1. Kari D. Metts
SPA 495 002
Special Topics in Spanish Culture
Dra. Kohn-Buday & Ms. Metzger
Before I went to Peru, all I knew of it was that llamas originated there, it’s the home of
Machu Picchu and Incas, and I heard some of the Peruvian music at Summer Fest. However,
Peru really seems like an up and coming “new” country, evident in the structure of the
buildings that were pushing towards the future while other places, like Alto Cayma, showed
how it remains in the past.
The strength and vibrancy of the indigenous culture is in contrast to the fragility of Peru’s
socio-economic development and political structure, although women’s changing and
expanding role provides hope for the future.
Even though the Spanish conquistadores tried to destroy or cover up the indigenous culture,
it surfaced and remained evident. In visiting various churches and monasteries, the paintings
and stone masonry depicted flowers, symbols, and birds indicative of indigenous culture and
artistry. I remember one painting of the Last Supper in a cathedral where the artist painted a
cuy, Peru’s cultural dish. All of the muralists were indigenous; they weren’t commissioned
nor received credit for their art. In silent retaliation, the muralist usually painted a symbol
that served as his “signature” and testimony that the beautiful artifact was created by one of
Peru’s original people. Catholicism, Peru’s main religion and a remnant of Spain’s influence,
was used at times with trickery, to convert and dominate the indigenous population. It was
said that one priest went into the mountain regions to find and covert souls to Catholicism.
He encountered an Incan and informed him that the god he worshipped could be found in the
lower regions. The priest ensured that he had a statue of Jesus, to show the Incan that the god
he worshipped up in the mountains was with him.

2. The Spaniards eventually allowed the Incas to infuse their cultural beliefs with those of
Catholicism to appease them. But in 1572, Viceroy Francisco Alvarez de Toledo, banned
indigenous celebrations, stating that they were pagan and contrary to the Catholic faith. The
celebrations continued in a clandestine manner as a protest to the “eradication of idolatries”.
In 1944, Faustino Espinoza Navarro executed a historical reconstruction of Inti Raymi, a
celebration of the Incan Sun God, which was banned by Viceroy Toledo. The celebration, an
ancient Andean religious ceremony, was in honor of the Winter Solstice. Today, the
ceremony is an annual event that draws many tourists and is held June 24th in the Plaza
Huacaypata, known as Cusco’s Plaza de Armas, which we had toured. Listening to the
anthropology lecture and seeing the pictures of the places that our group had visited,
suddenly became more interesting and captivating. The information regarding Saqsaywaman
had deeper resonance than before. I understood what “all of those rocks” meant culturally
and historically to Peru and the importance of preserving its past for the future.
Peru’s socio-economic development is fragile and uncertain due to the fact that its
democratic state has been only thirteen years in existence. Without the interest of its youth,
there is a good chance that Peru could fall back under military rule, as known throughout its
history. An even greater fear would be if Peru returned to the strong Marxist influences that
prevailed during the 1960s and 1970s.
A census of Peru revealed that the average Peruano age was approximately 25, which is
rather young. As a result, the “Ministry of Truth” was created so that Peru’s young
population would be aware of their country’s past and to take an interest in its future. This
“interest” is mandated by the government that all citizens eligible to vote are required to
participate in all elections. The “mandatory” voting rule for a “democratic” society has an
odd twist. Democracy is supposed to allow individual freedoms to prevent “forced” actions
of a government.

3. However, in the case of Peru and former President Alberto Fujimori, perhaps this could be
viewed as a mechanism to prevent the atrocities from Fujimori’s rule, e.g., forced sterilization
of indigenous women as a method of population control, more than 70 million Peruvians
killed, and human rights violations, of being repeated.
Although Latin American society is perceived to be mainly patriarchal, Peru is changing
that idea by creating programs that are geared towards supporting success of women and
families. Peru currently has fourteen government programs that have the sole purpose of
helping Peruanos with their health; businesses; families; women; elderly; and children.
Government programs offer assistance, but oftentimes programs are faced with internal strife
and corruption, and fail to meet the primary objectives of helping those less fortunate.
Church missionary programs, such as Father Alex Busuttil’s Mission of Alto Cayma, seem to
be more successful than government programs. Father Alex and his program provide
assistance to relocated Peruanos from the mountainous regions in various ways. Individuals
relocating to Alto Cayma lack education or sufficient skills to find a job in the city. The
mission teaches skills such as cabinet making to residents that enable them to provide for
their families. Another program that helps women and families is called Nana, which is a
Quecha word for “sister”. Nana is an organization where women learn knitting and/or
crocheting, or use traditional indigenous weaving skills to create items that they can sell in a
shop located on the missionary grounds. Each artifact has the woman’s name and price of the
item and is recorded in a ledger to ensure that the artist receives the money that will help take
care of her family. Many of these items are shipped to locations outside of Peru to churches,
schools, and other organizations, to continue the success of the Nana program.

4. The missionary has a medical clinic that provides much needed medical care at a discounted
rate that is affordable to its residents. Father Alex uses his connections to ensure that his
parish receives the best care possible, keeping in line with his statement that “the least that
the poor deserve is the best.” The mission provides daycare services; education from
kindergarten thru high school; a social worker to help with the elderly, sick and shut in; and
meals on wheels program that provides meals 6 days out of the week, feeding 700 residents.
Another area that Peru is helping women become successful is by opening jobs traditionally
held by men, to be occupied by women. Women can be seen working as police officers and
in the military. I was shocked to have a woman cab driver one evening and learned that
within the past 4 years, women have taken to this occupation, but not many because it is
considered dangerous and a male occupation.
Women have always been overlooked in a patriarchal society, where machismo is strong
and prevalent. I noticed that within my host-family, machismo was not present at all, and
thought it to be based upon the education of the spouses. The wife, Ana-Maria, was
considered to be the “ruler” of the house. Fredy, the spouse, received his college degree in
finance and worked at Scotia Bank, a bank well known throughout Peru. Ana-Maria stated
that she had a two year degree as a pharmaceutical technician, but did not continue her
education. She does work outside of the home, but not on a daily basis. In another host
family, the spouses were both professionals, employed as teachers at university level.
Women tend to achieve more education than men, ensuring economic success. However,
there are some women that prefer not to work and remain in the home.

5. My experience in Peru was educational and enlightening. I learned that Peru is much more
than llamas, Machu Picchu, Peruvian music at Summer Fest, and cuy. For me, Peru is a
country that is entrenched in its past, evident with traditional indigenous ceremonies;
historical monuments; beautiful churches; and mountains, where the people are proud of their
past and are equally proud and expectant of a new Peru in the future.