Blogs from Ica, Peru, South America

We had an early one as our last night in Arequipa and the following day Charlie went to have a look at the monastery while George wallowed in the Wild Rover TV room (admittedly quite an enticing place). We then grabbed some food and hopped on a bus to Cusco. Immediately after arriving at the bus terminal we set about looking for a bus to Santa Teresa, a more arduous route to Machu Picchu than than the train but at about a fifth of the price. We ended going with an all-inclusive tour and hurriedly packed our stuff before hopping in the cramped minibus for five and a half hours to a hydroelectric plant beyond Santa Teresa. From there it was a two hour walk along the train tracks to Aguas Calientes, the town at the ... read more

As I haven´t been able to get my images loaded for a few days I chose to postpone my blog entry, so I´ll start back in lima and work up to todays activities that match the name of this blog entry. on my last full day in lima I decided to sleep in since I knew we would be on the road a lot after I started my tour the following day. I then decided to take a quick stroll around the neighbourhood to check out the plaza near by. It appears there was a world record trying to be set at the time because there were hundreds of people in the square all playing this instrument called a cajon. (It looks like a large wooden box with a whole in it.) Anyway apparently they did ... read more

The earth moved for us last night - only an aftershock from the recent earthquake but it was strange and (Jo thought slighly scary) to feel the ground rumbling when you are lying on it! Got up early and packed up the tents (Jo does not like camping!!). We were then shown by Dave how to pack it up properly. We probably only got a four out of ten but at least it all fitted into its sack and if necessary, we can avoid that particular tent next time (which Jo is pleased to say wont be for some time). Drove for a 10 kms to the pre Inca Cemetary which was really interested. We had an English speaking guide who explained the history of the Nazca people (who are long gone) and showed us the ... read more

Moved on from Huacachina after yet another wander around the lake. Hung around for those that sand buggied to return and have breakfast and showers and left around 9.30 am. Drove to a local market in Ica. The route was a little circuitous due to the recent earthquake which had broken a few sewers. Wasn´t us that blocked the toilets this time!! Shopped in groups of 4/5 to buy food for two to three meals over the next couple of days. Ed and I were in separate groups. It is really hard to calculate the precise quantities when cooking for 20 with a certain amount to spend (which came from the communal kitty). My knowledge of Spanish vocabulary is improving daily but Ed can still only say his name...... which is not particularly useful at the ... read more

We met our group last night and some of us went out for dinner in Central Lima and had Ceviche which is one of the popular dishes - raw fish marinated in lemon juice to cure it with coriander, raw red onions and chili . It was really good.... The group is as expected, mainly youngsters -college or pre university ages. Still getting to know their names. They seem a nice bunch. Only one lad from the UK, a slighly older girl from Scotland and the others Australian, Dutch, American and Danish and an Egyptian gentleman of 60 so we are not the oldest. Tour leaders are two men, Dave an ex electrician born in the UK but has lived in Australia since very young and Ivan from Besançon in France. They are both as brown ... read more

Huacachina is a very small village (you can't really call it a town) about five minutes outside of Ica, south of Peru along the coastline. We took a 12 hour nightbus from Arequipa to Ica. If you are going on a long, overnight trip through Peru, I recommend Cruz del Sur. However, bring a pair of noise cancelling headphones if you want to sleep fairly early on the bus because they will have a movie and/or music blasting for a good two to three hours. It was very annoying. But, we made it to Ica in good time. The bus wasn't overly uncomfortable, though being tall worked against me. It was difficult to find the comfortable position, but I think I did get a few hours of sleep. From Ica, we took a taxi to Huacachina ... read more

Morning seemed to follow the night before with indecent haste, as I rolled over to turn off my alarm. Although I'd gone to bed early last night, I still felt exhausted and longed for the comfort of my own bed. Having showered, I dragged my bags outside to pack them, not wanting to wake the other people in my dorm and sat at the bar to await my transfer to Paracas. At 6.30am I was beckoned to the front gate of the hostel where I was met by Willy, the driver on my private transfer. Once I had slung my heavy bags into the boot of his taxi, I climbed on to the back seat and we made our way out of town and back towards Ica. We were joined on the journey by Willy's brother ... read more

I was woken this morning by the chatter from the menagerie of birds that were kept at the hostel. I had had a great nights sleep, considering the bed felt like it was made out of reinforced cardboard, mainly because I had the entire six bed dorm to myself. I was surprised to see so many people when I went down for breakfast, considering my dorm had been empty. I was greeted by the dear little lady who had checked me in yesterday, and offered scrambled eggs which I took gladly. I had heaps of time before I had to catch the coach to Ica, so I had a very leisurely breakfast. I had so much time in fact that I had long enough to find somewhere in the sleepy town of Nasca to Skype Tina ... read more