August has claimed us. One the month’s first day, Cusco carried out a ceremony in honor of the Pachamama (Earth Mother) to which many people came as usual. The great majority brought offerings to the earth. In this way our month began. It is known mostly, though, as the month of winds.
During the whole month more and more wind arrives. The pass by and blow strongly throughout the city. They will be especially felt in the higher parts of the city. People who inhabit the hillsides often experience enormous gusts of wind.
The strong winds come mostly in the afternoon, beginning around 3 pm. Their force grows day by day. On the other hand, in the morning everything is still and the sun is radiant.
During this month of August people practice the game of kites. We call them cometas or comets. Parents take the charge of buying them for their children. Wholesalers bring kites with many different colors and designs to all the stores. The strong winds are not an excuse for the children to fly kites, rather they run from their homes, filled with energy, to practice this enjoyable game that is always performed in this month. Besides doing so whenever they can on weekdays, their families tend to leave home of weekends and Sundays to go to the highest hills where they send their kites up into the sky as high as possible with the help of the winds at the same time they have a good time with their families.
Sometimes the wind blow so strongly that they carry off belongings and even the roofs of houses, especially the ones made of corrugated tin. This only happens to the houses found in the highest places.
Making payments (offerings) to the earth, enjoying the enchanting game of comets, kites, and especially feeling the breezes, some strong and some mild, is how we live this beautiful month of August.
