Pisco Sour... yes or no?

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Saturday 8th
Have had the most ENORMOUS amount of sleep, so have a relaxed breakfast, then head round to the internet cafe with Shilpa and we both put in an hour. I may regret that I haven´t gone to the laundromat, but hey, internet more fun for now! We get back to the hotel, pack ready for the bus. Run into Michael, ask him how his birthday went last night, get a ´don´t ask´look, so think it must have been great, but turns out that he was robbed last night, including his passport. He was in the ´wrong´part of town, apparently, but has decided he wants to stay in Lima to sort it out, so we wave him goodbye, all nervously wondering if this is too bad a sign for South America - which does have a reputation! Always put your passport, etc. in the hotel safe... apparently.

Safely across the city, we get to the bus station. Rod tells us we are on a local bus, and we´ve seen some local buses, so rather nervous about this. Turns out not to be one of the jam-packed buses, but a double-decker with reclining seats, a meal, DVDs, bingo and all sorts. We check in luggage, have our passports checked, security checked, allocated a seat. Think they´ve been taking tips from the airlines! Thoroughly pleasant journey, if I may say so, including watching ´The Lake House´with Keanu Reeves/Sandra Bullock (English with Spanish subtitles) - although there´s a problem with the DVD so they fast-forward 3 sections, so not quite sure what exactly happened with the story! Claire, from our group, won the Bingo, and won a bottle of Pisco, the local drink - Rod promises to make it into a Pisco Sour later.

Through lots of ever-changing scenery, although the Andes are ever-present in the background. Pretty impressive. We arrive in Paracas, where we change to our transfer to Pisco, a much smaller bus. The landscape looks pretty desolate, and we´re soon told that this is the area worst hit by the earthquake in August 2007. Soon realise the piles of rubbish are collapsed homes, etc. This is the first time that Rod has brought a group to Pisco since the earthquake, so he´s not quite sure what to expect either. Start noticing lots of ´tuk-tuks´, except that here they are called ´mototaxis´. We arrive at our hotel, which either has had quick renovations, or escaped the damage. It was next door to the largest/most expensive hotel, but that was beyond repair and has now been bull-dozed. We arrive in time to catch a great sunset, before ordering our food and heading out for a half-hour walk round the town, seeing the damage, and the life that continues. We head back in for a tasty meal (went for fish as we are right next to the sea), and get a complimentary Pisco Sour - pretty tasty! Resist the pancakes and we all crash into bed - early start in the morning!

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