Peru - Huacachina - Riding Sand-dune buggies and Sand-boarding

WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON

The Dunes


On route to Nazca we stopped at Huacachina to go riding on a Sand-dune buggy and Sand-board. Was amazing! Was at the back and screamed quite a bit! We went really fast and at one point really thought we would not make it over one dune. The views were stunning against the blue sky! We stopped on the dunes and did 4 sand-boards. Each time the dune was steeper and longer! One of the guys who wake boards and kite surfs was going too fast and fell off! I managed to stay on!

Our buggie


Us


Me


Huacachina Oasis


SAV! Not sure that a Land Rover could get over the dunes! but thank goodness we arrived back in one piece!

We also saw how Pisco Sour was made and sampled a few drinks.

Pisco Sour


WEDNESDAY LATE AFTERNOON

Mountain Ranges


The bus from Pisco on the coast to Nazca inland was about 3 hours going through amazing scenery of mountains, valleys and oases. The roads through the mountains were winding and steep in some places.

Peru - Islas Ballestas and Geoglyph

WEDNESDAY MORNING

We headed out early 7.20am to catch the boat to the Islas Ballestas to see loads of different birds and sealions. But when we arrived the sea conditions were too rough so we ended up having hot chocolate, tea and coffee on the shore.

Candelabra Geoglyph


Then by luck the skys cleared and we were off in speedboat like the one above to the islands. The sea was calm and the sky clear! On the way to the Islas Ballestas we saw the geoglyph above. A three pronged candelabra that was etched in the sandy hills, is 150m x 50 m wide and no one knows who actually made it. Maybe aliens.

Humboldt penquins


Saw loads of wonderful birds and wildlife , Peruvian boobys, Humboldt penquins, Redlegged cormorants, Peruvian pelicans, Sea lions, orange Spider crabs and Starfishes. It is also know as the 'poor man's Galapagos Islands' and as I will have to do the Galapagos Islands on another trip this is 'pretty neat'.

Peruvian boobys


Sleepy sea lions


Flying Peruvian pelican


LARA and the Wunderman team! I love my camera!

With so many birds there is a lot of nitrogen rich guano, and in some places 50m deep. The Incas used this for fertilizer and was Peru's principal export during the mid 19th century to Europe and Morth America. Nowadays itis extracted every 10 years so the birds are left in peace.

Peru - Pisco

TUESDAY EVE / WEDNESDAY MORNING

Drinking Pisco sour in Pisco


We took a public coach along the coast to Pisco on the Pan-American Highway arriving at night. We had a well deserved Pisco sour drink. This is a traditional drink that has Pisco (made from grape), sugar, lemon juice, egg white, ice and drops of Amargo Angostura, then cinnamon is sprinkled on top. All goes down very well!

Pisco had last year on the 15th August a devastating earthquake (Magnitude 8) which killed over 500 and injured 1130 people in the cities of Pisco, Ina and Chincha. Tourists are now coming back to the area where they are can help re-build the economy. We stayed one night and in the morning we were horrified by the distruction. Our hotel had been rebuilt and one of only a few buildings fully working.

Earthquake destruction


Our Hotel


Our next stop is to see the wildlife at Ballestas Island.

Peru - Start of my tour

Peru trek route


Today is the beginning of our 3 week tour trekking around Peru. We have a lovely tour guide Cecilia who is from Peru and a trainee tour guide Samma from Equador.
We started off jumping on a local bus to the the city centre.

Tour group


There are 7 of us on the tour. Rowan and Jani from Oz, me, Samma, Kirsty form England, Collette and Dairmaid from Ireland and Sophie from England. We explored the squares, The Santa Rosa Church and the catecombs in the Monasterio de San Francisco. The monastery holds many treasures of religious art and frescoes which is unique to Peru. The catecombes were a bit claustrophobic and a bit scary. There is a picture of the last supper with a guinea pig being served. There were also a good few tanks in the square.

Did you know?
The catacombs are underground tombs filled with bones. Because archaeologists came to inventory the bones, the bones are now sorted by body type - a bin of pelvises, for example. In one area, the archaeologists created art with the bones, as was done in the French catacombs, a swirl of skulls and femurs. But this was not here originally. The catacombs were used for many years, in lieu of a cemetery. Bodies were brought here, covered in quicklime, and soon reduced to skeletons. It was a quick and sanitary way to dispose of the bodies. Over 25,000 people were buried in the tombs.

Peru - Lima

SUNDAY

I looked back and waved goodbye to Hogar that had been my home for nearly 4 weeks and promised myself that I will try and come back soon. The children, managers and teachers are all so lovely and I was very sad to leave. I miss you all! Even Goofy one of the dogs!

