If there is one thing that I would want people to know about Peru, it’s that pictures don’t do it justice. Go there yourself and enjoy the sights. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking. Here are some examples. Enjoy.
Wednesday, June 1, 2016
9. If there is one thing you would want others to know about Peru, what would it be?
If there is one thing that I would want people to know about Peru, it’s that pictures don’t do it justice. Go there yourself and enjoy the sights. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking. Here are some examples. Enjoy.
If there is one thing that I would want people to know about Peru, it’s that pictures don’t do it justice. Go there yourself and enjoy the sights. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking. Here are some examples. Enjoy.
8. Explain being an American abroad. What types of conversations have you had about being “American” and how that has made you feel about your identity
As an American, I already have a reputation before I even enter another country. I am expected to be rude, loud, brash, and ignorant. Personally, I did not feel as though it affected my behavior when I was studying abroad. I did not feel the need to go out and try to buck that stereotype. I hope that just by acting like myself I would show people that the American stereotype is not always the case. We can be respectful and show the world that sometimes we do know how to behave.
As an American, I already have a reputation before I even enter another country. I am expected to be rude, loud, brash, and ignorant. Personally, I did not feel as though it affected my behavior when I was studying abroad. I did not feel the need to go out and try to buck that stereotype. I hope that just by acting like myself I would show people that the American stereotype is not always the case. We can be respectful and show the world that sometimes we do know how to behave.
7. What surprised you most about the engineering practices of the Incas? How do you think their culture and their interactions with other cultures affected their society and choices of creation of buildings/water ways/etc.
What surprised me the most about Incan engineering was their ability to move massive stones for miles across hills and valleys. It took massive organization of manpower to move 70 ton stones such as we saw at Saksaywaman. That scale of organization is amazing to me for a time when long distance communication was much slower and more difficult. Also, they were able to accomplish this without a written language. Instead, the Incas used quipus, a series of knots, to track information. Unfortunately, the knowledge of how to read quipus was lost and is still a mystery today.
Another amazing aspect of Incan accomplishments was that they advanced so far without much outside influence. Due to the geography of the Andes Mountain Range and Amazon Rainforest, the civilizations of the Andes grew without help from outside civilizations. The Incan culture developed over time from its local predecessors, as we witnessed at a Wari aqueduct and at a museum. They slowly learned how to adapt to their environment over the years until the Incas mastered it.
What surprised me the most about Incan engineering was their ability to move massive stones for miles across hills and valleys. It took massive organization of manpower to move 70 ton stones such as we saw at Saksaywaman. That scale of organization is amazing to me for a time when long distance communication was much slower and more difficult. Also, they were able to accomplish this without a written language. Instead, the Incas used quipus, a series of knots, to track information. Unfortunately, the knowledge of how to read quipus was lost and is still a mystery today.
Another amazing aspect of Incan accomplishments was that they advanced so far without much outside influence. Due to the geography of the Andes Mountain Range and Amazon Rainforest, the civilizations of the Andes grew without help from outside civilizations. The Incan culture developed over time from its local predecessors, as we witnessed at a Wari aqueduct and at a museum. They slowly learned how to adapt to their environment over the years until the Incas mastered it.
6. What are the current economic and social issues in Cusco? What are some of the political issues being talked about? As an engineering in the future-how do you think this would influence you if you were to conduct a program here
One night at dinner, we talked about politics with Mamatia. After explaining how none of us were Donald Trump supporters, thankfully, she told us a little bit about Peru’s political situation. The country is currently in the middle of a presidential election which is scheduled for its second of two rounds on June 5. One of the candidates is Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of former Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori. President Fujimori is currently serving a 25 year prison sentence for embezzlement, bribery, and human rights abuses. Mamatia explained that Peru’s government has a long history of corruption and that it is still a problem today. She did not really seem to favor any of the candidates, citing different problems with all of them. I find it interesting as I have very similar feelings of disfavor for the majority of candidates in the American presidential election.
As an engineer, I would be careful in conducting a program in this country because of the possible political instability. However, I did not notice any serious political tension in this country. I doubt that I would have to cancel any future programs in Peru do to political issues.
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