In the Heart of Peru

Micaela Tello

In the Heart of Peru

I am from Peru, a place where I have had the opportunity to visit the coast, the mountains, and the jungle. A nation that is most known for “Machu Picchu,” one of the world’s wonders, but with millions of other stunning locations and landscapes that people should also be aware of. With a deep love for photography, my mother Cecilia Cuervas Amoros (Coca)  enjoys exploring new locations in Peru and capturing the breathtaking scenery that surrounds her. She feels that getting to know your country is a prerequisite to traveling the rest of the world. She desired to take advantage of the photovoice project to convey her viewpoints and her love for her nation’s nature, as well as to persuade people that Peru offers more than just “Machu Picchu.”

Photo 1: 

This picture was taken at “Lago Titicaca” in the region of Puno, Peru (Mountains). This plaza has a beautiful landscape filled with mountains, grass, and lagoons, which are combined with houses of local people who live in the mountains of Puno. This is a great example of how nature and civilization can be combined beautifully, and no matter how many years pass, humankind will never change the beauty a place has to offer. I believe that Puno itself has many things to offer not only its natural beauty but also the region’s culture. “Lake Titicaca” is best known for the floating houses on its surface, this custom has been going on for many years since Peruvian communities began to build their civilizations on the same lake, and little by little over the years this practice became part of their daily routine, and now these civilizations have become very well known for tourism. I consider Peruvian nature unique and beautiful in its way, it gathers more than mountains, lakes, rivers, and more, but it gathers the memories of our ancient civilizations, for example, the Inkas which made their civilization millions of years ago in the top of a mountain combining nature and civilization.

What Coca wants to highlight with this picture is how humankind can beautiful nature and how nature although it has been before us, can be accommodated to what people make. I consider that keeping nature as part of a human place is important, as it can provide many advantages to the planet and also to our lives. Admiring how the Peruvian Mountains Population still lives around nature and takes advantage of it every day represents a unique love for nature and love for their country. I think this plaza in the picture symbolizes the admiration Peruvian people have for their own country’s nature and environment as we can see how they somehow put a plaza out of nowhere to preserve the natural areas in the surroundings.

Photo 2:

This picture was taken at Iquitos, located in the region of Loreto, Peru (Jungle). This picture represents how different people live depending on the region you are born in Peru and also your economic status. These houses in particular represent how people in the jungle live and also can transmit the advantages and disadvantages they face regularly. Compared to the first photograph we can see how different the houses are built, but at the same time, the most important and outstanding part of them is how they can camouflage and adapt themselves to the place they are. These houses as the picture shows are built out of wood and probably other materials these local people find in the same spot where the houses were built. I consider Peruvian culture not only in the jungle but all around Peru appreciates and values what nature has to provide to us. This is why nature works in a particular way, changing and adapting the manners of a human being, what it wants to transmit in this photo is that no matter what, nature will always be present in our lives and it will never change, the factor that is changed is how people adapt to it depending on the circumstances, like weather, ecosystem, location, and more.

With this picture Coca has the intention to compare how nature in each part of Peru is different and diverse, this is thanks to its flora and fauna, and in comparison to how human beings and civilization in that same region live, which makes us see that each civilization adapts and one could say that they even make their houses similar. to their surroundings, and yet benefiting thanks to the resources that our mother earth gives us. This photo concept can be connected to the reading from module 6 “Peruvian Environmental Artist Pablo Amaringo”, because “his paintings explored the relationships between man and nature, and included fantastical representations of creatures, plants, and humans interacting with the natural world”. we can see in this photograph the connection between humans and nature, demonstrating how humans admire nature, respect it, and can live in harmony with it. This artist captures its love for nature in paintings compared to native people who capture their love for nature taking advantage of it and making it somehow a place to live. This reading is also connected to the Amazon jungle of Peru and its beautiful landscapes, where the artist expresses his love for the flora and fauna, where also the native people live.

Photo 3: 

This picture was taken at a beach called Chocaya, in the south of Lima, Peru. My mother and I consider this beach a special beach as all our family has been raised and has passed their best memories until this day. This particular grief that is in the photo is one of the most important components of this beach as it makes the waves crash into it, and somehow give life to them. What makes this beach beautiful and incredible for our family is its simplicity and its peace. Also what is amazing is that it is really rare to see people on it as it is far away from the beach houses, that’s why depending on the season you can see different species of animals on it, such as sea lions, penguins, birds, crabs and more. What Coca wants to communicate in this image of this incredible beach for her are the memories our family has passed through in each generation and how nature can be as simple as it is, but its beauty can be interpreted in different eyes depending on what the sea wants to tell you. Me, also Being born and raised to come to this beach every summer and spend time with my family has made me feel connected to this sea in particular, just sitting at the top of the rocks and admiring the birds and nature could make me feel at peace and somehow at home instantly. We have always had the tradition that whenever a member of my family passes away, we throw the ashes into the sea, as we saw is letting them go to our favorite place, That is why I also think this place is so important for her and me.
What is more important and what my Mother wanted to compare to other beautiful places and beaches is that, of course, you can find lots all around the world with even different sea colors or sand, but every person has different connections to nature, and as for her this beach is the most beautiful in the world, many people should visit different places, and not depending in others opinions but places with natural nature that bring them joy memories and peace.

Recurring theme

The theme of this Photovoice investigation is how nature, people, and civilizations are connected. Through the three photographs presented, we can see how people take advantage of nature, meaning how important is nature for people’s lives, not only for their resources but also to build bonds with other people and nature itself. In these pictures, Coca focuses on Peru, particularly in the three different regions this country has, to present its beauty from three different points of view, showing how civilization is connected to the flora and fauna and at the same time how they can adapt their lives to it. I also consider that Coca wants people to get to know Peru better because it is one of the few countries that has the virtue of having three different regions, where together we share different traditions, nature, fauna, history, and memories. I consider that we as humans are forgetting the importance of nature and itself devaluating and destroying it, in this photovoice we can see clearly how people and nature can live in peace at the same time with no need to harm it, that’s why I think Coca took this pictures for people to see how Peru is a country where nature is valuable and has a huge connection with the people that live on it.