Trujillo
Also know as the “City of Eternal Spring”, this is one of the most important cities in northern Peru and the capital of the department of La Libertad. A coastal city located on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, Trujillo is 500 kilometers north of Lima and 35 MASL. It possesses a mixture of ancient cultures, colonial architecture, and a welcoming population. The central part of the city features the largest plaza de armas in Peru and is surrounded by both colonial and republican era mansions painted in bright colors.
On the outskirts of the city also lies Chan Chan, the largest adobe city in the Americas, which belongs to the Chimu culture. Trujillo also has beautiful beaches such as Huanchaco, where local men still fish for their living using handmade boats fashioned from tortora reeds.
There are two ways to travel to Trujillo: via the north Pan-American Highway from Lima (500 km) and via regular fifty minute flights from Lima.
Getting in Trujillo we can visit these places:
- Chan Chan
Located in the Moche valley between the seaside resort town of Huanchaco and the city of Trujillo, the archeological site Chan Chan covers and area of approximately 20 square kilometers and is considered the largest adobe city in the Americas. It comprises a mass of enclosures, pyramids, canals, walls, and cemeteries constructed by the Chimu. It was declared a “World Heritage Site” by UNESCO in 1986.
- El Brujo Archeological Complex
This archeological site is located 34 km north of the city of Trujillo on the right hand bank of the Chicama River in the province of Ascope. It is an assemblage of adobe pyramids with approximately 5000 thousand years of occupation going all the way back to nomadic hunter gatherers, with later occupations by various cultures including the Cupisnique, Moche, Lambayeque, Chimú, and Inca. This continued through the colonial period and into the present day. The complex includes three major sites: The Huaca Prieta, the Huaca Cao Viejo, and the Huaca el Brujo.
- Huanchaco beach
Fourteen kilometers to the northeast of Trujillo is a beach emblematic of the region and notable for having preserved a traditional manner of fishing developed long ago by the Moche and Chimu cultures that plies the waves using totora reed boats. Huanchaco is also well known for its excellent seafood restaurants.
- Pyramids of the sun and the moon
Located 8 km from Trujillo are two pyramids: One measuring 43 meters tall and dedicated to the sun god. This huaca (sacred place) was the political and administrative center of the Mochica culture and a home to the upper classes. The second temple, the Huaca de la Luna, lies half a kilometer from the Huaca del Sol. This huaca was a religious and ceremonial center dedicated to Moche mythology.
- The Lady of Cao
This is the mummy of a woman who was discovered in the El Brujo archeological complex in the department of La Libertad, 45 km from the city of Trujillo. It is believed that she was a governor of the northern regions of the Peruvian coast and a member of the Moche culture, approximately in the fifth century. She was one of the few women believed to have held power because she was buried with jewels and the clothes appropriate to someone of a very high status.