Cricket Was Played In Ancient Peru

Some years ago I read in newspaper report online that the Chinese authorities had set a goal of achieving world dominance in Cricket - a sport which the Chinese are not noted for. This seemed pretty astonishing and I eventually realised that it may have been an April fool spoof which had been picked up by another newspaper and reported as fact - I have seen that happen before.

However, if you Google China+Cricket you will find that there are some developments in Chinese cricket and that the new president of the MCC, Mike Gatting, hopes that cricket will make further inroads into China.

But I can report a connection between cricket and a country which is now known to have substantial and impressive civilisations at least as old as those in China, Egypt and Sumeria.

During our recent visit to Peru we were in the National Museum in the capital, Lima, looking at some Moche pottery. Moche pottery is stunning in its quality and quantity. It is particularly noted for the heads and faces, which are amazingly lifelike. Every head is different and seems to represent a real person. There are colossal numbers and yet not one is female. Here is an example:

But look at the first picture. Click on the picture to enlarge it. Then tell me that is not a cricket ball.  Ignore the structure on top - as you see from the second picture, you get that on the heads as well because all these items are made to represent drinking or storage vessels and to accompany important bodies into the burial chamber.

I await my Nobel Prize or at the very least a special award from the MCC.

10 Weeks, 10 Days, 7 Hours, 12 Hours, 6 Months

In 1957 I was crossing the Atlantic in a ship. Along the way we passed, but did not see, a replica of the famous Mayflower - the ship which carried the Pilgrim Fathers to America - which had been built for the purpose, and which was being sailed across, many years after the original, which made its voyage in 1620.

In 2013 - last Sunday in fact - I at last saw, and boarded, the Mayflower replica at its resting place in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Like all the other visitors, I marvelled at how tiny the vessel is, and how appalling it must have been to be crammed in there, along with 101 other people (not counting the crew but including 3 pregnant ladies)  for the ten weeks which the crossing took. My own trip on a cargo ship in 1957 took about 10 days from Liverpool to New York

A few days after Gay, Samantha and I visited Plymouth, Gay and I flew from Boston to Amsterdam in under 7 hours. How things have changed.

Our visit to Boston was tagged on to the end of our trip to Peru. I was unable to post photographs while in Peru but will be doing so in the next few days.

By the way, our flight to Lima from Amsterdam a month ago took 12 hours. It took the Spanish conquistadore thugs 6 months each time they made the same journey.

Unto The Fourth Generation

As foretold in a previous post, we have been in Peru for the past week.

I have not yet found a way to transfer pictures from my cameras to the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. This is a shame because we are seeing many wonderful things.

I first became interested in the ancient civilasations here (of which the Incas were the pinnacle but pretty much latecomers) when I read Prescott's tome Conquest of Peru when I was 8 years of age.

It took a long time but two years ago Gay and I finally managed to get here. We had a splendid time in the South of the country, culminating at the magic Machu Picchu. But we realised there was so much more to see of the earlier civilasations which the Incas conquered and absorbed, much of it in the less-visited and less-developed, tourism-wise north. That is why we are here now.

Oh, and by the way, a couple of days ago I became a great grandfather when my granddaughter gave birth to the lovely Norah Pearl. I mentioned this to the hotel barman that day while "wetting the baby's head" with the other members of our tour group. Within minutes every member of our party was presented with a special "new baby" souvenir at the dining table. I now have the task of trying to get two of these home intact for Alexandra and Karen, my eldest daughter and now a new grandmother.

I hope I have managed to include a pic of the baby souvenirs because I took that snap with the tablet I am using.

Warm Clothing Needed

We heard from our friend Rosmarie in Lima a few days ago that Peru has had the worst winter since Adam was a lad. I thought I had better check what the current situation is. Just seen this headline online:

Peru snow state of emergency extended to more regions

I have no idea how this will affect our journey - which includes quite a lot of travelling inside Peru - we will just have to see. The rest of the article can be seen HERE

Fig City Blues

Recently I have been keeping quiet about walking but it doesn't mean I haven't been doing any. Gay and I have walked down to Quillan a few times - it's always interesting to try to find the trail down, because they keep changing it. One of the routes brings us below Ginoles, a very picturesque village which I have previously photographed from above but which I show here from a different perspective.

Ginoles is known to us as Fig City because it has so many fig trees. Just as an indication of how late the crops are in this area, there is one tree in particular that I remember scrumping luscious figs from with our New Zealand friends Lyn and Selwyn in mid-July last year. It is now well into September and the figs on that tree are not yet fully grown and are still hard and unripe. If the autumn is cold, those figs (and all others that we know of) will not ripen this year.

I read in the local newspaper recently that the wine harvest will be one month later than normal.

Off to Peru tomorrow, followed by a week in Boston Massachusetts. I will not have a computer with me, only a Galaxy tablet. I have not tried blogging from that yet and am just about to find out whether I will be able to do so.

Old People Can Have Fun Too

Click HERE to see another way how.

Thank You Laura

I only spotted this review recently, on Goodreads, despite it having been on there for almost a year. It is nice to know that my work is appreciated.

Laura Addison was one of the winners of "Vic's Big Walk" in a "Goodreads Giveaway" last year. I don't know her, but thank you, Laura:

Laura Addison's review 

Sep 16, 12

5 of 5 stars

Read from September 13 to 16, 2012

If you buy only one book this year it has to be this one! I laughed, felt tearful and got the shivers. not only is this book for an amazing cause but it's a wonderful read! I feel incredibly lucky to have won this book and will certainly be making a contribution to this worthy cause! buy it...

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Of course Laura was referring to last year but I am sure you would agree that her comments also apply to this year. If you haven't bought the book yet, now is your chance. Paperback and e-book versions available.  Details top right of this page.