Gera - Saraguro Indigenous Community

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Gera montain and valley vista

Gera is an indigenous Saraguran community that retains the traditional architectural styles, dress, and their language, Kichwa. It boasts a phenomenal vista of the mountains and valleys.

In this community we will be served the traditional Wajango (typical drink) made from the pucara, a local type of cactus, and visit the ethnographic museum in the community, displaying some of the instruments which were and/or are used by this indigenous ethnic group in their daily lives as well as their clothing and costumes.

Tasting the fresh wajango

The liquid is a daily beverage for the family, it aids in the digestion process. If left to ferment for 3-5 days, it becomes a potent alcoholic beverage. It can also be boiled down into a sweet honey consistency substance and used as a natural sweetener, or, eggs are added, the liquid is spun with a stick into “espuma” or a substance similar to marshmallow fluff.

At Gera, there is a beautiful hike to the historic site of Pucara, an excellent viewpoint of the Yungilla Valley. Once there will be have an historical interpretation of the place, a snack is served and then we descend 500 meters along pre-Columbian agricultural terraces used for different agricultural crops of this community. On the return walk, we continue to observe a large number of archaeological remains and a rural landscape of the first order for its historic interest and the degree of conservation of its environment.
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