Blogs from Miraflores, Lima, Lima, Peru, South America - page 12

In Lima is het heerlijk warm. Tussen de 20 en de 30 graden. Vooral als de zon echt doorbreekt dan loopt de temperatuur flink op. Toch doet zich ook een vreemd natuurlijk verschijnsel voor. Een koude oceaan stroming vanaf de zuidpool genaamd de "Humboldt stroming" komt hier voorbij de kust. Dit heeft een effect s'morgens vroeg de zon opkomt en de temperatuur snel oploopt naar ergens tussen de 25 en 29 graden. Na een uurtje komt er een damp vanuit zee de stad in drijven. Je ziet echt een deken zich uitrollen de stad in. Deze damp blijft als een soort mist over de stad hangen en lost pas om een uur of vijf in de middag weer op. Het is even wennen maar ook wel lekker wat de temperatuur blijft met de mist ergens rond ... read more

After the inevitable flooding delay we finally boarded the train to get to Machu Picchu. The fog and rain were so thick you could barely see the end of the cabin, but with high hopes the slow ascent to the ruins began. The rain got worse and worse... the river running alongside the track appeared closer and closer to burting it´s banks until... THE RAIN STOPPED! This can only have been an Inca blessing since it had not stopped for 4 days straight at this stage but then we do seem to have incredible fortune. After getting of the train and climbing another 1500 feet or so up the side of a basically vertical cliff, our breath was taken away far more by the sensational view than the altitude. After wanting to see Machu Picchu for ... read more

Our 72 day cruise around South America will give us only a glimpse of this vast continent. With six days in Peru we’ll have a chance to explore just the coastal region of the country. This part of Peru is very unique in that it is a desert, caused in part by the cold Humboldt Current which brings the frigid waters of Antarctica up along the west coast of South America. Even though Peru is located close to the Equator, it is much cooler than expected. The other major factor influencing this part of the world was the colonial conquests. Terry Breen, the Regent destination specialists and resident anthropologist, noted that the intent of the European explorers was vastly different in North and South America. The people who came to North America arrived with the intention ... read more

Right in the heart of Brazil – miles from anywhere and in the wet season. Good news it only rained one day, but mossies galore. Deet and bite zapper doing the trick, but have to wear long sleeves and trousers, which was a slight problem as Suzanne’s long sleeved T shirt had to be fished out of dirty washing and John’s only long sleeved shirt was his ‘going out’ shirt. A souvenir long sleeved T shirt solved the problem. Breakfast was at 0600 every day and we were in the boat by 0700 – captain was a local lad called Chico. We saw an amazing variety of birds, the highlight being the hyacinth macaw which is huge colourful and very rare. We had capybara (huge rodents the size of small pigs) wandering through the camp – ... read more

Didn't do much in the morning. Just faffed about and found the local Starbucks 500 yards from the hotel, sat with a Frappucino and planned our days here! Walked from San Isidro district where we are staying to Miraflores - the posh part of Lima with views across the sea, nice bars and restaurants and exclusive shops. Had a salad lunch in a smart outdoor shopping mall by the beach and people watched for a while as it was Sunday and there weren't many alternative venues other than museums which we werent in the mood for..... It was a really long walk there and we battled with a map with a few wrong turns along the way. Probably a good 5 miles. We had no intention of walking back. However, we just sort of started out ... read more