My last word

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Few more photos added to "rain, rain, go away" and "fire theft and injury". Apologies for the mammoth blog below. I have been a bit slack about doing it recently and had a huge chunk to tell everyone about before the trip ends in a couple of days time. For those in the UK and especially in and around London I get back on 9th June but will be stopping at Tom's first so I won't be back in London until 10th. I've got a week to sort out tons of stuff to do with my PhD etc before starting work again on 18th June. But hopefully many an evening/weekend can be devoted to catching up with as many of you as poss. I will text my new mob number when I get it sorted. Can't wait to see boyfriend, friends and family. Now that I know that the end is nigh I have really started to miss old Blighty!

Chan Chan Chan Chan Chan

Leaving Lima was a little sad as we had to wave farewell to three of our travelling companions - Nic, Lynne and Iain. Nic had been on the truck since Rio, so it was particularily weird to have her go. In fact she jetted off back to Auz pretty quickly and only Lynne and Iain were there to cry at our departure. John, Lynne's husband, was left alone on the truck and we have seen a rather louder side of him since her departure!

We had yet another beach rough camp that night which was lovely. A little chilly but it was still refreshing to wander along the beach before dinner, watching the sea birds grab fish out of the sea and disturbing the crabs. We also got to watch a traditional fisherman haul in his catch. A tasty Moroccan dish and marshmellows around the camp fire were a welcome end to the day.

The next day it was only a short drive to Las Huacas del Sol y de la Luna (the temples of the Sun and the Moon). The Huaca del Sol is Peru's largest pre-Columbian structure; 140 million adobe bricks were used to build it. We couldn't visit this temple because it is currently under archaeological excavation but we got to visit the smaller Huaca de la Luna. Both temples were built by the Moche tribe and actually had nothing to do with the sun and the moon. They were only named that because a tourist travelling through had seen two by that name in Mexico and decided to name them similarily. It was really interesting seeing stylised friezes that have been preserved in Huaca de la Luna because it had been covered by sand for so many years. This temple had a sacrificial role and we learnt about the sacrifice of male warriors who had been given hallucinogens and then the ceremonial giving of their blood to a priest at the high altar. Within the temple were several smaller temples. Each time a priest died he was buried in his temple, it was closed over and a new temple was built on top. Hence the layers of temples from slightly different periods with different frescoes.

A brief supermarket lunch was all the rest we got before hitting our next archaeological site, Chan Chan itself. This site was once the largest pre-Columbian city in the Americas and the largest mud-brick city in the world. It wa built around AD 1300 and contained about 10,000 structures, from huge walk-in wells, canals and temple pyramids, to royal palaces lined with precious metals. It was built by the Chimu culture who were conquered by the Incas around 1460 but the city was not looted under the Sopanish arrived! The city consisted of nine subcities called the Royal Compounds. We visited the only restored compound that is open to visitors; the Tschudi compound. I really enjoyed learning about the Chimu culture as our guide led us through various ceremonial squares, temples/admin offices (the experts disagree!) and the mausoleum where the king was once buried along with his sacrificed concubines and servants. Each year the mummy of the king was brought out for special ceremonies whilst a new Royal Compound was built for the new king. After a day of sight seeing our resting place for the night was a campsite in Huanchaco.....on the roof of a hotel!

Riding through the surf

From Huanchaco we heading to Punta Sal for a few days of just chilling out. This beach side town is much quieter than its neighbour Mancora and we had the long beach almost to ourselves most of the time. We actually camped on the beach but had the luxury of being attached to a hostel - so showers and an endless supply of ice creams and yummy seafood. Our first night there was a little drunken due to some people having partaken in truck drinking and also the coincidence of bumping into Carly's best mate Rachel who was on a tour with Toucan heading in the opposite direction.

I dragged my hungover self out of a hot tent the next day for a truck fried brekkie which sorted me out. Then I had the hard task of spending the whole day lazing on the beach with occasional dips in the sea. It was a tad cloudy but the sun was def getting through as a few people with sunburn can testify to. That night I cooked my last ever truck dinner. All of us as a team had spent the whole day turning a pig on a spit but I had to co-ordinate all the extra stuff such as freshly made apple sauce, bbq'd peppers stuffed with quinoa (local grain) and cheese and salads. Having two slightly useless males as aids didn't help!

But I managed to get rid of the stress of cooking for 21 people with another day on the beach. This time it was interupted a few times. Firstly for a horse ride which had to be my best ride of the entire trip. When the guide realised I had some experience and wanted to gallop he let me ride his horse Harlequin. This beautiful animal was amazingly well trained and well up for a gallop. More importantly he was happy to leave the rest of the group of horses, being the leader, which was necessary as the other two riders were beginners who weren't confident enough to gallop. I had fabulous time flying along the beach, throwing up the surf and scaring all the seabirds. I have always longed to ride along a beach and it was just as romantic as I had imagined. Shame there was no Tom to share it with!

After some lounging on the beach and purchasing of yet more jewellery it was time for my full body massage - it's a hard life isn't it?!

