Blogs from Máncora, Piura, Peru, South America

Nothing in this blog can be held against me. I packed up my tent and bags and went to sit on the side of the highway to wait for a collectivo van to roll up. It only took about 15 minutes before one arrived. I hopped in, and an hour and a half later... I was grinning beyond belief, in Mancora again. This is my 4th time here. The plan (hardeeharhar) was to stay in a different hostel where I could cook for myself. I'd be on the other side of Mancora and have to walk here every time I wanted to see friends. That was short lived. First I went to the store to grab some gin and 7up. I was standing there when two peruvians came up to me and started saying, "Amiga de ... read more

For days I craved leaving, I awaited anxiously my debit card. UPS lied a bit, but eventually it arrived (funny, 4 business days from CANADA to PERU, then another 4 business days until it crossed Peru to me. Oh Peru.) But as soon as I got it... I was ready to stay another few days. It's funny, when you stay somewhere a week or so, you really form a little community. It happened in Huanchaco, and it happened here in Mancora. And you know what? It happened last time I was in each of these places, too, two long years ago. If any of you who I met way back then are reading this, know I still miss you dearly. And I'm about to miss a whole new crowd like crazy. Today I went to finally ... read more

Well, I'm not sure I have much to write, really. Again I've just been being lazy. I arrived in Mancora on Thursday, and started bartending that night. I worked again the following afternoon and all was well, fun and great. But then the evening fell and once again I began to feel off. The boss man wanted me to stay 2 weeks, and I started realising I'm not sure I want to even stay a week. I slept on it and woke up still feeling uneasy, antisocial, and like I'm not in the right place. It's just been all party party party for ages, and that's really not what I'm here for. I'm looking for something, I've just no idea what that may be. I'm sure it's not to be found in any location, but I ... read more

På kvelden av dag to overnattet vi i en litt større landsby. Der var det til og med et diskotek/utested som vi dro på etter middag. Det var første gang jeg gikk ut iført løpetights og dri-fit t-skjorte, hehe. Men det var kjempegøy, og vi danset i timevis. Da klokken var rundt 2 var de fleste i seng, og vi hadde heldigvis den luksusen at vi ikke trengte å stå opp før klokken 8.30 dagen derpå. Dag tre begynte med herlig frokost i form av omelett og pannekaker. For en luksus! Deretter ble gruppen delt i to. Åtte av oss dro avgårde for såkalt zip-lining, noe som vil si at man festes i en kabel som strekker seg mellom to fjellsider, og så renner man ned disse (eller hvordan jeg skal forklare det). Det var uansett ... read more

We are heading further north along the coast and our last stop in Peru was Máncora, another fishing village turned surfer paradise. When we arrived in town after a shaky night-busride, we were picked up by the owner of our hostel in an old, white VW beetle. Our hostel "Kon Tiki Bungalows" sits enthroned on a hill over the city and we had a great view of all of Máncora and the surroundings. Máncora is the prime vacation spot in Peru, not only for sunburnt backpackers but also for locals, so it is not surprising that the main street, "Avenida Piura", was packed with restaurants, hostels, bars, kiosks, surf shops, fruit-stands and craft-stalls where you can literally buy everything. The beachfront is lined with bars and restaurants that offer cocktails and fresh seafood. In high season, ... read more

It's been awhile, but I've had a busy couple of weeks in Peru! First of all, signing up for classes was a pretty big hassle. The enrollment day was Monday the 22nd, the 2nd week of classes and signups started at 9 with a first come, first serve policy so we had to get there early. Oh yeah, and it was only international students signing up so most of the classes were already full with only a couple of extra spots. I got to school an hour before signups and was feeling pretty good about it, but I got my number and saw I was the 130th person to arrive that morning!! WHAT? So I was a little nervous about getting the classes I wanted. It took forever, but finally at NOON I was able to ... read more

This is to be a (relativly) short entry as I did as I intended to in Mancora - very little! I updated my vitamin D, by enjoying far too many lazy days around the pool, the beach, and of course in the sea. Most of the time, I body-boarded in the sea, which was as much fun now at 22, as it was when I was the same size as the board itself - which must have been pretty young - oh what it is to feel old! Anyway, I did enjoy that, as the waves were pretty good in Mancora. So good infact I went surfing. And it (kinda) worked! I was crusing down green waves, a Beach Boys soundtrack in the back of my mind - actually one of my wipeouts was because I ... read more