been exploited, the places we picked still have a little bit of mystery and edge. So if you have the excess cash, here are the places we recommend you visit before 2008 ends. Happy vacationing!
1. Ranked no. 1 in The New York Times’ “The 53 Places to Go in 2008,” Laos is said to be “Indochina’s next hot spot” and that “Vietnam and Cambodia are so 2007.” The country has two world heritage sites, Luang Prabang and Vat Phou. A breathtaking view of the mountains can be seen as the landscape in Vang Vieng and the national symbol of Laos, Pha That Luang, can be found in Vientiane.
2. One of the world’s best beaches, the islands of Capri in Italy top Travel House UK’s travel blog. According to them, “The Capri Islands is an amazingly beautiful coastline. It has no beach yet it is deemed to be one of the best amongst the international beaches. The island has ‘bathing establishments’ in place of beaches. It has a treasure of beach towels, beach balls and beach bunnies. The island is famous to host the rich and facilitate them with perfect luxuries and the exotic Roman art and architecture.”
3. Alexandria is a place that is included in many “must-visit” lists. Aside from being one of the most famous ancient cities, this Egyptian city boasts a wealthy history and massive renovation projects of demolished and semi-demolished structures. To top it all off, a series of modernization actions are also being undertaken.
4. Probably because of the teasing motto, “Munich Likes You,” Munich is a favorite city to visit for many a backpacker. Its old-meets-new architecture, museums and penchant to arts and literature are among the top qualities of the city. It’s also been named the world’s most livable city with its conveniences and eco-friendly ways.
5. Cool Travel Guide lists Dubai in their 10 places to go to list of 2008. Why? Because of “reasons most travel writers won’t tell you: Emirati and Bedouin culture and heritage, the courtyard wind-tower architecture in the Persian Bastakiya neighborhood, gritty backstreets, Deira ‘Creek’ views from Bur Dubai, hospitable people, superb restaurants, and a lively contemporary art scene.”
6. No. 2 on the New York Times list is Lisbon. Denny Lee writes, “Bargain-seeking tourists have long flocked to Lisbon, typically among the most affordable of European cities. But now the Portuguese capital is also emerging as a cultural force.” The heart of the city is the Baxia (or downtown or city center), which is being considered for the world heritage site status. Many monuments and historical references can be found here, among many modern reconstructions.
7. Machu Picchu “is a mystical place and a great spot to divinity. It is Peru’s most popular place, so most of you like to see the place. People of Machu Picchu feel that they are the creators of god. This place offers you strange forces of nature that permit the individual to attain a contrary cosmic state,” says TutzTutz.com and secures its spot as one of the 25 wonderful places to visit in your lifetime.
8. Liverpool, the European Capital of Culture, is included in Expedia’s top 10 places to visit in 2008. A series of cultural events have been going on since 2004, reaching its peak this year, and continues until next year. Many travel writers say that now is the time to visit this English city.
9. In an Associated Content article, a writer, RB, states that if you’re going to the Mediterranean, you have to go to Anguilla. “This is a very elegant small British overseas territory located in the Caribbean, east of Puerto Rico. Anguilla is actually a set of small islands with one main island where the capital [Valley] is located.”
10. Finally, MSN Travel thinks that Bhutan is the top place to visit this year. They claim, “Cradled by the majestic Himalayas in a remote corner of Southern Asia, the ‘Land of the Thunder Dragon’ has long held steadfast to its rich culture and Buddhist heritage. Though an isolated locale and high tourist entry tariffs keep crowds at bay, these factors have also permitted this last Shangri-La to keep its traditions intact.”