Verdant Ecuador

Punta Sal was our last stop in Peru before our last ever overland border crossing into Ecuador. There was an almost immediate change from the barren, sandy coastal mountains of Peru that we had been travelling through to the very very very green banana plantations of Ecuador. The other big difference is the big decrease in tourism. Ecuador doesn't have the big crowd pullers like Machu Picchu and Nazca that Peru possesses. But as far as I'm concerned this is only a good thing. Peru has been a bit ruined by the tourism industry. You get bothered on every corner and begin to feel that the people are not genuine but just out to get as much from you as possible. Alot of pretty little towns have been ruined by tourist shops and tacky restuarants. I'm not saying Ecuador is totally immune to this but it is a lot more chilled. I love the atmosphere here and hardly get hassled at all. Mostly the people either ignore you or are very friendly - but without wanting your money! Loving Ecuador and I will def return here one day, maybe when I have the money to see the Galapagos Islands.

OK, so I get distracted. Our first stop in Ecuador was a great campsite/activity centre outside Banos and close to the village of Rio Verde. This was run by a Swiss guy (off travelling!) and an ex-overland driver named Richie who helped sort stuff out for us. So what did I get up to in the green, jungly, verdant land around Rio Verde? Well......canyoning which involved donning a wet suit and helmet and jumping off waterfalls into pools, sliding down rocks into pools head first and abseiling down several waterfalls. It was great fun despite a slightly bossy guide who shouted at a few people for no reason!

I also went for a gentle hike with some of the gang. First we clambered down to the bottom of the Bride's Veil waterfall and got thoroughly soaked. Then we took the slightly dubious cable car across the canyon to one of the indigenous villages on the other side (the only access to the villages). A gentle stroll through the villages involved drinking fresh orange juice, watching the local kids play football during school break and risking my life on the "longest swing in Ecuador" (ha ha!) over a mini valley. After a relaxed lunch in Rio Verde the little hiking gang headed off to see the Devil's something waterfall - pretty powerful to say the least. The day finished with a spot of soaking in one of the thermal spas that Banos takes it's name from.

My last day in Rio Verde involved a four hour hike through the mountains. Sadly this ride was supposed to involve a long canter for some of the experienced riders but at the last minute a beginner signed up (despite being warned) and several horses wouldn't leave the pack so we didn't all get the promised canter. But the views were amazing, especially as the horses picked their way down the mountain side on the return journey through treacherous boulders and past fast flowing rivers. Lunch was funny affair - sandwichs and an apple sitting on a wooden bridge suspended over a river! Any annoyance I had from not getting my canter was taken away by my second full body massage. This was even better than the first with the addition of a great face massage and some reflexology.

One thing I fogot to mention about Banos is that the residents live in the shadow of Volcan Tungurahua, which began erupting in October 1999. It was put on re-alert status so ex-President Mahuad ordered Banos and the surrounding area evacuated. With no major eruption by January 2000, thousands forced their way through he military blockades and returned to their homes. It think it was down to yellow alert whilst we were there but thick smoke is still pouring out of it. Shamefully I hardly noticed it's presence whilst I was in Banos as the top was always covered in cloud. The other fun of Banos was taking the crazy local buses from Rio Verde into town and hence getting thrown around corners and hurtling through the five tunnels along the way where most drivers don't use lights!

Amazon Adventures

Our lodge in the Amazon was called Shangrilla and thanks to great guides and staff we had an amazing couple of days there. The views from the lodge itself were amazing. The room I shared with Carly had a balcony (avec hammock) that looked out onto one of the Amazon's tributaries, a sea of tree tops and distance cloud topped mountains. One morning this view was interspersed with low lying clouds and mist whilst the mountains were revealed in glorious sunshine. Our first evening there we had traditional Ecuadorian music, dancing and a meeting with a tarantula who happened to be living in the thatched roof over the dining area!

The first day we were led into the jungle itself by our great guide Matildo and translator/guide Miguel. The two of them taught us a lot about the plants and fruit that the jungle provides and the way that the local people use them; everything from food through to treating snake bites. We managed to see a fair bit of wildlife ourself. Lots of huge insects and spiders, a tiny poisonous tree frog, insect eating bats and the most poisonous snake in the area which if bitten by you have two hours before your flesh starts to be eroded and eventually your bones! The bats were encountered in the many mini-canyons we had to clamber and squeeze through as we followed a stream through the jungle. On one occasion we had to climb up the canyon using our bums and legs as a bridge. We all emerged from this trip very wet with most people having had water flow into their wellies as well.

But there was not time to rest as we spent the afternoon tubing down the river. Five of us lounged in four tubes that were tied together and got our bums wet whilst our guide directed us down the river. There were a few very slightly choppy bits, I went for a swim and a few splashing matches with the other tube group. We stopped along the way at an indigenous village where we learnt about and tasted various fruits, made traditional head gear with the panama palm, had our faces painted with red fruit seed dye, tasted homemade chicha (yuka beer) learnt about traditional cooking and were given Quechua names.

