Jun 29 2013
A visit to Huacas de el Sol y La Luna
This summer I’ve had the luck of working with Save the Waves Coalition through a fellowship from the Center for the Blue Economy. My fellowship is based in Peru and Chile assessing the economic value that surf tourism brings to the area. I am currently in Huanchaco, Peru. Huachaco is a small town that is based around artisanal fishing, as well as having great consistent surf all year around.
Yesterday was a full day of experiences and activities. The morning was taken up by a visit to a local archeological site, Huacas de el Sol y la Luna. It was a lively visit, with the company of various influential characters from Peru including the mayor of Huanchaco, the editor of the oldest surfing magazine in Latin America, Tablista, and one of the former presidents of Waikiki Club, an exclusive surf club based in Lima, Peru. The visit was led by one of the archeologist working the site, a Yale PhD candidate specializing in Chimú culture. After an informative visit, including a peak at some newly discovered artifacts not yet on display we went to a restaurant for a delicious seafood fest. The afternoon was taken up by a couple of meetings to discuss the set up and continued management of Huachaco as a World Surfing Reserve as well as some discussion of how my project, a surfonomics study, can effect the face of the surfing industry in Peru and the surrounding areas. The evening was also quite fun. It started with a delicious meal of right off the boat fresh fish grilled and stuffed with herbs and spices. The festivities of El Dia del Pescador followed the evening, in honor of St. Peter, which included a fireworks display and traditional dancing. The only downside of the day was a missed chance to catch some waves, but there is always tomorrow.
