Circus & Flow Arts Convention in The Sacred Valley
Trip Start
Sep 29, 2007
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125
221
Trip End
Ongoing
Sacred Valley,
Peru
Monday, July 7, 2008
How did we find the gathering? I was talking to a punk / pixie juggler from Chile in the streets of San Blas, Cusco on Thursday when he started telling me about the special gathering happening on the weekend. Sounds like an adventure i thought, so we checked it out on the web and this is how we came to be at the tranquillo gathering of friendly Peruvian circus folk. The mission to get there was easy. We hired some mattresses and borrowed a blanket from Casa de la Gringa and hopped a local bus to Calca then on to Arin (3 soles), walked down a dirt road and then circus big top appeared in the middle of the valley surrounded by mountains.
Here is the invitation for the gathering, very tempting indeed:
Ladies and Gentleman, come inside, come inside,
The dice is cast
Flyer for gathering
. We are bringing the bright colors of fun and frolic to blend with the verdant coat of the Pachamama in the Sacred Valley.Three days and three nights of folly and awareness to bring us together in a magical display of art promoting the right to roam the planet with colors and melodies.
A space that is yours, a festival without frontiers to fill the days with the joy and enthusiasm of children... who keep playing.
Ladies and Gentlemen... a great show under the million stars of the Milky Way that will bring out the smile of the clown in each of us.
Come in, come in
"Only those who risk are Free"
Seba
This is a Powerful Place
Come feel Pachamama´s Energy
Dance to the Spirits of the Mountains
Experience why this Valley is still Sacred
The convention was held on the grounds of Miski Kusi Wasi, in the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Miski Kusi Wasi is located at the end of a dirt road in a narrow part of the Sacred Valley, right below the Pitusiray massif with the Cancan lagoon, between the historic centers of Urubamba and Pisac on the road that runs through El Valle Sagrado. The organizers were doing some great work out there and we got talking to the boss Tanzar, a psytrancer who spoke English and told us about the idea for the party. Miski Kusi Wasi ("The Sweet House of Happiness" in Quechua) is a fresh upstart non-profit organization working with local children, has been accepted as part of campesina (farming) community and a center for multi-cultural activity
big tent set up
. They are a nonprofit multicultural organization focusing on social and artistic projects in the context of circus and flow arts, working for the welfare of farming communities in the Sacred Valley in southern Peru. They are volunteers from different countries and have been working in the valley for two years, making a great effort to integrate with the local population and to integrate them into their activities. They are there also because they appreciate, with much respect and awareness, the Andean culture and its caring relationship with Pachamama, Mother Earth. Over time their art incarnated in a multicultural center, in Harin (between Calca and Urubamba) with a mobile social circus; they produce artistic and social events revolving around circus and flow arts performances, also offering a variety of related workshops, including ones on ecological issues and on arts and crafts, as well as social issues. In the workshops they help the children channel their creativity and develop their artistic abilities in a learning environment beyond the schoolroom. The Circus and Flow Arts Convention (the first of its kind there) was their most ambitious event to date. Wonderful people doing important work. Hats off to them.The entrance fee to the gathering was one book a day which will go towards the creation of a public library. We took Roald Dahl´s The Twits, Treasure Island, The Secret and a Wayne Dwyer, not a bad price to pay for the fun, merriment and joy we experienced being around all those inspiring people
the big tent set up
. We are now trying to work out what we want to learn next. There were shows inside the big top, a fire toy area, good toilets and space for play. The whole party area and camping spot was filled with people wearing funky circus clothes and throwing toys into the air like balls, plates, rings, hats, hula hoops, machetes and each other, and people in movement everywhere. Some Peruvian bands provided the soundtrack for the gathering and local women provided dinner and lunch for a very small price (egg sandwich 30 Aussie cents). Even the campsite was happening the whole time with a fire for warmth and organic music provided by drummers, flute, didge and accordian players. I had a headache from drinking cervezas in the sun so missed some of the party but it was still a great time. I had a new hair wrap weaved into my hair with Serpentine stone from Macchu Picchu, snake vertebrae bone and seed pods. We were happy to see an awesome male hula hooper, you don´t come across many of them. Nadine saw a funny site of a pair of oversized, red, clown shoes outside someones tent, a real life sleeping clown. Just a handful of gringos were there and everyone was very friendly to us welcoming us with kisses and talking. We were sad to leave these beautiful people when everyone waved us good-bye and wished us well. What a nice litle community they are. We got a collectivo to Calca and then a crowded local bus through Pisac and on to Cusco. A sweet little boy fell asleep on Nadine´s lap all the way home. I talked to some people about their forthcoming Ayahuasca ceremony and met a lovely boy from Chicago. We had our last coffee at Muse Cafe where some people were singing and playing guitar. We are finally off to Macchu Picchu tomorrow on the train.