Today I flew from Guatemala to Peru. (Flights TA7641 leaving at 8.05am from Guatemala City and TA7611 arriving at 15.10pm in Lima - Peru is 1 hour ahead of Guatemala) I flew via San Jose in Costa Rica, had some fantastic chocolate sweets at the airport in San Jose).

Peter (my old next door neighbour when I was a teenager) met me from the airport which was great! He works on the oil rigs, manages a band / events and has lived in Lima for over 10 years. We met a Austrian student - Ursula who's friends of friends were not there at the airport to pick her up so helped her find accommodation for the night.

We headed down to the seafront for food and a Cuba Libra or two. Had a fantastic piece of chocolate cheesecake but wished I had chosen chocolate fudge cake as Ursula´s piece was enormous! (Not that I am a pig). Lima is very modern in the centre ... shops, cinemas, resturants and bars, where as on the out skirts they are shanty towns.

MONDAY

After a good night's sleep and a hot shower we headed out for a nice lunch. I had Cebiche Mixto which is a typical Peruvian dish. It is raw fish marinated in lime juice, served with onions, chillies, corn and sweet potato. Was very tasty, the lime 'cooks' the fish. We bumped into some of Peter's friends and chilled for the afternoon.

At 6pm I meet our tour group who are all great, went for a nice meal and a rather large cocktail in a Brazilian bar!

Mexico - Tulum

Tulum


Tulum


Today I saw my first Mayan ruin with Michelle. Tulum is great! The ruins are located on 39-foot (12-m)tall cliffs, along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula on the Caribbean Sea, south of Playa Del Carman. It is one of the best-preserved coastal Maya sites, and you can swim there as well. An inscription dated A.D. 564 has been found at the site, but most of the structures now visible were built in the Post-Classic Era, between about 1200 and 1450.

Tulum as drawn by Frederick Catherwood in 1844 - English artist and architect


Frederick Catherwood would have seen the image above when it was first discovered. Am sure he was the real Indian Jones. Treking through jungles to find new ruins.


Iguanas

There were large iguanas there! but harmless. (I think)

After our trip it was back to the hotel for drinks.

The Grand Mayan - Mayan Palace

Mexico - Playa Del Carman - Chilling in a hammock

Chilling


MARK B - Well here is the hammock I was hoping to find. Was dark but was in a tree right next to the sea! Pretty perfect! Catch up with you in Central America if you are still going treking.

Mexico - Isla Mejures - Chilling in the spa, sunsetting and partying...

TUESDAY

Chilling in the spa


Dawn chilling in the spa


We found out about a really nice spa by the sea called Zamo that is free to get in and you just buy drinks and food there. Was great and very relaxing.

Cormoran


There were large birds fishing by the water called Cormorans and Brown Pelicans.

After relaxing we headed for a drink at a nice bar to watch the sunset at the Almor Lounge. Then headed for dinner at another nice place called Casa O's. Dawn really loved the Almor Lounge and would like to get married there. (no not to me, to her man)

Wishing you were here! :-)


The sunset


Then back into town to party at a funky bar. To be honest Isla Mejures is not a party Island so the bars close at about 12.30am. If you want to party you go to Cancun. But we still had a few cocktails and my favourite drink Cuba Libra. Ohh and I like Champagne aswell. :-)

Cuba Libras...


These were nice American boys that we met.

Mexico - Isla Mejures - Snorkling

SATURDAY

I meet up with Milly and her friends to go snorkling. They were all very nice.

Snorking buddies


Was amazing! The best snorkling I have ever done! Better than Australia! So many fish! and the water was so clear!

Snorking


Check out the video!

Loads of fish swimming

Mexico - Isla Mejures

THURSDAY

Mexico is great! I am on an island called Isla Mejures, just south of Cancun. I have checked into a nice hotel 1 min walk to the sea with an American lady I met on the ferry crossing to the island. Michelle is an intern doc staying a few days on Isla Mejures before she meets up with her friends in Playa del Carman. We did the thing you are not suppose to do ... we took advise from the man that offered to bike our backpacks to our hotel as to where to stay. I had booked in advance a hostel for a couple of nights but to be honest felt a bit old to stay in a hostel. So he took us to a nice hotel right next to north beach. Was basic, was cheap and this was the view...

North beach view from hotel


Relaxing


The sea is so clear! We sunbathed and had dinner at a resturant right next to the sea.

FRIDAY

We meet Dawn, another American lady in the beach and went out for an Argintinan meal in town. The main strip has nice shops, bars and resturants and a definatly not like Cancun. Dawn has been travelling around Mexico studying Spanish and working on her studies for college. Dawn is pronouced 'Don' which I always found strange saying as 'Don' is a boys name in England.

Dawn and Michelle


Me and Dawn


Our beach bar