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Pro
Ancient site with both museum and outdoor venues
Con
$135 for visa for american's
In a nutshell
A must see destination on a side trip from La Paz
You've gotta see it to believe it
Assenczo Says: The Tiahuanacu site is large and the sun unrelenting. Still, the section called Puma Punktu is a bit out of the way but should not be missed. It has the evidence that the whole hubbub about the Inca achievements is as much a product of the imagination as the alpaca products...
jlvillalba Says: The famous carved figure on the decorated archway in the ancient (pre-Incan) city of Tiahuanaco, known as the "Gateway of the Sun," most likely represents Viracocha, flanked by 48 winged effigies, 32 with human faces and 16 with condor's heads. This huge monument is hewn...
jlvillalba Says: The entrance side of the Portal of the Sun atop the Kalasaya mound. The entire upper panel is intricately carved with a repeating pattern of the images seen in the view above. The monolith has broken and was found partially downfallen in modern times. It has been restored to...
Test the perfection of the wall
jlvillalba Says: insert finger and see the perfect flat panel.Some researchers have concluded that the ancients constructed the site with astronomical alignments in mind called Celestial Observatories.
jlvillalba Says: This is one of two large anthropomorphic figures standings in the southwest corner of the Kalasasaya Temple. This one faces the entrance and is placed on the central axis. The andesite stone used at the ruins was transported from 100 kilometers distance. The sandstone was...
SirRichard Says: This monolith is located in the Kalasasaya, in the open air and faces west. Is not as big as Bennett's but is quite impreressive too...It also represents what seems to be a white bearded man, with many symbolic carvings all around him.
SirRichard Says: This is the main temple here, and inside you will find:- The Sun Gate- The Ponce monolith- The Fraile monolithIt is all surrounded by walls and oriented west... exactly to the Easter Island, where you can find also monoliths that are very similar to those found...
SirRichard Says: You won't really see a pyramid here, but a hill at the right as you enter the ruins. Here is supposed to be this huge pyramid, similar to those in the aztec or mayan cultures.Is not really much unerathed, in fact there is not even a path to climb. But if you go to the top,...
Le solstice d'hiver se passe le 21 juin et se fut vraiment unique. Nous fêtons durant la nuit pour attendre le lever du soleil. Les rayons du soleil frappe sur une statue et passe dans une porte ( la puerta del sol) et tout est bien calculer, c'est des calculs vraiement scientifiques... et c'est prouvé...
Dress Code: Cerca de La Paz
Updated Sep 8, 2003
Assenczo Says: When looking at options of how to reach Tiahuanaco, there are on one side the organized tours and on the other the taxi. The first enterprise charges per person (10USD) and the second – per car, per day (30USD). Even for two people, the taxi becomes a bargain, since it can...
SirRichard Says: I arrived here in a mini bus from Desaguadero border (Peru). These mini buses go to La Paz, but will stop at the road junction if required.So I was left there, all alone in the road, and had 15 minutes walk to the ruins. I was preparing my heavy rucksack for the walk, when a...
The entrance to the ruins complex costs 80 BS (aprox 10 USD) and it includes:
- Entrance to the main museum
- Entrance to the other museum
- Entrance to the main ruins complex
- Entrance to Rumu Punku minor ruins
What to buy: You have to buy it at the main entrance and they cut a piece each time you enter each site.
Is much cheaper for Bolivians.
What to pay: 80 Bs / 10 USD
Written Jun 3, 2005
Helpfulness
Every June, 21 there is a celebration for the Aymara's New Year that matches the winter solstice. They wait all night to receive the first sunlights around the ruins. It's extremely cold so be prepared!
Written Jun 14, 2008
If you take the Desaguadero-La Paz bus you will have to stop at the main road junction and then walk a bit to the ruins.
But be aware of the road signs, local people don't use to stop here and driver might pass the junction without stoping. So look for the signs and warn him in advance.
It takes about 1 hour from the border to the junction...
Written Jun 3, 2005
madkap Says: When I travelled out to Tiahuanaco via micro (intending to put some money into the local economy) I discovered that the entry fee at the site was $80 bolivianos. However tour agencies in La Paz will charge a total of $50 Bolivianos, including transport to and from the site...
SirRichard Says: Not really a tourist trap, but I found all the signs around where in spanish. No problem for me, but if you don't really manage well in this language, you better bring a dictionary. I think that for a relatively expensive entrance fee (10 USD) they should considering adding...
AlbuqRay Says: Don't make the mistake that I did when you go to Tiahuanaco/Tiwanaku. I saw the small sign for Puma Punku but did not stop. It has not been restored but contains one of the big mysteries of the ancient world. It is still not known how those massive stones were cut and moved...
SirRichard Says: In the west face of the Sun Gate you will find all these carvings on the rock surface: messengers, warriors, Gods, snakes, condors, suns... it all seems to be part of a calendar related with agriculture and seasons.If you take a guide, he will explain to you the meaning of...
SirRichard Says: What I liked the best in Tiahuanaco were the outstanding stone faces that cover the walls in the semi-subterranean temple. There are many, in white stone out of the red walls, and each one is different, eroded by time and elements, silent witness of a civilizations so full...
SirRichard Says: Viracocha, Tiahuanaco's main deity, was generally depicted as having staves in both of his hands and anaureole around his head, meaning he was a sun god. It is represented on the bas-relief in the upper part of the famous Sun Gate and you will probably remember it from...
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The railroad is now abandoned but the tracks still run in front of the old museum building. The old railroad station sign says Tiahuanaco.
Once upon a time, before the incas...
Little is known of this amazing culture that once inhabited the south shore of Lake Titicaca. They were here before the Inca's domination and developed a relatively advanced culture, with many...
Build your own Tiahuanaco page
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