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Published: March 9th 2007
Adios
Glynn waves goodbye to the tiny airport on Easter Island.When we rescheduled our flights to Easter Island an onwards to Peru, we had the option of taking a connecting flight in Santiago just 2 hours after we landed that would get us to Lima on the same day. Luckily for us, we decided against this option as flights to and from Easter Island are notorious for being delayed and our flight back to Santiago was no exception. By the time we were airbourne, we were one and a half hours behind schedule so you can imagine how relieved we were to decided against the connecting flight to Lima as we would only have had 30 minutes to get our bags, check in and get boarded. We whipped out the camera to take a few snaps of Easter Island as we took off and then settled into the flight to watch the mind-numbing in-flight entertainment. So glad we took something to read!
Back in Santiago, it was handy that we had jumped 2 hours forward as this meant it was almost 8pm already. We tried in vain to find something veggie for me to eat but the 6,000 peso all you can eat buffet was closing which was a shame
Aerial View
Easter Isnad, coast to coast. as it looked nice by Chilean standards (Chile hasn't been good for vegetarian food unless you like cheese pasties or cheese rolls for breakfast, lunch and dinner). Everywhere else had managed to sell out of cheese pasties and cheese rolls, so we bought a bagful of junk food from the newsagents and our resulting dinner consisted of biscuits, crisps and chocolate. Not so nutritious.
After much wandering around on all 4 floors of both the domestic and international sections of the airport, we found a quiet corner on level 1 with some metal benches where we could stretch out for a snooze. I caught a couple of hours of shut-eye all wrapped up in our faithful sleeping bags while Glynn kept watch on the bags. It wasn't very comfortable though so Glynn didn't bother trying for a nap when I woke up to take over his shift. We got to check in at 5am and headed through to the much more comfortable departure lounge and waited for our 8.30am flight to Lima.
The flight went off without any problems although it was hard work to stow our hand luggage as everyone else had several massive bags with them
Surprise
Did the captain just mention something about a very short runway? that way exceeded the baggage allowance. I was also dismayed to be fed the same god-awful bland mushroom sandwich that I had to endure on the way out to Easter Island. If that wasn't enough, our fellow passengers seemed to be nothing but a bunch of whiners and I take my hat off to the cabin crew for having the
patience of saints - thank God it was only a 3-hour flight!
Arriving in Lima, we were relieved to find our airport pickup waiting for us with a big sign and an ever bigger smile. We were whisked away in a brand spanking new air-conditioned minibus all to ourselves and soon found ourselves in the heart of Lima. From the fleeting glimpses of the city through the windows, it was easy to see the extent of the poverty that lurks here on every street corner. This looked like a different kind of poverty than we have seen anywhere else on our travels but I was way too tired to take it all in properly. It took about half an hour to reach Miraflores, the most affluent and thus safest part of Lima and our accommodation, the Allyu B&B, couldn't
Evil Sandwich
Could this be the other half of the unbelievably bland mushroom sandwich from the flight to Easter Island? Sorry it's a bit of a wobbly pic but I just had to share the evidence of this culinary crime with you! be better. We have a huge room, with 2 double beds, a sofa, built-in wardrobe, free internet, cable tv, a fan and free tea, coffee, mineral water all day and breakfast included, all for just £13 per night. It's maybe more expensive than other hostels around Miraflores but in terms of comfort, it's superb - we're very happy bunnies indeed! Welcome to Peru :-)
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Judy
non-member comment
Yay! I'm the first one here to comment. :) So is Peru the poorest country you've seen so far? How embarrassing!