Culture, Desert and Surprise

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We caught an overnight bus to Piura in Peru, it all went very conveiniently and being the only two gringos on the bus meant we didn´t have to wait long once we were able to wake the Peruvian immigration official from his slumber. We got a bit of a surprise in Peru as we realise that unlike the other countries we have visited, not many of the towns have a bus terminal. Meaning you go to the companies station. So once in the station we had to get a taxi to get some Soles (Peruvian currency) and find another bus companies station to get to our destination in Trujillo. We weren´t in luck and decided to take one to Chiclayo and then another one to Trujillo. We were beginning to feel exhausted.
On the bus down we were amazed at just how bleak the desert landscape was, more of a white/grey sand colour than yellow, and as far as the eye could see. The towns we passed through were different to what we had previously seen, the Peruvians seem to enjoy building walls, many political slogans painted on them all, the streets were dusty and dirty and there are plenty of small tuk-yuk looking mobiles in the towns. Our stop in Chiclayo meant we had a quick lunch and realised the menus and words were completely different and it would be another quick learning curve. (Avocado is called Palta here, aguacate in the other countries we have been to)
On arrival to Trujillo we found the historical centre to be modern, with colourful colonial arcitecture. Leaving the desert to the outer suburbs. There are plenty of taxis plying the streets, banks everywhere and casinos with poker machines. The day was mild but overcast and we decided to get a taxi out to Huanchaco on the coast only about ten minutes from the city, it has been such a long time since we saw the coast last. It is a small fishing village of sorts, the water had a grey colour to it as well as the sand, there were some nice waves rolling in and plenty of people out trying their hand. A good number of gringos out surfing, and we got a chance to see the totora boats called caballitos (little horses) which the local fisherman use to paddle out, set their nets, ride a few waves in and then go and collect their nets later, they don´t look the most stable of things but the locals manage them without any problems.
Back in Trujillo we had found a great place to eat which we used exclusively for our couple of days there. I ate potatoes a la huanchino for starters, it was flat slices of potato covered in a lovely yellow sauce. And Debs salad had a generous helping of avocado.
We booked a tour to see some of the cultural sites around the city and we were very surprised at how good it was. Our first stop was to Las Huacas del Sol (Sun) y del la Luna (Moon). These were sandy pyramids that the Moche culture had used around 100 to 600AD, what remains now is the base of these pyramids, Huaco del Sol is in the hands of archaelogists so we went to Huaca de la Luna and was amazed at what we saw. It was built next to a mountain and the excavation work reveals the old temples on the bottom and filled in and then the next temple built and lived in. This is the pattern and as they have excavated, the fact that a layer was filled in, along with the fact the sand has protected them they reveal amazing original frescos on the lower levels, some of them in great condition. On the northern facade we were able to see 6-7 levels, it really was a nice place to see and far exceeded our expectations. I tried some Cabrito (baby goat) for lunch and we saw the traditional Marinera dance from the Trujillo area. In the afternoon we visited Huaca Arco Isis in the suburbs which was a temple from the Chimu culture (around 1100AD up to the Incas arrival around 1470).
We went to Chan Chan, which was a large Chimu city in the desert, of which only a small (but still large) portion of it remains. The city would have been huge, you can see outside the town the small sandy mounds of old walls, some still with the bricks. The part that is restored gives a great idea of how things would have been, there is a kings mausoleum, great corridors, rooms and carvings of fish, waves and sea life. The fact that it is in the middle of a harsh desert, bright sun was surreal. Walking the corridors I felt I was in an Indiana Jones movie. The tour finished out in Huanachaco again, but it was a bit sunnier this time so I gave the local Trujillo beer a try, not bad at all. We had a night bus to Huaraz the following night, so we spent a day relaxing, lunch and some lovely Lemon Merange cake for me and Chocolate for Deb. We even killed a couple of hours on the poker machines, we even won about 40 Soles! With luck on our side we now go back to the mountains, excited to see the Cordillera Blanca.

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