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| Destination Information |
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| LAMBAYEQUE |
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| ► About the city |
The department of Lambayeque is located on the coastal plain and combines arid zones, rich valleys, and dry forests. Chiclayo, bordered by fertile valleys and very close to the ocean, is the capital of the department and the commercial nexus among the three Peruvian regions: coast, highland, and jungle.
This territory was the cradle of the Mochicas, who lived there between the first and fourth centuries A.D., which makes Lambayeque one of the most interesting archeological destinations in the country. It was in 1987 that the famous royal tombs of Sipán were discovered, the burial remains of an important Mochican ruler. Besides the Sipán archeological site, you can visit the modern Royal Tombs of Sipán Museum that contains the most extraordinary gold pieces found in the excavations. Likewise, it is worth a visit to the Brunning Museum, located in the province of Lambayeque, and to the Sicán Museum, located in the province of Ferreñafe.
Túcume is another archeological site of unique beauty. There, you will see more than twenty adobe pyramids, all approximately forty meters high, that belong to the Lambayeque culture and which are nestled in an area full of wildlife and abundant vegetation. Another must see in Lambayeque is the Chaparrí Ecological Reserve, located in the district of Chongoyape. Here, the dry forests and the biodiversity they shelter are preserved.
Lambayeque also boasts one of the best cuisines in the country: exquisite rice with duck competes with cebiche in a competition where the gourmands are always the winners. The lovely port and beach resort of Pimentel and the tradition town of Saña with its Colonial houses and churches in ruins round out the attractions of this fascinating department.
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| ► Useful Information |
| Altitude |
Capital: Chiclayo (29 msnm)
Lowest point: 4 masl / 13 fasl (Pimentel)
Highest point: 3078 masl / 10.098 fasl (Incahuasi) |
| Climate |
The city of Chiclayo has an arid, warm climate with an average annual maximum temperature of 26.2ºC (79.2ºF) and a minimum of 17.3ºC (63.1ºF). When the El Niño Phenomenon happens, the climate varies, the level of precipitation rises and the temperature can increase. |
| Access Routes |
By land: Lima – Chiclayo: 770 km (479 miles) on the Pan-American Highway North (10 hours by car)
By air: Regular flights from Lima to Chiclayo (1 hour) |
| Distances |
Ferreñafe(Province of Ferreñafe) 18 km / 20 minutes
Lambayeque(Province of Lambayeque) 12 km / 10 minutes. |
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| ► Directory: |
| Airports |
Jose Abelardo Quiñones Gonzales International Airport Avenida Bolognesi. Telephone: (074) 23-3192. Attention: 24 hours |
| Overland Transport |
Chiclayo Avenida Víctor Raúl Haya de la Torre, block 2. Attention: 24 hours |
| Health Centers |
- Chiclayo
Almanzor Aguinaga Asenjo National Hospital
Calle Hipólito Unanue 180, Chiclayo. Telephone: (074) 23-7776. Attention: 24 hours
- Docente Las Mercedes Regional Hospital Avenida Luis Gonzales 635, Chiclayo. Telephone: (074) 23-8232 / 23-7411 / 23-7021. Attention: 24 hours
- Lambayeque
Belén Hospital of Lambayeque
Calle Ramón Castilla 597, Lambayeque. Telephone: (074) 28-1190. Attention: 24 hours |
| Local Police |
Comisaría de Chiclayo (Chiclayo Police Station). Calle Vicente de la Vega 1182, Chiclayo.
Telephone: (074) 27-0751. Attention: 24 hours
Tourism Police. Avenida Sáenz Peña 830, Chiclayo Telephone: (074) 23-5181. Attention: 24 hours |
| Craft Market |
Paseo Artesanal. Calle Colón, block 1 |
| Postal Services |
- Chiclayo. Jiron Elías Aguirre 140. Telephone: (074) 23-7031. Attention: Mon. – Sat. 8:00 A.M. – 8:30 P.M.; Sun. 8:00 A.M. – 2:00 P.M.
- Lambayeque. Jiron Atahualpa 120. Telephone: (074) 28-2246. Attention: Mon. – Sat. 8:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M. |
| Tourist Information |
Regional Government of LAMBAYEQUE www.regionlambayeque.gob.pe
IPerú, tourist information click aquí |
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| ► Chiclayo and surroundings |
Cathedral of Chiclayo
Center of the city. Visiting hours: Mass time
This Neoclassical church dates back to 1869. The entrance has two doors and is flanked by Doric columns that stand in front of three arches. Inside, the building is formed by three naves and the highlight is the carved wooden image of Cristo Pobre (the Poor Christ).
Palacio Municipal de Chiclayo (Chiclayo City Hall)
Calle San Jose 823
It is a Republican building with wide windows and doors of forged iron. It was built in 1919, and the estimated cost was something around 30.000 pounds of gold.
