Peru's a place that I can remember thinking I wanted to visit from a fairly young age. Proximity to both surf and snow was something that I thought was pretty cool. I'm not really sure what I was expecting when I got here, but it's safe to say I've been surprised, impressed and fascinated by what I've seen so far.
Starting in Miraflores, a suburb just outside of the capital Lima, I was please to find the climate to my liking, definitely shorts and t-shirt weather. I liked Peru already. An afternoon wandering the streets of Miraflores left me surprised at how modern everything was, and amazed at how crazy the driving is. There's more big shopping centers and department stores than I thought there would be, and more new cars than beat up old bombs. Cats roam free in Central Park which i found a bit weird, but i suppose they're healthier and cleaner looking than the stray dogs gracing Guatemala's streets. In general everything is pretty modern, clean and orderly. Except on the roads! All the streets are one way, which is fine, but there appears to be absolutely no semblance of giving way. Approach an intersection and you'll have traffic coming from either left or right. Toot your horn, maybe slow down a little but just keep on going. Indicators are optional, turning can be done from anywhere, at any time, you can even make third and fourth lanes on 'two' lane roads. Amazing, but it seems to go off without too much of a hitch.
You don't have to go far to find old stuff either. A 10 or 15 minute walk up a beautiful tree lined street and you come to an ancient ceremonial site that pre-dates the Incas by a lazy 800 years. Thousands upon thousands of bricks made from mud and crushed sea shells have withstood the elements for hundreds of years. Walls still stand near perfectly straight, and the half uncovered pyramid (work still in progress) might not evoke the same awe as some others around the world, but is still pretty cool in its own rite. The guided tour, complete with comical Spanglish speaking guide, was most definitely worth the $4.
A 10 minute walk the other side of Central Park, down a winding tree lined street, and you hit the Pacific Ocean. Oh to live so close to a surfable break. Continuing the tradition of beaches being completely different to what I'm used to, this one was a beach of black rocks, made smooth by the surging waves of the ocean. Difficult to walk on, especially without shoes, but apparently just as comfortable for the locals to lie on.
16 hours on a bus is surprisingly comfortable when you go first class (amateur backpacker, pffft). I slept for about 5, and don't really remember most what I did in the remaining time, so it must have been comfy. The scenery was unlike anything I've seen before, starting with vast arid rocky desert meeting the even vaster (more vast?) ocean. What an awesome sight to wake up to. Once we left the coast it was just more desert, like a scene straight out of a movie, rocks and sand as far as the eye can see. We'd occasionally roll through tiny desert communities, which actually did look like badly crafted sets from an old school Western.
We eventually hit Arequipa in southern Peru, and if I thought the driving in Lima was crazy, here it´s just plain madness. Same road 'rules' as before, but these guys just took it up a notch. You'd be waiting a long time to see any polite waves in rear view mirrors. Arequipa is another nice old city, but I found there wasn't really a lot to do with only a day to spend there. Longer stays could involve mountain climbing, canyoning and rafting but for one day all I could really do was walk around, look at old churches and try some different cuisines. After that, back to the hostel for some pool competitions and gigantic Jenga (my new favourite game). A pretty big night not leaving me in the greatest state for another early morning bus ride.
This bus brought me to Puno, on the banks of Lake Titicaca - the highest freshwater lake in the world, in a mere 6 hours. Again, not a hell of a lot to do on the city itself, but there's day tours galore. An absolute must is a visit to the floating islands, centuries old communities that live day to day on floating islands made of tatora reeds. Life is simple for these people. So simple it blows my mind. Days are spent either out in boats collecting reeds to keep rebuilding your island or boat, gathering food to eat - usually in the form of fish, pigs or potatoes, or making tapestries and other arts and crafts to sell to one of the few tourist boats that come to your island each week. Overnight stays for tourists are possible, but I didn't have time for this unfortunately. I wish i did because i've been told its one of the most peaceful nights you'll ever experience. At the very least, it couldn't possibly be any worse than the hostel I stayed in.
I also took the opportunity to head out by myself on a hike recommended in my trusty Lonely Planet guidebook. Safe to say that a one paragraph description isn't really enough to get you to a place over 15 kilometers away by foot. I wasn't lost, but I never did end up finding the ruins I set out looking for. I did end up climbing to about 4300m before the setting sun stopped me and I had to turn around to get back to the main road to hitch a ride back to Puno in the dark. An interesting afternoon.