The next day the whole group was driven 45 mins to Shangrilla's sister lodge, a bit further into the jungle. From here we set off on another, slightly more challenging hike, this time led by Miguel and Eduardo. We again followed a stream, upwards towards its source, but this time we had to scale various waterfalls. Sometimes a rope was needed and we all got absolutely drenched in the process. I was wet before the first waterfall climb having voluntarily stuck my whole body under a very powerful waterfall that we stopped by to look at. Having emptied the water out of our wellies and squeezed out our socks we had a rather treacherous hike back to the lodge as we ducked under foliage, slid down muddy slopes and clung to vines to get down various drops.

After all that I was only fit for chilling in a hammock in my dry clothes with a book all afternoon whilst some of the others headed off for another stroll. This also gave me time to play with the various cute kids belonging to the many women that had prepare our lunch and worked at the lodge. One 15 day old baby was a leaving present from a German that had visited the lodge! With a culture that promoted having 12 children I had seen loads of other cute kids on our drives through the villages in the area but one thing bothered me - I had seen a lot of bloated stomachs. We asked our guide about it, assuming it was caused by too many carbs but actually it was worms! He seemed not to be bothered by it informing us that as soon as the kids are strong enough to take it they are given medicine from the jungle that clears out the worms for good. Talking of worms... whilst in the jungle Shannon had to have a blow fly worm removed from her back using the traditional method of a thorn and Duncan was also stung by a scorpion that climbed into the clothes he had hanging out on the balcony to dry.

All girl rafting

Shangrilla is situated just outside of Tena and this was our base for white water rafting after leaving the lodge. Whilst there were two normal sized rafts I ended up in the baby one that was far more likely to capsize. I think this was because my team was a rather light all girl team of only 6 so we were the only ones that fit in it without sinking it! We were only attempting grade three rapids but as we had 4 rafting virgins in our raft it was a great introduction. The rapids were big enough to be fun and cause a rather large adrenaline rush but not terrifying. Claire, who had done it in grade 5 Zambizi river said she actually got to enjoy it this time. In between the rapids were calm pools where we could mess about in the raft, have a swim and attack other rafts. We also went through one smaller rapid in the water - a reminder of hydrospeeding! I didn't end up in the water due to a rapid despite taking a fair few direct wave hits when our raft kept going into rapids my side first. However we did loose Claire, Nikki and our guide at different points. We made a great team of girls: Carly yelling rather rude orders at us, Nikki and Emma squealing and screaming, Emma cursing the river through the rapids, everyone singing "row row the boat", and having rude conversations yet somehow being the only raft in time when paddling with a great right turn if I say so myself! The day as a whole was great and we had several stops including a yummy lunch with pre-lunch games and a wander up a canyon to do mud face painting. The whole experience has made me want to tackle a higher grade in the future.

A great day ended in Emma, myself and Nikki having a few bevvies and learning salsa and merengue with a couple of our guides, Eduardo and Alex. I slipped off around 1am but the girls carried on and ended up meeting Alex's 80 year "uncle", a shaman who blessed Nikki in a bizarre ceremony involving hitting her with sticks and spitting hallucinogenic drugs at her!

The End

We are now in Otavalo, a town famous for its craft market. I visited it today with Carly and Nikki but we were luckily a bit disappointed (lucky as if I buy much more there is no way I'll get it all home). But I did purchase a panama hat (cliche!) and a rather lovely hammock! Thank goodness I have a two bag check in allowance on the way home! I now have a whole bag full of gifts for myself and others. With Carly not feeling very well (we think due to swallowing a bit to much river water) we have chilled out with our books for the rest of today until we hit the internet. Tomorrow we head to Quito, via a stop at the Equator, which is where our trip officially ends. I can't quite yet believe that tomorrow evening I will be getting off the truck for the last time! It has been my home from home for the last four months and most admit I may shed a solitary tear when I say goodbye to it. But more importantly saying goodbye to all the people will be so weird. The guys that got on at Rio with me I have seen every day for four months and those that I am really close to I have barely spent an hour apart from. It will be so strange to find myself back in one house, sleeping in one bed and not having the awesome foursome around for jokes and banter. But there is no way that Carly and Claire will escape me once we are back in the UK and we have already planned a trip to visit Emma in Hong Kong.

So my last words on the trip would be........I have loved every minute of it, I have made great friends from it, it is cliched but I have learnt a lot about myself and feel very confident about travelling solo in the future, I have soaked up so many experiences and cultures and I want to hold onto every memory for the rest of my life.

Adios South America - I'll miss you but I'm coming back one day!!!

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Comments

[POB]

Thanks Travel blog and gemma for your Blogs
GEMMA, Thanks on behalf of all of us who have shared your blogs and in part vacariously travelled with you. Thanks for taking the time out to entertain us with your adventures, painting us pictures and opening our eyes to another world. It sounds like, whatever you left as, you will return as a traveller. Here's to a safe journey , a bonvoyage ......we are dusting down the welcomehome flags, ......see you soon ....... from pob and freinds xxx