Capilla de La Veronica (The Veronica Chapel)
Calle Torres Paz 294. Visiting hours: Mass time
The temple originated as a rustic shelter or small chapel that probably offered masses for the dead and celebrated festivals for the saints of the communities of Cinto and Collique. The church, built in 1840, is constructed on a rectangular plane with twin bell towers and a small atrium. Its domed ceiling is held up by beams of plastered carob wood, and its upper panel and niches are covered in bronze leaves.
Plazuela Elias Aguirre (Elias Aguirre Square)
Located between Calle Elias and Calle San Jose (block 3)
It was constructed in 1924 in honor of Commander Elias Aguirre, Chiclayan hero in the Battle of Angamos and one of the fighters in the War of the Pacific (1879). The designer of this plaza was the Peruvian sculptor David Lozano.
Mercado Artesanal de Monsefú (Monsefu Craft Market)
14 km / 9 miles south of Chiclayo (15 minutes by bus) Monsefu is known for its straw weaving – hats, baskets, purses, and saddle bags – as well as works of cotton and thread. It is also famous for embroidery with gold and silver threads. There, you can find delicate napkins, table cloths, blouses, skirts, ponchos, and embroidered cloaks.
Eten
22 km / 14 miles south of Chiclayo (25 minutes by bus) This Third Eucharistic City of the World celebrates with intense religious fervor the Fair of the Divine Child of the Miracle, which comemorates his appearance in the Consecrated Host three times on 22nd July 1619. It is the artisanal capital of “macora” straw weaving and delicate embroidery. The beach of Eten is located 2 km / 1 miles from the city.
Saña
46 km / 29 miles southeast of Chiclayo (1 hour and 30 minutes by bus) In Saña, you are able to see the remains of what once was the vice royal city founded in 1563. It is a ghost town, the origin of legends and stories such as the one that tells the invasion and sacking suffered inflicted bythe pirate Edward Davis in 1686. It was destroyed by the El Niño Phenomenon in 1720.
Today, it houses the remains of the San Agustín and San Francisco Convents as well as the porch of the Iglesia La Merced (Mercy Church). This is also the cradle of such Afro-American dances as the erotic “Golpe de Tierra” (Strike the Ground), the tondero, and the festejo.
Archeological Complex of the Huaca Rajada – Señor de Sipán
(Lord of Sipan)
35 km / 22 miles southeast of Chiclayo (45 minutes by car) It is located at the borders of what once was the Pomalca plantation. There, in 1987, a tomb of a Mochican ruler, later named the Lord of Sipan, was discovered with intact vestiges. The findings allowed experts to learn about the burial rituals of a Mochican sovereign who was buried with a warrior, a priest, two women, a boy, a dog, a llama, and a guardian with both feet amputated. The burial paraphernalia included numerous items of gold and silver jewelry inlaid with turquoise and lapis lazuli.
The pre-Inca construction, or huaca, is formed by a burial platform and two truncated adobe pyramids that also belonged to the Mochican culture (first – fourth centuries A.D.).
Pimentel Beach Resort
11 km / 7 miles west of Chiclayo (15 minutes by car) This modern beach resort is a good place to surf. You can also observe fishermen who still make use of the ancestral rafts, “caballitos de totora” (little horses of totora reeds), traditionally used on the north coast of Peru since the pre-Colombian era.
Chaparri Ecological Reserve
95 km / 59 miles southeast of Chiclayo (1 hour and 30 minutes by car)
Visits upon phone reservation – (074) 433194 – 452299
This area of 34.412 hectares belongs to the Muchik Santa Catalina de Chongoyape farming community. This is the first private conservation area in Peru. Its main objective is the preservation of the dry forests in the area and the rich biodiversity that it shelters. Also, it hopes to establish a mechanism that will allow for the sustainable use of its natural resources. Important endangered species found there are the spectacled bear, the guanaco, the white winged guan, and the Andean condor.
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| ► Lambayeque |
City of Lambayeque
12 km / 8 miles northeast of Chiclayo (10 minutes by bus)
Here beautiful colonial homes are preserved like la Casa Cúneo and la Casa Descalzi but the most famous is la Casa de la Logia Masónica (Masonic Temple) which owes its fame to the ancient balcony carved more than 400 hundred years ago. This balcony is 64 meters / 210 feet long, which is considered the largest in Peru. The house is located at the intersection of Calle Dos de Mayo and Calle San Martín. Other important buildings in the city are the sixteenth century Church of San Pedro and the City University, home of the Pedro Ruiz Gallo National University.
