Today is a bus day, travelling up to Huaraz with Cruz del Sur. The service is basically that of a plane, with a hostess that brings a small meal whilst you watch a movie on your personal screen. I have to say the seats are pretty comfy, good armchair feel with recline and footrest. It is 8 hours up to Huaraz but great scenery as we wind our way up to the town which sits at 3,000masl.
Huaraz is a pretty ugly town, it was rebuilt after a earthquake in the 70s destroyed a lot of it. My impression of the town is that it is chaotic and noisy. They seem to play music all night from random shops, and there are loads of taxis that beep their horns just to let you know they are there, it’s constant. I do find good coffee and chips at Cafe Andino which ranks as a highlight of this town.
The good news is that I didn’t come here for the town, I came to hike in the surrounding Cordillera Blanca whose snow capped peaks I can already see from the town. My plan is to readjust to the higher altitude and then try to hike up to Laguna 69. I have booked a short hike for tomorrow to the Pastoruri glacier to help with the acclimatisation.
Lovely comfy seats!Traditional hats are taller in this regionPicture with a Llama in sunglasses?Plaza de ArmasLocal taxis
Nicki and Liam are in town today and so we arrange to explore together. This includes taxi negociations and it’s been a while since I have been in a city where you can’t just walk to key sights. First stop is the Plaza de Armas which sits at the heart of Lima’s historic center. This is the spot where Francisco Pizarro founded the city in 1535. A fountain serves as the square’s centerpiece, with key buildings framing the plaza. One is the Palacio de Gobierno, official home to Peru’s President, where we are headed to watch the changing of the guard at midday. As we arrive there are road closures and clearly a celebration starting. There are groups dressed in different traditional dress and a mounted guard band. The guards are actually playing ‘despacito’ which amazes me, fortunately this popular song moves on to more serious tones for the changing of the guard. It is a length process with a slow high kicking foot march, entertaining enough but we are distracted by the loud and lively icon procession coming out of the Catedral de Lima.
I am not sure what the celebration is for but it was fabulous to watch the different groups in a procession with religious icons and doing their dances. The most bizarre was the masked men carrying dead baby llamas on their backs whilst whipping each other round the ankles. It is all very colourful and everyone seems to be enjoying watching the procession. We are getting hot and hungry so I find a traditional sandwich spot where I have Chicharron filling, almost a hog roast! Just needs apple sauce and stuffing.
Nicki and Liam have the next destination as a cat park. Somewhat skeptically we catch a taxi to Parque Kennedy where it indeed is home to cats. A mix of abandoned and a feral population keeps us amused via a cat spotting game, I don’t think there are as many as the guys expected but they loved playing with the little kittens. We wander down the main Larco street to the Peruhop offices where we can bag a free T-shirt and I can book a tour for when Steve arrives.
After all the excitement we are flagging but a couple of scoops of ice cream serves as a pick me up as we walk to Larcomar. We visit a few shops and of course Paddington bear, a gift from the people of the UK (well he is from darkest Peru!).
I manage to show them a few bits of street art on the way back to Barranco but Nicki is clearly hobbling post the 18km run they did yesterday… we all take a rest before going to dinner nearby. I go home and pack ready for the bus tomorrow whilst they visit the fountain show. It looks lots of fun, so one for the list when I come back.
High kicks for changing of the guardA feline resident of Parque KennedyLiam & Nicki meet the Bear
Today is a little overcast and smoggy. My plan is to stay in Barranco for the day as it is known as a bohemian and artsy district. First I visit the Museum of Pedro De Osma, more for the building than the collections it houses. It has lots of colourful flowers and birds surrounding the building. The main house has wonderful long stained glass windows which are different themes in each room. In terms of collections it has a wealth of religious art and a big silver collection. The more captivating is the history of the last Inca family and traditional artefacts from the period.
Next door is the MATE gallery, which showcases the work of Mario Testino. He is primarily a fashion photographer but famously photographed Lady Diana for her Vogue cover. The photos are really good, particularly his series of celebrity party shots. There are a couple of guest exhibitions with a sense of the strange ‘art’ subjects including one of a reflective disc in a dark room….wierd.
Back to my barrio browsing and I walk down underneath the ‘bridge of sighs’ (which is a small wooden bridge across the cleave) to the sea. I sit on the shoreside to watch the people enjoying the promenade . Walking back, I take a route that was recommended to see some great street art. One of my favourites is a monkey spaceman.
I enjoy a local dish of anticucho for dinner, which is spiced beef kebab skewers, together with boiled potatoes and white corn. I also manage to find a delicious heladeria for a couple of scoops of dessert before heading back.
Museo Pedro De OsmaWork of Mario Testino at MATEBridge of SighsBarrio graffiti
I would have liked a lie in, but it seems my body clock to primed for a 6.30am wake up. The hostel do a great breakfast with eggs and I spend most of the morning planning the next two weeks. Steve arrives into Lima on the 7th July, and I think this gives me good time to see three towns in the north of Peru with a bit of hiking.
