The Ruins at Tiwanaku

The small town of Tiwanaku is about an hour and a half´s bus journey from La Paz on the rugged and dry Altiplano. Meghan and I made our way there on Sunday. It doesn´t look like much but dust from the highway, but scholars say this town holds one of the most important archaeological sites in the Americas. Long before the Incas dominated this portion of South America, the Tiwanaku culture thrived, impressing their religion and beliefs on all that came after. According to our local tour guide Freddy, in 1,000 B.C. Lake Titicaca´s currently vast waters reached even further to this point and the Tiwanaku people perfected a system of raised fields and irrigation canals to turn the normally harsh hillsides into fertile ground, even during persistent drought. Based on a genius for farming and llama herding, this civilization lasted until 1,000 A.D. The ruins of the cultural and religious center of the Tiwanaku remain half buried in a valley below the Cordillera Real, the famous snow capped Andes peaks that make La Paz one of the most beautifully situated cities in the world. The sacred center of the Tiwanaku, called the Kalasasaya, is entered through the memorable ¨Gateway to the Sun,¨ an entrance carved from a single piece of adesite rock weighing more than 10 tons. At the top of the door, the Tiwanaku´s creator god, named later by the Incas as Viracocha, is carved with rays sprouting from his head. Intricate figures of what were likely three upper classes (governors, noblemen and wise men) are intricately shown below. The door was placed to fit astronomical needs and more importantly to these people, foretold through the slanting sunlight a change in the seasons. Another interesting find was a sunken temple area with more than 200 carved stone faces on the walls. Freddy said the ancient people honored their leaders by creating likenesses of their heads in this place. Tiwanaku is still revered by millions today, who once a year converge to be blessed by the god of the sun. Freddy said even Bolivia´s leftist president Evo Morales took the oath of office here.

Given all this sun worship, you would imagine I would have taken the proper precautions. But, I wandered out into this sun-baked land sans hat, sunglasses, sunblock and water. I figured I was a tough Florida native, no problem. I was wrong. Tiwanaku is more than 12,500 feet (over 2 miles) above sea level. Lesson learned!





(photos from L. to R., Priest, Sun Gate, Wise Man)