Thousands of foreign tourists, including dozens of Spaniards, are trapped in the Peruvian city of Cuzco, whose airport is closed, and in the vicinity of the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, as a result of the crisis in Peru.
Only in the vicinity of Machu Picchu, the country's main tourist destination, or in the nearby town of Aguas Calientes, there are some 800 people stranded, as a result of the suspension of the trains that connect the citadel with Cuzco.
The mayor of Machupicchu –official name of the municipality-, Darwin Baca, has requested the help of the Governments of Spain, the US or Mexico to evacuate the tourists on a helicopter airlift to Cuzco.
Some of the stranded people have made the journey on foot, a hundred kilometers between Ollantaytambo or Aguas Calientes and Cuzco. Among these, some even with wheeled suitcases on their backs, as in the case of some Colombian tourists, according to what La Vanguardia learned in a telephone communication with Cuzco. There are people who have also walked the 120 kilometers between this city and the Humantay lagoon, another of the region's tourist enclaves, due to roadblocks.
Videos of foreign tourists asking for help and who have been stranded on the road inside their buses for several days are already circulating on the internet.
In the city of Cuzco, the regional capital and gateway to Machu Picchu, thousands of tourists wait for the airport to reopen so they can return to Lima and leave Peru. The access roads are also closed and some pickets have seen scenes of aggression against drivers who claim their right to circulate.
Although there is no record that any tourist has been attacked –something rare in Peru-, there is concern in hotels and other accommodation where guests have been forced to extend their stay. Like the case that a Catalan backpacker reported by telephone to La Vanguardia, in whose hostel in Cuzco the owner asked the 60 tourists staying for help to block the entrance door from the inside with beds and other belongings in anticipation of a looting that never took place. as it did happen in several shops in the city.
The Spanish embassy in Lima issued a statement recommending against traveling to Peru and giving advice to Spaniards who are in the country. "The Embassy of Spain in Lima reiterates the recommendation to Spaniards residing or passing by in Peru that they remain attentive to the evolution of the situation, limit their movements as much as possible and, in any case, avoid approaching areas where they are being carried out. rallies or demonstrations. They are recommended to postpone trips to Peru, except in cases of absolute necessity," the statement reads.
The Spanish consulate in Peru has decided to close its doors this Thursday and Friday, although it attends to Spaniards through an emergency telephone.
