Lima to Huaraz

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After a much faster cab ride back to the Civa bus terminal, at about 6:30 pm, we negotiated seats for the Civa affiliated Rodriguez bus to Huaraz. I thought the bus was at 8, but turns out it was at 9, so we had some time to kill. Fortunately there was a big soccer game going on and the TV in the terminal was surrounded by fans. We were only a few blocks from the soccer stadium and now regretted not asking the hostal about attending a soccer game. Big time bummer because we had even thought about asking and we definitely would have gone to the game.

Apparently it was a big game. We have no idea who the teams were, but the team everybody was cheering for lost 1-0. Given the proximity to the stadium, the bus terminal chained up the doors as massive amounts of disappointed fans exited the stadium.

At 9:00 our bus showed up and we were super excited. While it was a semi-cama bus, the leg room was huge. For the first time on our entire trip I was able to straighten my legs fully on a bus. Woohoo! Peruvians generally just don't built things for 6ft people. We drove around Lima for an hour and a half, picking up more people then headed out of the city.

Sarah slept like a baby. I, however, had a miserable night. All of my uncomfortable bus rides are linked to one thing: a woman who is too cold. Whether it be the Canadian college girl who elected to wear thin, skin tight tights as we traveled through glaciated andean passes or the mother of two who remembered to bring 20 layers for her children but only a t-shirt for herself, and everybody inbetween, they are the bain of my bus rides.

At about 11:30, an hour in to sleeping, I was awakend by a woman telling me to close the tiny window by our seats. I obliged, as I always do, and despíte the fact that the bus was a very comfortable for me in my shorts, sandals and t-shirt. And that was the end of my sleep. The bus got hot and stuffy. The conductor came up to the second floor and opened the two ceiling vents/windows because it was hot...only to have one shut 30 minutes later by another cold woman.

At 5:30 am, I had reached my breaking point from various other things keeping me awake all night. The bus ride was the icing on my cake of stress. I let Sarah know as we stepped off the bus in to the dark Huaraz streets that I was losing it so we found a hostal, I got some sleep, and after waking up everything was back to normal.

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