Welcome to the Jungle, its all fun and games...!!

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Hello folks... So the last ´leg´of this South American adventure with Dragoman is well underway. Last time i wrote I was enjoying a balmy afternoon in Huanchaco on the coast of Peru.

Its been a fairly chilled week or so since then... the pace of the trip has shifted down a gear and we have spent days alternating between driving hundreds of kilometers further north and hanging out drinking rum and playing poker on the beach by the light of a fire. I dont want to rub it in but the November Rain in London (really hope you are getting my allusions here....!!) is far from my mind. I am now an indecent shade of brown ... a milky latte colour according to Dan (not knobhead leader Dan but newby Dan who joined in Lima). Whatever! Im tanned and it rocks! Am sure I will regret my penchant for the sun when Im 50...ill probably look like a shrivelled raisin.

Anyway, camping in Huanchaco was in a beautiful place but the combo of the over zealus rooster and plaintive whimperings off the guard dog drove me out of the tent and into a room for the subsequent 2 nights. Path of least resistence i say! Plus unless you get up at 7am, the tent becomes an inferno and you slowly bake in your own sweat!

Peru´s north coast has been described as the Egypyt of South America and there were plenty of pre Inca ruins to marvel at. Or in our case, plod around in exhaustion..Im kinda done with the whole wrecked building thing. Oops. Mum ...remember our trip to Rome and that aqueduct in the middle of nowhere?? Ill skip through mentioning Chan Chan ' the capital of the ancient Chimu kingdom http://images.google.com.ec/images?q=chan%20chan&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:es-ES:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=es&tab=wi and Huaca de la Luna ..dating earlier to the Moche empire from early AD (http://images.google.com.ec/images?q=Huaca%20de%20la%20Luna&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:es-ES:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=es&tab=wi ) as suffice to say NOTHING has come close to those goddam Egyptians.

Those pharoahs knew how to bury their dead in style and Im afraid what Ive seen here just cant compare ....that said we did visit a fascinating museum called Museum of the Royal Tombs of Sipán (http://www.go2peru.com/sipan_museum.htm )which was comparable to the impressiveness of Tutankamun. Built only a few years ago at I believe a cost of $70m, this extremely well presented piramidal shaped building could easily rank in the top archaelogical museums of the world. Contained within are a trove of pre Inca treasures of the Moche culture and only discovered as recently as 1987 but dating from 1800 yrs ago. The restoration of the ítems is incredible and this is the first place where South American history has really given me goosebumps…not just because the age of the ítems found (not to mention the ubiquitous bodies of the King of Sipan, his wife, his concubines and various decapitated llamas) but also the cache of treasure found … necklaces, bracelets, earrings , ceramics and all sorts of decorative ítems in immaculate condition. Ok, enough on the chipped pots in glass cases, Im sure you want to hear about more exciting things!

The newby´s on the trip have settled in well. We lost 5 and gained 5 in Lima. Sad to say goodbye to Tanya and Joe, Less so some of the others…ahem….! This is in the public domain so I shall exert some discretion! However, a good mix of 30plus people who have fitted in well and are going through all the virginal angst I did when i started this adventure. They think camping on the beach is hard? Bah! They should try sub zero mountains!

From the beach at Huanchaco we drove northwards to another beach near Mancora …our own Sandy idyll at Punta Sal (http://images.google.com.ec/images?q=Punta%20Sal&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:es-ES:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=es&tab=wi )where we lounged for a couple of days eating lots of freshly barbequed fish and contemplating the sunset. Its a very chilled vibe …golden sands, plenty of hammocks and not a lot to feel stressed by!

Yesterday we left peru and crossed the border into Ecuador taking the most incrediuble topographical journey up to the country´s third largest city …Cuenca. Within the space of a matter of hours we rose above the banana and palm plantations, away from the muggy tropical air into the mountains where the hard barren rock overhung the road and then back down into an almost alpine setting. Never been jolted by such vegetational changes …imagine layers or bands of different hábitats.

Cuenca seems a pleasant colonial town with markets and a great panamá hat museum…was so tempted to buy an authentic hat but stopped myself. When do i wear hats in London?? Come on han! Did you know that panamá hats are NOT from Panama but from Ecuador? Well, i didnt and discovered that today!

So, tomorrow we depart for Rio Verde and then into the Amazon for a few days. Its gonna be sticky….. I have my mosquito repellant at my side and am hideously excited about venturing into the real jungle.

As Guns and Roses said (hey..got a slip a final lyric in!) …live and let die (well the mosquitos anyway!)… Im hoping ill be able to do another update before dearest Bali arrives in Quito on 4 Dec and we make a beeline for first the Cloud Forest in Mindo and then….. 10 days in the Galapagos Islands. Yes..have a BIG smile on my face as i type that!!

Hope everything is well and thanks to those who have sent messages etc….its great to hear from yóu. Will try to get more pics online soon.

Han xx
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one comment:

Hi Hannah. Caught up with all your photos in one sitting this afternoon. Amazing! I’m so envious. Especially of Macchu Picchu. Remember me to Inbali when she arrives. Enjoying following your adventures and looking forward to the Galapagos Islands. You did say you’re going to Africa, didn’t you? If so, which countries? Ian Brice x
Ian Brice (email) - 27 11 09 - 18:13

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