Today is Nicole’s birthday, so once she is functioning post last night’s hangover we arrange to meet at Laromar. This is a shopping complex on the edge of Miraflores barrio that overlooks the sea. The walk up there shows the contrast between the colourful Barranco and the high rises of Miraflores. Once I find Nicole we go to a photography exhibition of the world’s press, it’s good and reminds me of how much is going on in the world outside of my adventure.
We enjoy a couple of cakes while watching the sunset to celebrate Nicole being a year older before parting as Nicole is still feeling rough. I enjoy beef noddles at a Asian restaurant, looking forward more of the renown culinary delights of Lima.View from Miraflores to BarrancoNicole excited for Birthday cake
This morning we have a short tour of the Paracas Reserve. It is a dissapointing tour, stopping briefly at a few lookouts but the area itself is interesting. The presence of different minerals creates different coloured sand which in turn makes for a dramatic landscape. The biggest contrast is found at the Red beach where the shoreline is a maroon colour.
Back in Paracas, we head to lunch in a small hut that is famous for its flounder cerviche. My first Peruvian cerviche is fresh, tart from the lime and packs a punch from the chilli too. The chef is a good laugh and makes me finish all the tiger milk even though my mouth is on fire. We stroll along the shore front killing time before our evening bus to Lima.
Peruhop include a stop and tour of San Jose, a country mansion about an hour out of Paracas. It was built in the 17th century, first owned by the jesuits then as they were thrown out of the country a rich Spanish woman aquired it and it stayed in her family for 4 generations. It is a beautiful hotel now, but the real history is told in the story of the tunnels.
It was a time when the estate used African slaves to work the land. These were bigger and stronger than the Peruvian workers and owning slaves showed wealth or power. The slaves were bought but the new owners would then need to pay a tax for each. To avoid this the family built tunnels under the house to bring the slaves in under darkness. The slaves would be bought at the port and smuggled down the tunnels to walk 17km to the house. Once there they were held underground for 2 weeks to release people into the workforce slowly and avoid suspicion. We visited a couple of holding rooms and they were really small for us, a group of 14. I can’t imagine being in the dark with 40 people, it would be awful conditions.
We saw several of the slave branding irons and the torture tools utilised if any tried to escape. In 1856 the act was passed giving freedom to all slaves. The owner of this estate hid the new law for almost a year, once word got out the slaves revolted and killed the owner of the house on the steps of the mansion. A fitting end to a cruel family.
We arrived in Lima at midnight and I was thrilled to be the first drop off so I could tuck myself up in bed!
The Cathedral rockThe Red beachLiam contemplating lifeRebecca & Nancy enjoying cakeMy first cevicheWalking into the slave tunnels Steps of San Jose
It’s like being in a movie, I have woken up in a real friggin oasis! Sit outside for breakfast just enjoying watching this sleepy place wake up. Nicole is on a lunchtime bus to Paracas where as I leave tonight, so time for a morning Pisco vineyard tour.
The South American people prefer sweet wine (well, sweet anything). The Spanish brought the grapes and utilised the Inca jars for effective fermentation. The weather is so warm here that it just takes 2 weeks for fermentation, less for semisec wines. We try a couple of wines that are tasty but super sweet, a Pisco that is 14% and tastes of mouthwash but finally a creme version similar to baileys. I like this so much I have it as a sauce on my ice cream!
I met two American ladies yesterday and we spend the afternoon by the oasis enjoying a brownie. My ankle is still swollen, so no walking up the dunes for me let alone sandboarding. This evening we, along with Liam & Nicki are back on the bus for the short trip to Paracas.
Casks used since the Spanish for fermentationReady for Pisco tasting!
Pick up is at 05.15am today as I settle in for a full day on the bus. We are heading 13 hours up the coast to Huacachina. If we ignore my excitement at getting to watch Top Gun, the scenery was amazing. It was more interesting than I was expecting, once out of Arequipa we hit the coast and the beaches were lovely and totally deserted. The road wound through rocky parts and sand stones but we kept the sea for about two thirds of the trip. We stopped for lunch at a small fishing village called Chala which was really quaint and then headed north for 3 hours to Nazca.
We stopped briefly to climb a tower that gives a birds eye view of 2 of the designs. The Nazca lines were created 1900 years ago and surprisingly only discovered 100 years ago. They are still shrouded in mystery but are thought to have been gifts or prayers to the gods for water in this dry land.
We eventually arrive at Huacachina after sunset and I don’t feel too bad after such a long bus trip. Nicole is already here so we meet for a bite to eat and a cheeky beer.
Coast of Peru Nazca lines – ‘waving hands’ & ‘the tree’
Woke up after a surprisingly warm and cosy nights sleep. We packed our stuff and walked to the pub for breakfast. I was surprised to see it ready, not surprised to see the owner still hadn’t cleaned. Our breakfast was perhaps the strangest so far, a peeled and textured banana with two chocolate cookies and a flourish of chocolate sauce made a smiley face on the plate. Yogurt in a wine glass, bread and jam along with a boiled egg. The coffee was good and I happily wolfed it down before our short stroll to the plaza to meet the return bus.
