It seems the best cure for walkers who have completed the Salkantay or Inca trails is to party hard when you get off the train back in Cusco, and who am I to argue with this tried and true remedy. As such I went out to Mama Africas that night with the hostel crowd for much therapeutic drinking and dancing all night. I booked on an overnight bus trip the next day south west to Arequipa with two English girls who had become travel friends. At this stage of my trip, there are some travellers I’ve bumped into four or five times on the gringo trail. It really is very social and a lot of fun on the trail in South America, but you do need to be constantly vigilant looking after your possessions.
The bus trip was extremely cheap, dear reader, and as the saying goes … you get what you pay for! There were locals and their luggage lying everywhere in the aisles, and it was certainly a different experience. Arequipa is famous for it’s white buildings and the central plaza is very attractive. We got to know the town by strolling around, and then booked on a two day Colca Canyon tour. It was immediately apparent that Cusco prices are not reflected throughout Peru, and my two most visited spots would no longer include the nearest ATM. We headed off on the tour and within minutes the bus picked up two other girls that I had met several times, which was cool! The group also comprised a tour group of Italians and four Irish girls. We arrived at our hostel around 3:00pm to relax a bit, before a cultural performance of traditional Peruvian singing and dancing over dinner which was very enjoyable. As usual when travelling I was dragged up by one of the dancers to showcase my skills in traditional Peruvian dancing.
Day two saw our arrival at the canyon lookouts early, and at 3191 metres they are the deepest in the world, alongside a nearby Peruvian canyon. The spectacular views were enhanced because the canyon is the premier viewing area in the world for wild condors in flight. And what an aerial show we witnessed! First solo condors soared straight past our platforms, then three condors put on a show of aerial combat for at least fifteen minutes. The condors have wing spans of up to three metres, and we were privileged to witness the magnificent birds at such close quarters.
I travelled north to Pisco with the two english girls I met again on the tour and we arrived overnight. We went specifically for the Peninsula de Paracas and Isla Ballestas, which is a national park referred to as the poor mans galapagos. For next to nothing we booked on a wonderful day tour. The island contained the highest concentration of wildlife I’ve ever witnessed, featuring thousands of birds and hundreds of sea lions on the beach. It was an absolute smorgasboard and the tour is highly recommended. We kicked on to Huacachina which is famous as an oasis surrounded by towering sand dunes. A sand buggy tour with sandboarding was top of the agenda and it was an incredible rush…
I didn’t know what to expect after we buckled up initially, and the driver began by sedately cruising the streets of Huacachina in his hot machine. However as soon as he sighted the sand dunes he became possessed and absolutely gunned it. I was convinced I was going to die and quickly gave up filming on my handycam, so that I could hang on with both hands for grim death. Screaming up and down near vertical slopes and carving up one side of a steep dune then the other, how did we not roll? He then came to a screeching, sliding halt right on the precipice of a huge dune. It was a relief to get on the boards which he kindly waxed up for us, then we strapped in and plummetted straight down hill. We had some monumental stacks but anything was a relief, if it gave us the chance to get away from our maniac driver. It was heaps of fun, cheap and highly recommended. I jumped on a bus north to Lima, to spend some time catching up with a Czech girl I met on previous travels who is currently living in the Peruvian capital.
In summary, Peru is a great country and you may be surprised to know that there are more cooking schools in Lima than in Paris. There are countless restaurants to explore, and a city with a mixed reputation amongst travellers has some marvellous food. Lima features an attractive central plaza, and the seafood restaurants my friend and I dined in proved to be a culinary delight not to be missed. As the travel saying goes, basically all of you should be here now!
“A woman knows the face of the man she loves as a sailor knows the open sea.” Honore de Balzac
As I continue my travels, until next time it´s signing off for now
Tom
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Tom's music blog can be found here:
http://www.tomrooneymusic.com
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