Peru (Huaquillas to Lake Titicaca)

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So I crossed the border into Peru with no problems and then got off the bus at a town called Tumbes as that is where the bus journey ended. We (me and these two Chilean girls) then had to find somehow of getting to Mancora. We eventually found a mini bus that was going there and I remember it feeling like we were like sardines in a tin, packed in with a whole bunch of Peruvians. After what seemed like an eternity we eventually arrived in Mancora and I made my way to the hotel that I had booked before.

Mancora is ok. The main attraction is the beach which is average at best and along the road that runs parallel to it there are loads of bars and restaurants. Be aware that when you book your bus ticket you don't book it at one of the sub agencies that sell tickets but book it with the actual bus company. I booked a bus ticket with an agency and was promised that my bus would be comfortable, have A/C, etc, etc. which was a load of rubbish as I soon realised when I got on my bus! Didn't turn out to be the worst bus journey of my South American trip but was pretty bad.

Got into Trujillo early morning but to be honest you would be much better off staying in Huanchaco which is about 15 minutes NW by taxi as there is so much more to do there, it's a nice little town with loads of beach bars and restaurants and some great surf as well. Trujillo town centre was pretty for sightseeing with beautifully painted buildings and that is also where you can book your sightseeing tours with one of the many agencies that rings the main square. There are two aboriginal ruins that you must see, one is to the SE (La Huaca de la Luna) and another to the NW (Chan Chan), both are amazing. I got a one day tour which started in La Huaca de la Luna then had a weird lunch in Trujillo with an accompaniment of latino dancers for our enjoyment. There was some archaeologic sightseeing in Trujillo then after that we went to Chan Chan after which we spent the last bit of the day in Huanchaco. Of all the picturesque seaside towns in South America Huanchaco was by far the best for bars, restaurants, accommodation and the surf seemed amazing!

The bus journey from Trujillo to Lima was a great experience from the modern airport like departure terminal to the hostess served, luxury double decker bus with massive reclining seats (best bus journey ever). Even the scenery was amazing as we travelled down the Pan American highway with the vastness of the Pacific on one side and the Peruvian desert on the other.

Arrived in Lima and headed to my hostel in Miraflores which seems to be the hub of nightlife, expats and tourists. Took a bus the next day to the centre of Lima to see the various museums, cathedrals and palaces. The changing of the guard is at 1125 hrs daily (probably not quite up to Buckingham Palace standards but apparently worth a watch) at the Presidential Palace. Lonely Planet says that the centre of Lima isn't too safe to wander around but this is rubbish, there were loads of people (tourists and locals alike) wandering around quite happily. And Miraflores is fine even late at night as there were loads of people wandering around as well. There is an old fort just down by La Punta district (about 8km W of Lima centre) which is worth a look as it is also museum and I got a taxi back to Miraflores as loads of locals told me that the coastal route is not safe to walk, even during the day. I was contemplating a bus up to Cusco for my next leg but when I compared a 21 hour bus journey to a $100 flight I opted for the quicker option!

Arrived in Cusco (the former Inca capital) on the morning of new years eve and the place was unsurprisingly packed with people from all over the world, although surprisingly I did manage to find a hostel within a 10 minute walk of the town centre. If you want to do the Inca trail from Cusco to Machu Pichu (MP) then you need to book this well in advance, I opted for the train journey which goes from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes ($95 return). If you can I would recommend the Sacred Valley tour and MP train trip in one day so you get into Aguas Calientes the evening before you go up to MP.

Agaus Calientes although pretty is just a hive of hotels, restaurants and bars hungry for your dollars. Everywhere seems to try and trick you into leaving up to a 30% (yep 30%) tip disguising it as some sort of tax, be warned. You can walk up to MP but to be honest as it was chucking it down I (and all the others on the bus) were pretty glad we got the bus. Machu Pichu was pretty spectacular, although I was one of the first few through the gates I had to wait for about 20 minutes for my guide to turn up so the early start to catch one of the first buses up there was a complete waste of time. Although the weather was pretty poor I still managed to get some photos of the place, one of the highlights of South America. The hotel I stayed at had a checkout policy of 0900 then wanted to charge extra if I wanted to use the shower after that, knowing full well that after going up MP at 0500 that is what everyone wants but everyone would get back well after 0900. I just checked out that morning (they will let you leave your bags there) and then when I got back late morning went up to the hot springs at the top of the town and had a shower after that.

Make sure that you have loads of cash for Cusco as nearly all the ATM's are a rip off apart from one on the main square and pay for everything in cash if you can as all the operators charge an extra 9% commission for credit cards.

Next stop was Arequipa, there wasn't much to see there but it's good as a hub for trekking/ tours to Colca Canyon and other places. Colca Canyon was pretty impressive (even if the 0300 hrs start wasn't) with the Andean condors gliding around below us.

I was told be nearly everyone that Lake Titicaca is nothing special so only saw it as we were transiting to get to Bolivia.

Thank you Peru!

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