Sipan

(see previous post for more info on our trip down the coast...this is the second half of a post Blogger kept crashing while trying to upload)

Los Tumbes Reales de Señor de Sipan are famous ruins excavated in the late 1980's. While the actual site wasn't that interesting (Look! There's a hole in that pile of dirt!), the museum is amazing. Rumor has it that it is rated as one of the top 10 museums in the world...though I can't figure out who rates things like that and Googleing "top ten museums" brings up a lot of randomness.

The museum is a beautiful example of modernity meeting the ancient. The building itself is designed to mimic a temple. The interesting thing about this museum is that it focuses on the excavation of the site and is set up so that you feel as though you're there on the archeological dig. It presents the process step by step through photos and the restored treasures. They based the full size models in the museum on the physiques of local people who are the genetic descendants of the Señor. Local artisans made the clothes for the models, using traditional production methods.

Visiting the museum was a really cool experience and definitely made the stop in Chiclayo worth it!

The next town we came to was Huanchaco, another surf beach. However, this one is much smaller than Mancora and much more relaxed. It was there that we spent Christmas and New Year's.