Peru off beaten track

VICOS, Peru: Far from the lines of tourists that snake around the entrance of Machu Picchu, hundreds deep before dawn, is Fausta Colonia's open-air kitchen.
"Manana van a estar," Colonia says in her singsong Andean Spanish, meaning "tomorrow they'll be done." She points at the three giant green squashes slowly cooking in her domed mud oven. Their skins are beginning to crack, letting out sweet bursts of aroma into the cold mountain air.
As travel to the Andean nation booms, here in the bucolic highland village of Vicos, an increasing number of intrepid travelers, eager to get away from the tour bus circuit of Peru's top tourist destinations are participating in so-called community-based tourism.
Travelers pay to stay in villagers' homes, eat what they eat, live as they live, learning about their customs firsthand.
"One noteworthy trend we have noticed in the past three to four years is that the American traveler has become more interested in 'doing' rather than merely 'seeing' historic sites or looking out of a motor coach," Robert Whitley, president of the United States Tour Operators Association, told The Associated Press.
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Foreign entries into Peru nearly doubled from 2002 and 2007 and visits to Machu Picchu have increased more than 100 percent to 800,000 people over the last 10 years.
But as Peru becomes a prime tourist destination, helped in part by the rising cost of travel to Europe, some tourists are looking for something off the beaten track.
Seattle-based nonprofit travel agency Crooked Trails offers tours to Vicos as well as Peru's top tourist destination, Machu Picchu, for US$2,625 without airfare. Travelers are expected do to some light farm work, a small price to pay for waking up to a view of the snowcapped Andes.
Crooked Trails co-founder Christine Mackay says the homestay generates about US$265 per traveler for the family, a large sum that helps the village pay for school supplies, cultural events and other development projects.
Vicos is located in the Peru's Ancash region, the mountainous department north of Lima, some 11,000 feet (3,200 meters) above sea level. It is a farming village of 5,000 people at the foot of Peru's Cordillera Blanca, or "White Mountain Range," the largest tropical glacier chain in the world.
In the late 1990s, a group of enterprising villagers founded a community tourism project to promote sustainable tourism in the popular trekking area, while sharing their customs with travelers.
"We're setting an example," said Julio Evaristo, 42, Colonia's husband. He wears a black, wool fedora as he kneads dough for fresh bread. The visitors "see how we work, how we value our traditional clothing. That's how we retain it."
Crooked Trails teamed up with the Vicos villagers in 2002, and a year later, 10 people traveled with the agency to Peru, which jumped to 71 people in 2008, making the Andean nation Crooked Trails' most popular destination.
Mackay worried that Peru's tourism boom is likely to bring a wave of "irresponsible" tourism.
"I think that whenever there's a boom, tourism can be detrimental," she said. "I've seen it in so many places, like Thailand and Nepal."
Peru's "tourism market is catering to the tourists, rather than treating this as an educational opportunity," she said. "They treat it purely as economics." She sees community tourism programs as an antidote to the downside of conventional tourism.
Housing is simple, usually mud brick homes, with no heat. But Vicosinos are extremely hospitable.
Beneath the glow of a fluorescent bulb — the house's only electric light — Colonia, dressed in a full skirt of purple felt, laced with silver ribbon trim, unfolds cloths revealing the family's crops: white, yellow and purple potatoes, an Andean specialty.
Her husband, a renowned seed banks expert, and the travelers sit around the family dining room table on a wood plank held up by giant buckets as he tells us about his organic farming techniques.
Travelers trek up the winding hills paths above the valley that are dotted with pre-Inca ruins, to visit the communities' fields, learning to harvest the crops themselves beneath unparalleled views of the Andes.
Vicosinos speak the ancient language of Quechua, although host families speak Spanish, and all Crooked Trails tours include an English-speaking guide.
Colonia wakes at dawn to prepare breakfast in the frigid mountain air, sometimes in open shoes. She makes a fire easily to boil the tubers.
She says her husband sometimes spends days at a time up on top of their land to tend crops — barley, wheat and potatoes.
"I felt soft next to them," said Jon Zaslow, 57, a computer consultant from London, Ontario, who spent three days in Vicos with his wife, Nicolette, in July. "I don't work as hard, and don't think I solve problems as well as they. Their day-to-day existence resembled camping out, except you never get to go home to a warm shower, or go to the fridge for food."

Machu Picchu: Threatened by Tourism?

