Blogs from Peru, South America - page 5

* Last night’s sleep was maybe the best of the trip for me, even though we went to bed a little after 9 to get up at 5 for Machu Picchu. Tony warned us these beds were magic, and he was right. I remember waking up very briefly and hearing the thunderous rain coming down outside, though. It was, as they say here, raining llamas and alpacas. Apparently Leslie was so startled that she tried to call Tony in the middle of the night to confirm we’d even be going to Machu Picchu, which was a bit silly because they’ve been making us prep for such weather the whole time. Fortunately, by morning, the rain was done. * There was already a line for the buses up to Machu Picchu at 6 AM, but they run ... read more

Atsikeliu vėl anksti, apie 5.30 ir palikęs didžiąją kuprinę saugykloje (tiksliau skalbykloje) einu iki mikriuko. Vėl 3 valandų kelionė iki žygio pradžios. Važiuojam tuo pačiu keliu kaip ir vakar ir mus paleidžia netoli tos vietos kur vakar buvom sustoję apžvalgos aikštelėje. Nuo čia iki lagunos keliauju apie 2,5 val. į kalną. Vaizdai panašūs į tuos kurios mačiau ankstesniame žygyje, tad tikrai visai smagu eiti, be to oras tikrai puikus. Kai iš už kalvos pradeda matytis ežeriukas, suprantu kodėl visi apie šią vietą tiek kalba. Tokio mėlyno vandens nesu gyvenime mates !! Tikrai nereali vieta ir visi vos pasiekę šį mėlyn ežeriuką negali juo atsigrožėti. Čia atėję amerikiečių kompanija nutarai išsimaudyti lediniame ežero vandenyje. Aš kiek padvejojęs irgi įšoku į vandenį. Bet neivienas ilgiau minutės neišbūna, nes vanduo čia tikrai n... read more

7/5/13 Trip to El Brujo and the Lady of Cao I was really looking forward to today’s trip as it was to the Pyramid of the Witch Doctors (shamans) and the Lady of Cao – the first female Moche ruler. Our guide yesterday had told me how the site is still used today by Witch Doctors from Peru, Ecuador and Columbia to perform shamanic rituals. In the past witch doctors went to the pyramid to boost their healing powers as the site was known to be a place of powerful energies. Great stuff! Imagine then my disappointment when after an hour travelling north through barren desert scenery only broken by areas of sugar cane plantations we finally reached the El Brujo Archaeological site and were told we weren’t going to the pyramid! Gutted!! Allegedly the site ... read more

After a busy period of moving from place to place every few days, we decided it was about time we took a break to recharge our batteries. While it's incredibly rewarding, travelling can also be really hard work; early mornings, long, arduous bus journeys, dealing with illness, careful and thorough planning - all this takes its toll and so from time to time you just need relax. And what better way to do this than by finding a nice beach to lie on for a week or so? We decided to head for Mancora, a popular beach destination in the far north of Peru, near the border with Ecuador and most importantly, near to the equator. As we were well into April now, summer was a distant memory for the majority of South America but the ... read more

6th May ’13 Chiclayo to Trujillo Yet another bus journey with yet another bus company, this time it was Empressta VIP and we were both finger printed and videoed for this one! Nice comfy bus but unlike Cruz del Sur we didn’t get to play bingo – I forgot to mention this, totally mad, after lunch we were each given a one game card, the hostess called the numbers in rapid Spanish and by the time we had figured out what the first number was she was onto the 10th so we gave up! The winner however got a prize – no idea what but it may have been a free trip and then had to sing a Thank you song! Eek how embarrassing, kind of glad my Spanish is rubbish. The bus only took 3 ... read more