Lake Titicaca & the Candelaria Festival (LAKTCF)

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Description

The city Puno which is located at the banks of the Lake Titicaca at 3,870 meters above sea level and is during 18 days (From the 1st of February till the 18th of February) the folkloric capital of America. In the festival partipate around 200 musicgroups and dansers. The first 9 days the butlers (that are ordered to organize the festival) decorate the church and listen to the mass. Afterwards they go to different banquets and to fire displays.

The main day, the 2nd of February, the virgin is carried towards the city in a very colorful procession. This is the moment that all musicians are going to play and all dansers are going to dance throught the streets of Puno. The festival is linked to the pre-Hispanic agricultural cycles of sowing and harvesting, as well as mining activities in the region. It is the result of a blend of respectful Aymara gaiety and ancestral Quechua seriousness.

The dance of the demons, or diablada, the main dance of the festival, was allegedly dreamed up by a group of miners trapped down a mine who, in their desperation, resigned their souls to the Virgen de la Candelaria. The dancers, blowing zampoña pan-pipes and clad in spectacular costumes and outlandish masks, make their offerings to the earth goddess Pachamama. The most impressive masks, for their terrifying aspect, are those of the deer fitted with long twisted horns similar to the Devil, and Jacancho, the god of minerals. During the farewell, or cacharpari, the dancers who fill the streets finally head to the cemetery to render homage to the dead.

Itinerary

Day One – Travel Cusco – Puno:
Overnight bus from Cusco to Puno departing at 10pm.

Day Two – Lake Titicaca Uros & Taquile Islands:
Early morning pickup from the bus terminal on arrival in Puno and transfer to our partner travel agency. You will have a bit of free time before the tour so you might like to leave your bags here and go for breakfast.

We leave from the port in Puno by boat at around 7 a.m. After travelling for half an hour we arrive at the floating reed island of Uros where we will have a 1 hour guided tour. We will continue in the same boat to the island Taquile, where we will walk to visit the town, the artisan market, the museum, and to eat lunch at a local restaurant. On the way back, we will walk down the opposite side of the mountain and return to Puno in the same boat. We arrive to Puno at approximately 5.30pm, where you will be transferred to your hotel.

Day Three – Fiesta de la Candelaria:
Today you will have a free day to explore the town and see the festivities. This evening there will be a special parade - “the parade of the costumes of light” – with traditional dresses and dances in the “Enrrique Torres Belon” stadium. After this you can make your way back to the hotel at your own pace.

Day Four – Fiesta de la Candelaria:
Today there will be all manner of colorful parades throughout the main streets of the town. We have breakfast in the hotel and then walk from the hotel to Puno’s main square. From here we can see the different typical dances, some with costumes reenacting folkloric stories such as La Morenada, La Diablada, Wacas, Tinkus, Tobas, Sicuris. At mid day we will have a box lunch and have a free afternoon to enjoy the festival.

In the evening you can return to the hotel to pick up your luggage. Your overnight bus will depart from the terminal at 9.30pm, please be at the terminal 30 minutes before this.

click on the images to enlarge

Practical Information

Fixed Departure for 2012 – February:
a few months before for an exact date.
Duration: 4 Days, 3 Nights
Accommodation: 1 night with a local family on the island of Amantani; 2 nights in a hotel in Puno.

Bring With You

Raincoat;

money for food;

photo camara;

film camera;

clothes

Included	Not Included
Overnight buses Cusco – Puno – Cusco; Pickup from the bus station on morning of Day Two; Excursion to the islands of Uros & Taquile; Transport by boat; Bilingual guide; 2 breakfast, 1 lunch, 1 box lunch; 2 nights’ accommodation in a hotel in Puno; A copy of the Candelaria festival program; A guide to the best locations to appreciate the festival.	Breakfast; lunch