a photo journal
a photo journal
18 May 2011
Known as the “people of the sun, sand and wind,” the Wayúu have lived in the semi-arid, Wild West landscape of La Guajira peninsula, where the desert meets the Caribbean Sea at the northernmost point of South America, for centuries. Fiercely territorial and wisely learning how to use firearms and ride horses, they are among few ethnic groups in Latin America to have successfully resisted European colonization.
Nowadays, they are Colombia’s largest indigenous group, with estimates of more than 250,000 people divided into some 30 matriarchal clans who live in traditional rancherias – small, isolated communities made up of several houses – between Colombia and Venezuela.
Salinas de Manaure, the exploitation of the vast amount of salt.
This gorgeous bay has several islands. And a large colony of flamingos also calls the shallow waters of this breathtaking place home.
An arduous two-day journey into the desert of La Guajira will take you deep into the unknown, into the remote territory that characterizes Colombia’s remote northern coastline. Silent stretches of sand extend for miles and miles until they spill out onto the Caribbean coastline, eventually carrying you all the way to Punta Gallinas, the northernmost tip of South America.
This exceptional and extremely remote beach at the very northern tip of the South American continent is La Guajira’s highlight. Massive sand dunes drop off dramatically into the Caribbean, forming an ethereal landscape that’s a pleasure to slide down and swim at.
That’s the place I’d like to lay down after I’ll pass away.
That’s the real capital of the Wayúu tribe. The place where is really nothing to do.