In early July, the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) considered placing Machu Picchu, one of the top tourist destinations in South America, on its list of endangered World Heritage sites. The addition of Machu Picchu to the list has been lobbied by conservation and environmental groups in hopes that international attention would help spur preservation actions.Deforestation, landslides, and urban development are threatening the site. The number of visiting tourists has more than doubled in the last ten years and is now at around 800,000 people. The ruins and the nearby gateway town of Aguas Calientes are hard-pressed to handle the massive growth in tourism.These issues have been developing for years. In April 2004, 1500 people were stranded and at least 6 were killed when two large mudslides occurred in Aguas Calientes. 1400 tourists were stranded in 2005 when an avalanche wrecked a portion of the train tracks between Cusco and Machu Picchu. There is widespread concern that these types of incidents will only increase.Due to increasing international pressure, the Peruvian government recently proposed a $132.5 million plan to preserve the ruins. The plan would restore parts of the site, install surveillance cameras, and upgrade the entry ticket controls. The government has also been working to clean up the Inca Trail and restrict the number of trekkers.Adding a site to the List of World Heritage in Danger is meant to provide immediate assistance from the World Heritage Fund. It also informs the international community of the situation with the hope that the right people will respond to save the site.Ultimately, UNESCO decided to not add any sites to their List of World Heritage in Danger (www.unesco.org/en/danger/) which consists of 30 sites right now.They did request "reinforced monitoring" for Machu Picchu. Under reinforced monitoring, experts will periodically examine and evaluate the conditions at Machu Picchu and report changes to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.The Peruvian archaeological site of Chan Chan is already on the List of World Heritage in Danger. It was placed there in 1986 (the same year it was added to the World Heritage List), due to erosion of its earthen structures.Ecuador's Galapagos Islands were added to the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2007 due to uncontrolled tourism, human immigration, and invasive species.

Peru celebrates National Pisco Day with week-long festival

Peru's minister of Production Rafael Rey will open today the festival "Pisco Surco 2008: Our country, our party, our pisco”, on the occasion of National Pisco Day celebrations to be held on July 27th.The event will also be attended by the mayor of Santiago de Surco, Juan Manuel del Mar Estremadoyro, representatives of Peru’s National Commission of Pisco (Conapisco), among other important authorities, businesspeople and artists.It will take place at 12:20 pm (17:20 GMT) in the "Parque de la Amistad” (Park of Friendship) in Surco.Pisco is Peru’s national drink and is made in traditional distilleries in wineries in Mala, San Antonio, Santa Cruz de Flores, San Vicente de Cañete, Pacarán and Lunahuaná, south of Lima.In many parts of the world, a raised glass is the surest sign of welcome. In Peru, the delicious brandy known as pisco is the best way to invite someone to discover centuries of history and tradition amidst the surprising cultural diversity that never fails to charm our guests.

Trio finish epic 10,000km bike rid

Two brothers from Northern Ireland and an English friend have completed a muscle-tearing 10,000km cycle from the southern tip of South America to the Caribbean coast of Venezuela.
Alastair and Colin Montgomery from Limavady and David Middlemass set off from the world’s most southerly city — Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego in December.
And after seven months in the saddle — which took them up the spine of the Andes in Argentina and Chile — they continued through Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Brazil, ending their charity marathon in Caracas, Venezuela.
All three gave up well-paid jobs, Alastair with the Bank of Ireland, Colin as an IT consultant in London, and David as a teacher of English in Spain.
And this week, they basked in the sunshine of the idyllic Caribbean island Isla de Margarita before heading back to Northern Ireland.
Of course, it had to happen — within a few kilometres of their destination, one of the bikes developed a major crack — but they managed to have it welded at a local technical college and went on their way.
Alastair said in his blog: “The class of apprentices were mad keen to do the job and we soon were on our way.”
A couple of days earlier, they were cycling through the jungle, “where we saw wild monkeys, otters, toucans, macaws, a lovely old tortoise and nearly cycled into the backside of a jaguar”.
It was a happy ending to an adventure of a lifetime which — after a flight via London and Buenos Aires — saw them start off in the summer of the far south, ride up the east coast of Tierra del Fuego and take the ferry to the mainland and the city of Punta Arenas in Argentina.
The mammoth cycle then continued along the Argentina-Chile border, which took in the famous Torres del Paine National Park and the Perito Glacier.
After a week’s stay in Mondoza, the most mountainous part was the crossing of the Bolivian border, through the salt flats there and on to the city of Potosi, which — at 4060 metres — is the highest in the world. And between Bolivia and Peru, they stopped to view Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake on the planet.
On then to Peru and a trip to Machu Picchu, the world heritage Inca site, and up the desert coast to the capital city of Lima.
In his blog, Alastair said: “We had planned to cycle through Columbia, but that proved rather dangerous, so we headed east and through Brazil and the Amazon basin.”
When they entered Venezuela, they were able to watch Spain beat Germany in Euro 2008, and go on their way rejoicing. And so to the Caribbean coast — having crossed the Equator after starting off near Cape Horn in the deep south.
In the final blog entry, Alastair writes: “We have just cycled from the extreme south to the extreme north of the continent — what a strange thing to do.”
The cycling trio say they did it for themselves and for charity — and the charity is UNICEF, for which they have set up a donation site through JustGiving.com.
Full details of their adventure canbe found on their website

