The beginning

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So here I am, after 9 weeks of waiting I am finally in Peru, and boy what a shock. But lets sart at the beginning. After having a few hours slepp Tuesday night I was up at 2.30 in the morning, at Heathrow by 4.30 in the morning and sadly in Peru at 6pm local time, which is midnight for you guys. So as you can imagine it's been one long day. And it's not even 9pm here now, whereas it should be almost 3am, so confusing. My flight was full of old people coming to Peru to explore on their version of a Saga holiday and German school kids who literally took over half the plane. Never had Peru down as such a popular destination. My longest flight today was 10 hours, from Madrid to Lima. And I was very disappointed that bad weather meant that we didn't see dinner, plane food is just the best in my opinion. I did get a tasty beef dish for my lunch though, it looked worse than those turkey twizlers my oliver used to moan about but tasted good all the same. Turns out descending in to Lima airport over the Andes is absolutely stunning visually, but boy does it make for some fun turbulence.

Anyway, enough of the plane. After being cleared through customs, i'm sure they would let anyone through as long as you had put something down on their forms, i found my way in to a taxi. it was a bit more expensive than anticipated as it was quite a luxury cab, but after my trip here i'm so glad i didn't slum it in a dodgy unmarked cab. they quite simply don't have any road laws at all. it seems to me that you do what you like and hope that no one hits you. judging by some of the driving i'm not entirely convinced you need a licence either! the taxi trip from the airport to Miraflores, where i'm staying for 2 nights, was a complete eye opener. Some of us were chatting to the air hostess on the plane and she said she never comes into Lima as it's too dangerous, i now know what she means. the whole place looks as though it is waiting to mug, kidnap or kill you. it really doesn't feel safe at all. i'm hoping that the daylight tomorrow will paint a better picture of the city, but roll on friday when i fly to cuzco.

on the upside the hotel is quite nice. i have managed to fing a few english channels on the box, and surprise surprise they are showing friends!! i have 3 beds in my room which i find slightly bizare, i keep on waiting for some family to return home from work and say oh we live here! My first sample of the local cuisine has been peruvian green rice with chicken and carne empanadas. not exactly gourmuet food but filled a hole and was relatively cheap. no photos taken yet, as i have been to afraid to take the camera out of my bag, but hopefully some will follow soon.

right i'm off for some well deserved sleep. hopefully i'll wake up in the morning with my belongings still there!!

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Comments

[John]

Sounds interesting!
Hey mate, I am going to be the first to comment on your blog! Glad you got there ok, although the flight doesn't sound great. The drive to the hotel sounds like one of your normal drives, so that should've been ok for you! Did you have to put the beds together so that you fitted in?! I like the comment about the camera, make sure you keep your bag safe. Do they look like fast runners in Peru?!! Have fun mate.