When in Peru, do as the Peruvians do. On Sunday, that means attending a Catholic Church. We made our way from Sancayuni Alto to Pueblo for mass at 11 with the aid of a map that Aloy drew just for us. As we entered the stone church in the Plaza de Armas of Pueblo, there were a few other tourists milling about outside including what appeared to be a group of Peruvian tourism students from UNA. It was interesting to watch them take pictures of the town and the locals just like foreign tourists would.
Inside the church, decoration was very sparse with only a few small paintings and religious statues and plastic flowers strung from the ceiling and a donation box appealing to tourists. Basically nobody showed up at first, and we were just about to leave at 11:15 when people began flowing in! First came normal looking locals, men and women and a few children, who deposited themselves in the back rows. Then we noticed that a small ceremony of sorts was taking place in the plaza by the flagpoles. A group of men dressed in black suits and fedoras were singing something and using decorative whip-like contraptions for some ritual. Fearing we might be about to witness a funeral, Madeline and I moved back about 4 rows at this point.
We did indeed end up witnessing mass on Amantaní, not a funderal, but moving back was still a wise idea. The black-attired men soon proceeded into the church and filled the 3 rows in front of us. They were followed by women in the most elaborate traditional outfits I have seen - black, embroidered all over with birds, flowers, and intricate, colorful designs. These women filled in the rows directly opposite the men and then the service began.
Later in the day, when we described our experience to Aloy, he clarified what had been going on. The group of men were leaders of each of the 10 villages on Amantaní, as well as the governor of Amantaní and Tequile, plus the mayor of Amantaní. The women were the wives of these important men. Apparently, every Sunday this group gathers at the Pueblo Plaza for a weekly meeting. Part of the ritual appears to be attending church. Given that it was a formality of sorts would explain why few of these men or women seemed very interested in the mass itself. While the priest (?) was leading the service (prayers seemed to be in Spanish while the sermon (?) was in Quechua) the men were exchanging coca leaves among the colorful cloth bags they carry for this purpose. This is a traditional way of greeting on the islands.
We had to leave at 11:45, so I don't know how long mass lasted. When we stepped outside, we were amazed to see that it was filled with people waiting outside in what looked like their nice clothes. We later found out from Aloy that every week after mass, the group of officials will leave the church and have a meeting in the plaza concerning island news. Each community can have its say in important decisions, and the representatives can spread the news they learn back to their respective villages. Aloy said that today's discussion concerned getting a doctor on the island in the near future, something they sorely need.
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