San Pedro Church of Lambayeque
12 km / 8 miles northeast of Chiclayo (10 minutes by bus) in the Main Square of the city of Lambayeque Dating from the middle of the seventeenth century, it is characterized by its twin towers, three naves, and central arcade. In the naves along the sides are many Rococo golden wood panels that date back to the eighteenth century. Of these, the most well known is Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes (Our Lady of Mercy). Behind some of the panels, walls decorated with murals have been found that are 5 centuries old.
Museo Nacional Tumbas Reales de Sipán (Royal Tombs of Sipan National Museum)
City of Lambayeque. Avenida Juan Pablo Vizcardo y Guzmán. Telephone / Fax: (074) 28-3977.
Telephone: (074) 28-3978.
Email: tumbasdesipan@hotmail.com. Website. www.tumbasreales.org Visiting hours: Tues. – Sun. 9:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M.
This modern architectural building houses the collection of archeological objects of gold, silver, and copper found in the tomb of the Lord of Sipan. The museum is directed by the archeologist Watler Alva, manager and director of the project, who was also the discoverer of the tomb in the archeological zone of the Huaca Rajada in the town of Sipan. Among the many important pieces are earrings, ceremonial scepters, medallions, a heavy circular gold ingot, nose rings, gold necklaces in the shape of peanuts, a gold chin and cheek mask, gold back flap, and gold disks worn around the neck.
Museo Arqueológico Nacional Bruning (Bruning National Archeological Museum)
City of Lambayeque. Avenida Huamachuco, block 8. Telephone: (074) 28-2110. Fax: (074) 28-3440. Visiting hours: Mon. – Sun. 9:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M. including holidays Here, a collection of archeological objects gathered by the German ethnographer Enrique Bruning is displayed. The four floors of the museum show ceramic, textile, stone and wood worked artifacts. Taken together, they demonstrate the vigorous artistic and technological character of the regional cultures of the past 5000 years. The “Sala de Oro” (Gold Room) of this museum is an exhibition of the priceless historic treasure of the pre-Colombian America.
Huaca Chotuna Archeological Complex
12 km / 8 miles west of Chiclayo (15 minutes by car)
This group of truncated pyramids and buildings covers an area of approximately 20 hectares. The legend of Naymlap and the founding of the Lambayeque culture are identified with this place. The legend tells us that Naymlap himself ordered the construction of one of the temples here, identified as Chot, a place where he set an idol of green stone known as Ñam Pallec. Even today, the inhabitants fear and respect the center since they believe that Naymlap and his descendents still live in the depths of the earth.
Tucume Archeological Complex
1 km / 0,6 miles from the town of Tucume (10 minutes by car) or 33 km / 21 miles north of Chiclayo (20 minutes by car). Telephone: (074) 80-0052. Visiting hours:Mon. – Sun. 8:00A.M.–4:30P.M. (except Christmas).
Email: museotucume@hotmail.com
According to the legend, it was built in the year 700 A.D. and was founded by Calac, descendent of Naymlap. Tucume, or Valle de las Pirámides (Valley of the Pyramids), is made up of twenty-six pyramids, the most impressive ones being the Huaca del Pueblo, La Raya, El Sol, and Las Estacas. Besides of archeology richness, other programs are offered such as testing of the local cuisine, shamanistic experiences, traditional medicine, and cultural exchange. Tucume stands out for its level of community involvement in the preservation of its natural and cultural heritage.
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| ► Province of Ferreñafe |
City of Ferreñafe
18 km / 11 miles northeast of Chiclayo (20 minutes by car) Founded by the Spanish, this agricultural town is dedicated to growing rice. The main feature is the ancient church of Santa Lucía, a Baroque style construction. This area is known as the “Tierra de la doble fe” (Land of two faiths) for maintaining the beliefs of Catholicism and shamanism at the same time.
Santa Lucia Church of Ferreñafe
18 km / 11 miles north of Chiclayo (25 minutes by car), across from the Main Square Built in 1552, it exhibits unique Baroque wood carvings and marble altars. Architecturally it is characterized by columns with angular points that decorate the façade, that show in precise details the “Eyes of Saint Lucia”, patron saint of the city, between its two towers with semicircular cupolas.
Museo Nacional Sicán (National Sican Museum)
Avenida Batán Grande on the highway to Pitipo, 18 km / 11 miles north of Chiclayo (30 minutes by car). Telephone / fax: (074) 28-6469. Email: celera27@yahoo.es Visiting hours: Tues. – Sun. 9:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M.
Sican or House of the Moon is a museum that gathers objects from the research lead by the archeologist Izumi Shimada, director of the Sican Archeological Project (1978), for more than two decades. The exhibition compiles the artifacts found in the site digs of Batán Grande and demonstrates how they were used or fabricated. The intention is to model different aspects linked to the Sican culture through the representation of the details of domestic life, the manufacturing processes, or production work. The rooms represent excavated tombs and exhibit the burial paraphernalia discovered there. The museum also offers detailed information on the excavation process and site preservation, as well as the chronology, development, trade networks, economic activities, burial patterns, and cosmology of the Sican or Lambayeque cultures.
