Category Archives: Travel

Peru, Travel

Oxapampa: Secret Austrian-German community in Peru

Oxapampa is close to where we get a large part of our coffee, a region with a substantial number of descendants of German, Austrian, and Italian immigrants. Way out in the jungle, who would have thought?

Came across this excellent article about Oxapampa & the surrounding area. It’s a beautiful city in a higher region, and is known for it’s natural grandeur, and also for the fine cheeses that are produced here plus an abundance of fruits and vegetables. One immediately notices the different European style homes, and those names that aren’t Spanish…

Thanks to Jorge R. for this one.

Via HubPages:

Oxapampa, Peru: The secret Austrian-German community in the Peruvian Jungle

Oxapampa is a city 5,941 feet (1,814m) above sea level located in the Pasco Region of Central Peru, in an area known as the Selva Alta or “high jungle”.

Lima is 282 miles (454km) away from Oxapampa and the journey by road will take about 8 hours (in a four wheeled drive vehicle), and 11 to 12 hours by bus.

Roads around the area are mainly rubble surfaced or dirt tracks, and distances between places may seem reasonable until you factor in the poor condition of the roads which are frequently washed away by floods and landslides.

There are a number of tour companies providing package holidays, guided tours and activity based trips to Oxapampa and its surrounding regions.

HISTORY

About a third of the population living in Oxapampa are descendants of a Tyrolean (Austrian) and Prussian (German) community of 70 families that settled in the region in 1859, initially in Pozuzo which is 50 miles (80km) away.

The colonists originally arrived at Port Callao in Lima after a four month journey by sea. They immediately encountered problems as Peru was entering a state of civil war. Some chose to stay in Lima while others sailed to Port Huacho where they were not well received by the local authorities. Continue reading Oxapampa: Secret Austrian-German community in Peru →

Peru, Travel

Sierra del Divisor: 5 keys behind creating a new national park in Peru

Peru has just created a huge new National Park in the Amazon region of Ucayali.

Via El Comercio Peru (Translating via Google Translate with author’s corrections for clarity.)

The new Divisor National Park is a mountain resort located in the Amazonian lowlands, in a territory of 1,354,485 hectares (3,347,005 acres) corresponding to the territory of Ucayali and Loreto.

According to the National Service of Protected Natural Areas by the State (Sernanp), the Sierra del Divisor is geologically one of the oldest areas of the Amazon and has spectacular landscapes and is very inaccessible.

Another interesting observation point is that in the area there are species that only exist there. Its importance has meant that, finally, the Government has determined that Divisor pass be reserved as a national park. Continue reading Sierra del Divisor: 5 keys behind creating a new national park in Peru →

Peru, Travel

Machu Picchu Becomes “Sister City” with Otama, Japan

 

Machu Picchu has formally become a sister city with the town of Otoma, Japan. Otama is located in the Fukishima prefecture.

Finally, after years of searching and then finding a twin town, Machu Picchu has has paired with Otama, Japan.

Located in the Fukushima region of Japan, the small town of Otama has a big, and special place in the heart of Machu Picchu, Peru. In 1917, Japanese native of Otama, Yokichi Nouchi, moved to Peru and worked as a railroad employee installing paths to Machu Picchu. At 20 years of age, he began his life-long work supporting and contributing to tourism development in the region until his death in 1969.

So it is with this connection that the town of Otama was accepted as a twin town with Machu Picchu three years ago.

Continue reading Machu Picchu Becomes “Sister City” with Otama, Japan →

Peru, Travel

What! Jungle Oddity – A European Style Castle in the Cloud Forest

Lamas Castle, San Martin, Peru

In the small village of Lamas, San Martin region,  is a sight one would never expect to see in this cloud forest area outside of Tarapoto. A real European style castle!

Lamas is a native community known not only for excellent cocoa, but also prized for the rich coffee that comes from the surrounding mountains.
Continue reading What! Jungle Oddity – A European Style Castle in the Cloud Forest →

Coffee, Peru, Travel

Coffee Festival Villa Rica Peru 2015

 

We were fortunate to be in Villa Rica for the 45th Annual Coffee Festival this year. Running from July 18th through the 28th, this festival not only spotlights coffee, but features a marathon, daily tours of local coffee farms, music, and delicious foods at an ongoing Gastronomic Fair aptly named “With the Flavor of Coffee.”

The festival offers a chance to meet with local producers, learn more about everything coffee, and sample many fine local javas. The municipality of Villa Rica had a display showing the various phases of coffee growth from seedling on, as well as a collection of various types of coffee plants, where one can see the difference between each variety.
Continue reading Coffee Festival Villa Rica Peru 2015 →

Blogging, Chocolate, Coffee, Travel

A Peruvian Adventure Honeymoon

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A Peruvian Adventure Honeymoon

A recent article in the New York Times by New York Times writer Julie Baumgardner features the Peruvian  honeymoon of Helen Toomer and Eric Romano. The couple tasted exotic Peruvian cuisine, traveled the markets, and of course visited the iconic Machu Picchu.

We’re always pleased to see the growing interest in Peru. It really does offer spectacular scenery, wonderful culinary delights, and a culture that is refreshingly different.

From the New York Times:
Continue reading A Peruvian Adventure Honeymoon →

Coffee, Import/Export, Peru, Travel

Tarapoto to Villa Rica – A Long Strange Coffee Trip (Part 1)

 

The last week or so had been a series of trips to internet cafes & “locutorios” (where one can make phone calls.) In between the details of organizing a coffee buy, we did manage to enjoy one of favorite places in the world – Tarapoto.

It’s been somewhat frustrating to try and post on the blog. I picked up some malware in one café, and was afraid to log on and compromise the site.

Alas, duty calls and we’re off again (and off the computer again too.) We left Tarapoto in order to get to Villa Rica, and the Chacra D’dago to get some more samples and confirm our final order there, meet some new potential suppliers, and make our way to San Ramon for the second series of Curibamba Workshops this weekend. We’re also making arrangements for the distribution of solar coffee drying tents to the growers in the Curibamba Coffee Project.

It’s a two day journey via land, and there isn’t really any airport option short of flying back to Lima, and then flying to Jauja, which is still several hours to Villa Rica by bus or car. (As an afterthought – flying would have been worth it!) We’re finalizing our purchase of some wonderful coffees that we’ve tested, and visit with our friends, and make some new ones. 

(For more on Tarapoto see here, for more on Chacra D’dago, see here.)

 Here’s what it’s like to travel in Peru to the more remote provinces: Continue reading Tarapoto to Villa Rica – A Long Strange Coffee Trip (Part 1) →

Peru, Travel

Kichwa Maijuna Conservation Area in Loreto Is Made Official

The Executive Branch issued Supreme Decree No. 008-2015 of the Ministry of Environment official the creation of the Regional Conservation Area Maijuna Kichwa. This comes after representatives of native communities in the basin of the Napo River in Loreto, announced that they would sue the government for the delay in the enactment, which has already waited for two years.

 

Continue reading Kichwa Maijuna Conservation Area in Loreto Is Made Official →