Surfing in Huanchaco!

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Well, I am really digging my time here in Huanchaco. It is a really great surfing town that has nice beaches....a lot of tourist....and a lot of really awesome local Peruvians. The vibe is very chillaxin' which is totally what I was seeking. The night we arrived, we checked into a hostel that was listed in the "Gringo Bible" (this is what the locals call the Lonely Planet....laugh my ass off!!). We got the very last room in the entire place....2 beds....for 3 of us. Nicole and I were going to share a single bed (not the first time....we have done this more than once in order to spend less) but then they showed up with a foam mattress. Sweet! So the 3 of us squished into the room quite cozily really and it has turned out to be suuuuuuch a nice hostel. By far one of the top 3 on the entire trip so far. If anyone is coming through this town, I cannot recommend "Hostel Naylamp" enough. Super clean and just a really nice environment.

Anyhoot....moving on......

We checked in and found some grub and called it a night fairly early. We were soooo loooking forward to a good night's sleep after the last couple of nights we had had and thankfully....we got what we wanted. The next morning we were up fairly early so that we could start the day with plenty of time to do the things we wanted to do. Nicole was sick again.....seems to be the story of her trip unfortunately....so she hung low while Sjirk and I toured Chan Chan....some Inka ruins. Chan Chan was pretty cool...amazing to visualize what 'was' there. We were going to see some other ruins but decided to head back to Huanchaco for of course.....our.....surf lessons! Woo!! Finally, I went surfing! This is something I have always wanted to do and so I am happy to report....Kathy surfed in Peru! Wicked. Sjirk and I shared a lesson with a guy and set out for 2 hours on the waves. We both managed to ride a few of them which is super cool since many we have spoken to never did manage to stand on their board even once. I had great fun.....my arms were burning by the end from all of the swimming (it is hard work swimming to catch the waves!) ....and I got pommeled by a few waves since they were pretty huge! Some of them threw me around like a ragdoll with the surfboard yanking at my ankle while I gulped in copious amounts of salt water. Yummy. 😉 But in the end...it was all worth it. I was soooo excited to go again the next day...this time without the lesson, just rent the board and suit for the day and practice practice practice! This plan unfortuntely didn't really happen since I got a little caught up in the night life later that night. Sigh. Sjirk and I went for some drinks at the bar in the surf place where we rented the boards. We met many other awesome ppl there from all around the world and had a great time. Nicole did come until about 9pm (sick) and Sjirk the bum ended up leaving at 11pm. Weak!! I was having way too much fun to bail that early so I stayed for the long haul....and a long haul it was...I walked in the door of the hostel at 4:55am! Wow. I had no idea it was that late!! Fun times fun times. haha By the end of the night it was mainly just myself, another Canadian girl I met (from Vancouver) and some local Peruvians. I love the Peruvians here. They are so much fun....a bit perhaps "too" friendly at times but it is all in good fun. 😉 The night consisted of not that much to drink, however, I felt a tad loaded likely from all of the sun we had plus perhaps...not enough water. But that is ok, nothing wrong with being a 'cheap' drunk when on a budget. haha I met some fabulous locals that night....all were very sweet....and there was a band that came by at some point that played local instruments which was really awesome. All in all...a super fabulous night.

So, on to the next morning.....Sjirk was up at 8am to do 'our' plan of surfing. We heard the best times for surfing were at 8am and then around 2pm. So we planned to go and rent a board at 8am......surf for a couple of hours.....then eat breakfast....have a nap (yes, we were scheduling a nap....save the comments....haha)....then go see the rest of the ruins that we missed the previous day....then hit Trujillo to buy our bus tix to Lima....then come back and surf some more....then commence the evening activities. Well....since I got home at 5am...I was surely not dragging my sorry butt out of bed at 8am (I know....weak!! So very weak. Sigh.) but Sjirk did. Sjirk surfed....then ate breakfast....then napped as we had planned. I, well, was still napping when he showed for his nap. Ha, too funny. I finally dragged my butt out of bed around noon and decided I needed to do something with my day. I managed to have a shower and take off with Nicole to Trujillo in order to book our bus to Lima. So, I can say that I got ONE thing done from our original plan. Yep, ONE thing. Pathetic....but whatever...I am on holidays!! So don't judge me..... 😉 That night we went out again.....yep....same place...got there around 11pm. Nicole stayed in bed of course but Sjirk was out and claiming he was in for the long haul this time. I was expecting to be home earlier than the night before since that was hard to beat. Well....I beat it....I walked in the door at 5:50am this morning. Holy sh#t. Yep, fun times. We had some beer at the bar....then headed over to a Rasta concert which wasn't really what "I" would call a rasta concert but it was alright....I bailed at whatever time (no idea what time it was) cuz I wasn't feeling the greatest and was tired (have had some bathroom issues off an on as of late)...but then I ended up running into a couple of guys I had partied with the night before while walking home and they some how convinced me to party some more. It really was an awesome night playing games and good chats under the moonlight along the sandy beach. What a paradise this place is....really...I love it here if you haven't figured that out already. :P

So, on to this morning....in bed by 6am....up by 11am. Nicole was up prowling about early....as she always does (she is a total early morning person)....Sjirk and I dragged ourselves up around 11am with a bit of coaxing from Nicole. She wanted to hit some market in Trujillo so we decided to join. The market turned out to be quite the Americanized mall....had big stores...one looked like a Walmart....had many surf shops such as Rip Curl and Billabong.....Radioshack....and even some concert set up behind the mall that included a band on stage doing their soundcheck. We walked over to check it out and they sounded awesome....their name: Libido. I am such a sucker for outdoor concerts so I asked a security guy around the side if there were any tix available. He said it was by "invite only". Bummer. There goes my dream of attending this outdoor spanish concert. 😞 As I walked away thanking him for his time....I see something on the ground...I pick it up and to my surprise.....a pass to get in!! Ha! Funny how things go sometimes eh? :P So....I have a pass (or what i think is a pass) and nobody else does. But you know? I am ok with that! The concert is at 6pm.....but so is the parade for the HUGE surf festival (Carnival) that is taking place here in Huanchaco tonight and tomorrow. So I think I will watch the parade, and then catch a bus into Trujillo to try my luck at checking out "Libido". Knowing my luck, the pass will be for security staff or something so they will look at me funny....laugh....deny my entry and then take it away. But hey....it is worth a shot right? I am always up for an adventure! :P

So....this is where it leaves me now.....1.5 hrs from parade/concert time......tonight is supposed to be wild here with the surf festival. Apparently it draws about 3000 people we were told. Fun times!! Nicole and I have a bus to Lima tomorrow (Sunday night) at 9:45pm. It is an overnight bus which can be sketchy but we were told this particular one is known to be quite safe. So 8 hrs later we will arrive in Lima....then we are going to try our luck at catching a 7am bus to Nazca.....where the Nazca Lines are!! If all goes to plan...which we all know is HIGHLY unlikely....we should be in Nazca by 1:30pm Monday. We are hoping we can arrange a flight that afternoon to view the Nazca Lines and then be on our way by that night to either Ariquipa....or Cuzco....we haven't quite decided which one yet. We are going to both but not sure which one to do first. We shall see....

So....that is it for now.....will update again when I can......take care everyone and talk soon!!

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