Pomac Forest Historic Sancturary
35 km / 22 miles north of Chiclayo (1 hour by car)
This dry forest is a refuge for carob trees, birds, and at the same time for Sican archeological remains. Here are twenty pre-Inca mounds, called huacas, like Las Ventanas Huaca, Huaca Lucía, Huaca La Merced or Huaca Rodillona. The archeological discoveries have been surprising because of the quantity of gold objects found. The Sican Archeological Project located a tomb with valuable burial items composed of crowns, rings, masks, bracelets, necklaces, weapons, armor, and other objects of gold and semiprecious stones like turquoise, spondylus (red sea shell), lapis lazuli, and amber. The forest is full of varied flora of zapote (quararibea sp), guarango, and carob trees.
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| ► Tourism, research and preservation in the Valley of the Pyramids |
Program featuring archaeological tourism with the Tucume pyramids complex, one of the country´s most important pre-inca centers because of the dimensions and quality of its structures, as the main attraction.
Comprised of dozens of mud-brick pyramids formed around the sacred mountain of La Raya, the valley offers observation expeditions to museums and archaeological sites, participation in archaeological research, healing rituals and ora traditions.
Throughout the trip, there is an intensive cultural exchange with local residents through visits to workshops where textiles and pottery are handmade, participation in religious festivities and sampling of exquisite and varied cooking.
Innovative elements: A unique experience, which combines archaeological tourism and intensive interaction with local residents. Also worth highlighting is the active participation of the community in the development of tourism and in the preservation of its natural and cultural heritage.
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| ► Batan Grande (Sican) Archeological Complex |
It is a group of twenty mud pyramids spread out over a 46 km2 area within the Batan Grande Hacienda. It is made up of the huacas (mounds) Botija, Colorada, Horno de los Ingenieros, Huaca Loro, La Merced, El Santillo, Las Abejas, La Ventana, Rodillona, La Facho, Cholope, Arena, Corte, and others, which were all built in the middle of a stand of carob trees.
The archeological discoveries astonish us for the sheer amount of golden objects found there, and it is believed to be the development center of the Lambayeque or Sican culture. During the research, a tomb was discovered containing valuable funeral paraphernalia such as crowns, belts, masks, bracelets, collars, weapons, armor, and other gold objects besides turquoise, spondylus shell, lapis lazuli and amber beads. You can find a large amount of this collection at the National Sican Museum
The complex is located in the Pomac Forest Historic Sanctuary, which shelters the most important natural carob tree forest in Peru.
The National Sican Museum
Sican or House of the Moon is a museum that gathers objects from the research lead by the archeologist Izumi Shimada, director of the Sican Archeological Project (1978), for more than two decades.
The exhibition compiles the artifacts found in the site digs of Batán Grande and demonstrates how they were used or fabricated. The intention is to model different aspects linked to the Sican culture through the representation of the details of domestic life, the manufacturing processes, or production work. The rooms represent excavated tombs and exhibit the burial paraphernalia discovered there.
The museum also offers detailed information on the excavation process and site preservation, as well as the chronology, development, trade networks, economic activities, burial patterns, and cosmology of the Sican or Lambayeque cultures.
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| ► The Royal Tombs of Sipán |
In the fourth century AD, the Moche people buried one of their greatest warlords. He was buried with his head pointing south, his nose and ears covered with gold relics and his feet clad in silver. To accompany him, his subjects sacrificed women, children and llamas, while the finest warriors of the era accompanied their overlord on his voyage to the Afterlife.
More than 1,700 years later, the warlord made his triumphant reappearance. Not that he did it by himself: in 1987, a team of archaeologists led by Walter Alva found the skeleton of the Lord of Sipán 29 km from the city of Chiclayo in the department of Lambayeque, on Peru's north coast. It was hailed as one of the most important archaeological finds of the century. The structure found in Sipán is made up of three pyramids, one of which contained the warrior-priest accompanied by the bodies of his followers.
But more than just the spectacular nature of the discovery and the sterling quality of the relics, the Royal Tombs of the Lord of Sipán have enabled historians and archaeologists to piece together much of the lost history of an impressive civilization which dominated most of northern Peru for centuries: the Moche.
After spending years on exhibit in the Americas, Europe and Asia, the treasures of the Lord of Sipán are now on display at the Museum "Tumbas Reales de Sipán" in the town of Lambayeque. This will ensure the ancient noble will continue to unravel his mysteries for future generations.
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