Cusqueña
Sacred Valley, Peru 2003
The Cusqueña group gets its name for the large quantity of cerveza cusqueña (the local beer) that most participants drank throughout the Peruvian workshop. We were so much into this name that in the end we even bought the jerseys of the local Cuzco soccer team that was sponsored by the brewery as you can see in the picture in the students’ gallery (we were almost a complete soccer team with nine students and the teacher). Besides this fun part, I’d easily say that this workshop was the most intense that I have had this year. Not only did we have to get used to the high altitude of the Peruvian Andes, but we also worked really hard throughout the seven days spent in Cuzco. We always felt welcome by the locals and a good flow of energy was always surrounding us. Every day we would spend long hours photographing the many aspects of daily life including the unforgettable religious festivities. Not to mention the breath-taking views of the snow-capped mountains that were our daily backdrops while driving around the Sacred Valley. Not having to edit the film on a daily basis gave us extra time to take more pictures. The hard core of the group (which was comprised of the Italian and the Latin American contingents) found the necessary stregth to even go out and party almost every night. The last day in the Cuzco area we even had the opportunity to spend sometime relaxing in the hot springs while taking pictures as well. The last three days spent in Lima editing were great. We looked at over 250 rolls of film. In the end we selected several images by each student. The spirit of the group was so strong that it was hard to say goodbye when time was up. EB