As we waited I admired the traditional skirts and hats the woman of the area wear. They are very colourful and the hat looks great for sun protection. The group that hiked out of the canyon this morning looked tired and were quiet as the bus sped out of Cabanaconde. We passed the condor viewpoint to see lots of birds flying around today, guess yesterday just wasn’t a good day for them. Our first stop is a mirador that shows panoramic views of the inca terraces, laid out similar to rice fields in Asia. We stopped in traffic and spotted an ash cloud being thrown out of Sabancaya volcano.
We stopped at thermal baths outside Chivay which the hikers loved, but I obstained as my ankle is still swollen. A tasty buffet lunch followed and then two brief stops, one to see the alpacas in the reserve and the other at the highest point (4190m) to see the volcano range which includes Ampato, where Juanita was found.
We arrive back in Arequipa and Ali had messaged us that she had arrived in the city this evening. With Nicole getting on a bus this evening it was a quick dinner but a great catch up and sizzling steak selection at Zigzag.
Happy breakfast…Daily traditional stiff brimmed hatSabancaya volcano ash cloudInca TerracesOfferings at the highest point of the passSizzling steaksNicole, me & Ali
Pick up today is at 3am, I think this is the earliest so far. We have a 3 hour drive to Colca Canyon, and with a brief stop for breakfast we arrive at the Cruz de Condor by 7.30. It is important to be early as this is when the Condors are most active. We saw lots of Condors in the distance circling on the thermals but only a couple came close which was dissapointing. Back into the van and we were dropped off at the main square in Cabanaconde. It’s not a pretty village, the church is white with a painted arch but otherwise it is a series of small brick buildings with corrugated tin roofs (held down with a couple of rocks).
Our hostel is basic and the host is friendly enough, but could do with a bath. We ditch our stuff and head out for a coffee before starting a series of walks we have scoped out near the village. The first is to Mirador Achachiwa, this gives us a great view down the canyon and helps us appreciate how big it is. We walk along the top of the ridge for a bit enjoying the vista and the warm sun. On the way back we attract the interest of a wasp type creature which has a huge visible stinger, it takes some running and dodging to shake him off and in the process I stamp on a rock and twist my ankle which hurts but we manage to lose him.
Taking the route back to town we head out in the opposite direction to San Miguel point which has even better views of the ‘oasis’ town in the bottom of the canyon. On our way back we see a modern building which is abandoned by the looks of it, it seems to have been destined as a museum but 4 years later is just empty with the doors left open.
It is now lunchtime according to my stomach and we choose a local place with a friendly owner. The snacks are toasted maize kernels which are tasty. I have Caldo blanco, which is a broth type soup with Alpaca chunks, potatoes and chick peas. The main is a traditional dish of Chicharron. This is baked pork ribs with salted baked potatoes and onion garnish. It is all very tasty and a bargain £3.
Our final walk to Cejana viewpoint takes us through local farming terraces with donkeys and sheep grazing. The sun is lower now and creates some interesting shadows in the canyon. We sit for a bit enjoying the tranquility of the location before heading back while it is still light. My ankle is throbbing now so a cold towel and Ibprufen are administered.
I hobble behind Nicole to Pachamama hostel up the road that does wood fired pizza. The place is warm, filled with travellers exchanging stories and trekking plans. You can do some great multiday hikes along the towns in the base of the canyon. My pizza is herb based with a local cheese from Humbo, the deepest town in the canyon, over 4000m down. I manage to follow it with a strange passion fruit pannacotta before bidding goodbye to the warmth and hobbling back to our hostel.
Early morning walkColca CanyonCrop terracesTown cemetery My strange but tasty pannacotta
Today Nicole and I spend the morning thrashing out Colca Canyon options and planning a bit of forward travel. We settle on getting a tourist bus return to Cabanaconde which will stop at key points but leave us to our own devices to walk around the top of the canyon. We have to book it with the lady I don’t like and our first choice accommodation is under construction so our only option isa hostel called Valle de Fuego which looks pretty basic. It’s only one night, so we book it and move on with the day.
Eva is heading off for Huaraz this afternoon (about 16hours on a bus up the coast via Lima). We meet for lunch at Ratatouille and say our goodbyes. I hope to see her again in the northern part of Peru, but you never know. Nicole and I visit Santa Catalina Convent this afternoon.
Santa Catalina Convent is like a small citadel with streets leading between parts. It was built in the 17th century and has several styles of architecture added over the years. It was also affected by earthquakes in the area, the last big one in 2001. It is interesting to see how the nuns lived and there are still 21 sisters today but the setting provides great pictures and a lovely afternoon. It is colourful and beautiful, natural pigment has been used to boldly colour the arched cloisters and lots of flowering plants added including geranium hedges. We both enjoy our couple of hours strolling through the streets taking too many photos.
Tonight is Alpaca steak again, at Eva’s favourite recommended restaurant. Alpaca with rosemary is indeed delicious and even better than last nights.
