A Guide To PIURA
Originally founded by Francisco Pizarro in 1532, near the present-day city of Sullana, the Colonial city of Piura moved several times until settling at its current location in 1588. Inland, low, and surrounded by the Sechura Desert, Piura is the hottest city in Peru.
Piura Cathedral in the Equatorial sun.
Like most Peruvian towns, the Plaza de Armas is the centre point of Piura.
Overlooking the plaza is Puira Cathedral (Basílica Catedral San Miguel Arcángel), parts of which date back to the 16th Century; but most of the structure was added on in bits and pieces later. Its highlights include paintings by local artist, Ignacio Merino (1817-1876).
A block southeast of the Plaza de Armas, Jirón Lima boasts the most Colonial character of any street in town.
A block southwest of the plaza is Casa Grau, the birthplace of Admiral Miguel Grau (1834-1879), a hero of the War of the Pacific against Chile (1879–1884). The Peruvian Navy has restored the house, which is now a naval museum.
Two blocks east of the plaza, the River Piura barely runs during the dry months … but can become a deadly torrent during bad El Niño years. In 1998, the bridge crossing the river on Bolgnesi Avenue collapsed. (It has since been rebuilt!)
In the basement of the Municipal Museum, Museo de Oro Vicus houses a small but fine collection of gold work from the little-known Vicus culture (200 B.C. to A.D. 300), which was thought to have been a local offshoot of the Moche.
Street Vendor Selling Handicrafts in Catacaos.
Several small towns in the Department of Piura are of interest.
Locals and visitors alike head 12 km (7.5 miles) southwest to the dusty village of Catacaos, known for its crafts market, typical restaurants, and elaborate Holy Week festivities.
The crafts market is busiest on weekends, when several blocks near the Plaza de Armas are covered with stalls selling panama hats, leather ware, ceramics, wood carvings, and fine silver filigree.
Hole-in-the-wall picanterías (typical restaurants) are busiest at lunch, when citizens of Piura come to feast on seco de cabrito (stewed kid goat served with rice and yucca or beans), seco de chavelo (salted beef and plantain stew), or copuz (stewed goats heads). Plenty of less-adventurous meals are also available.
Chulucanas Pottery.
Chulucanas, 38 miles (60 km) east of Piura, vies with Catacaos for title of best northern craft village.
Unlike Catacaos, which sells a little bit of everything, Chulucanas is famed nationwide for its distinctive, rounded, earthen-colored ceramics depicting people, especially the chichera, a large lady that sells chicha (a traditional drink made of maize).
The Port of Paita.
Out on the coast, the historic but almost forgotten port of Paita, 57 km (36 miles) due west of Piura, has been an important harbour since before the Spanish conquest.
It became a Spanish Colonial port and received attention from pirates, buccaneers, and even Sir Francis Drake (1540–1595), the English admiral who first sailed around the world.
Manuela Saénz (1797-1856), the mistress of liberator Simón Bolívar (1783-1830), lived the last years of her life, destitute, in Paita. Her simple house still stands, but is privately owned.
San Lucas de Colan Church.
15 km (9 miles) north of Paita is the popular white-sand beach at Colan.
Nearby, the Dominicans built San Lucas de Colan Church in 1536. Reputedly Peru’s oldest church, it is in surprisingly good condition and still in use today.
The ocean here is warm year-round, about 76–82˚F (24.5–28˚C), and the swimming is good.
How to Visit Piura:
Piura, with its well-served airport, is often used as a jumping-off point for visiting Peru’s Northern Beaches.
PeruNorth can arrange nights in the city before or after our Pacific Beach Extension, with a tour of Piura and Catacaos.