Machu Picchu destino preferido en Internet

Machu Picchu se ha convertido en un destino de primer orden mundial. La página web Iexplorer, una de las páginas web más visitadas por turistas de todo el mundo, y especializada en venta de paquetes turísticos vía Internet, ha posicionado al monumento Inca entre los mejores 10 destinos culturales del mundo de este año. Asimismo, la maravilla peruana figura como el destino más vendido del mes de dicho portal.
La calificación que realiza esta página servirá de recomendación de viaje para millones de viajeros que utilizan Internet como principal fuente de información para decidir su viaje.
Cabe destacar que National Geographic ubicó a la ruta Salcantay-Machu Picchu entre los 25 mejores nuevos viajes para realizar en el 2008.
Iexplore www.iExplore.com es una página especializada en turismo de aventura que recibe mensualmente más de un millón de visitas. Dicho portal durante los dos últimos años nos ubica entre los 10 mejores destinos.
Fundada en 1999, iExplore es uno de los líderes mundiales en venta online de paquetes turísticos. Fue elegida por la revista Forbes como el número uno entre los sites turísticos de aventura durante siete años consecutivos. Se especializa en presentar a su público actividades de aventura y cultura.

Peru: Machu Picchu named Best Selling Tour & Top Cultural Destination

The majestic wonders of Machu Picchu continue to captivate tourists around the world and draw them to Peru as renowned tourism companies recognize the Inca Citadel as one of the finest destinations on earth.iExplore, the world's number one ranked website for adventure and experiential travel reported that its Machu Picchu Peru Tour was the company's Best Selling Tour.More popular than places such as the pyramids in Egypt, a safari tour in South Africa, a cultural tour in Greece, the Taj Mahal of India and the Great Wall of China, Peru was ranked iExplore's best selling tour.Furthermore, iExplore, a website that gets over one million visitors per month and is Google's "authority site" in the adventure travel category, reported that Machu Picchu Peru was among its top two Best Cultural Destinations.This is one of several international companies that have recognized Machu Picchu for its touristic value. Aside from being named a new world wonder, the Inca Citadel was placed on the cover of National Geographic's Adventure Travel Issue and named one of the 25 Best New Trips in the World.According to its website, iExplore is an independently-operated division of TUI TRAVEL PLC, a multi-billion pound international leisure travel business based in the United Kingdom.

Peru: Machu Picchu breaks records - over 800,000 tourists in 2007

Machu Picchu's first anniversary as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World was celebrated by many on Monday. As festivities were held in Cusco, Peru's Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism announced in Lima that the Inca citadel had broken a record in the number of tourists it had received.The ruins of Machu Picchu saw 800,158 tourists in 2007, an increase of 108,532 tourists when compared to 2006. As Minister Araoz announced this record, the head of the Archaeological Park gave information on what is being done to preserve the ancient city.One of the improvements to the citadel mentioned by Fernando Astete was the use of a new exit to the complex, which keeps tourists from conglomerating in one area.The head of the Archaeological Park also stated that throughout this year Peru's Institute for Culture (INC) has been investing 23 million soles in the restoration of monuments such as Machu Picchu, Patallacta, Waynaqente, Torontoy, Salapunku and Wikanacay.He added that an additional two million soles had been set aside for research.It was also announced that hundreds of thousands of soles were being invested in the installation of a security system, which would require the installation of fiber optic cables from the town of Machu Picchu to the citadel.