Not wanting to get another bus to get to Cusco, I again lashed out. The Andean Explorer is one of the most scenic train rides in the world, and the 10 hour journey was filled with colourful experiences. Starting with the train rolling slowly out of Puno, the tracks lead directly through a local market. Close enough to reach out and touch the market stalls, standing on the rear of the train allows you to see the market return to normal as soon as the train has passed. As the train trudges on through dead flat green farm land, it´s easy to forget that you´re actually at 3800m above sea level. Again, life in these areas is simple, and I can´t quite comprehend how these people do it. The scenery changes quite a bit as you enter a valley alongside the river and between some enormous snow capped mountains. This really is the stuff of postcards. On board there's local musicians and dancers providing some traditional entertainment, and the Pisco sour's flow, making the afternoon fly by.
Arriving in Cusco late afternoon, I switched back into true backpacker mode and headed to my hostel for the night, the busiest in town, and really more of a pub you can sleep at rather then a hostel you can drink at. Every night's a party of insane proportions, and bar tabs soar as the Blood Bombs and rum & pineapples flow.
So my first 4 or 5 days in Peru went by in a bit of a blur. Lots of time traveling and never long in one place. An excellent way to see the varying landscapes the country has to offer but again not enough time to see or do all that I would really like to. A couple of days relaxing in Cusco prepared me for one of the highlights of my trip, a nine day hike from Cachora to Machu Picchu, also taking in the Incan ruins of Choquequirao. More on that to come shortly...
Starting in Miraflores, a suburb just outside of the capital Lima, I was please to find the climate to my liking, definitely shorts and t-shirt weather. I liked Peru already. An afternoon wandering the streets of Miraflores left me surprised at how modern everything was, and amazed at how crazy the driving is. There's more big shopping centers and department stores than I thought there would be, and more new cars than beat up old bombs. Cats roam free in Central Park which i found a bit weird, but i suppose they're healthier and cleaner looking than the stray dogs gracing Guatemala's streets. In general everything is pretty modern, clean and orderly. Except on the roads! All the streets are one way, which is fine, but there appears to be absolutely no semblance of giving way. Approach an intersection and you'll have traffic coming from either left or right. Toot your horn, maybe slow down a little but just keep on going. Indicators are optional, turning can be done from anywhere, at any time, you can even make third and fourth lanes on 'two' lane roads. Amazing, but it seems to go off without too much of a hitch.
You don't have to go far to find old stuff either. A 10 or 15 minute walk up a beautiful tree lined street and you come to an ancient ceremonial site that pre-dates the Incas by a lazy 800 years. Thousands upon thousands of bricks made from mud and crushed sea shells have withstood the elements for hundreds of years. Walls still stand near perfectly straight, and the half uncovered pyramid (work still in progress) might not evoke the same awe as some others around the world, but is still pretty cool in its own rite. The guided tour, complete with comical Spanglish speaking guide, was most definitely worth the $4.
A 10 minute walk the other side of Central Park, down a winding tree lined street, and you hit the Pacific Ocean. Oh to live so close to a surfable break. Continuing the tradition of beaches being completely different to what I'm used to, this one was a beach of black rocks, made smooth by the surging waves of the ocean. Difficult to walk on, especially without shoes, but apparently just as comfortable for the locals to lie on.
16 hours on a bus is surprisingly comfortable when you go first class (amateur backpacker, pffft). I slept for about 5, and don't really remember most what I did in the remaining time, so it must have been comfy. The scenery was unlike anything I've seen before, starting with vast arid rocky desert meeting the even vaster (more vast?) ocean. What an awesome sight to wake up to. Once we left the coast it was just more desert, like a scene straight out of a movie, rocks and sand as far as the eye can see. We'd occasionally roll through tiny desert communities, which actually did look like badly crafted sets from an old school Western.
We eventually hit Arequipa in southern Peru, and if I thought the driving in Lima was crazy, here it´s just plain madness. Same road 'rules' as before, but these guys just took it up a notch. You'd be waiting a long time to see any polite waves in rear view mirrors. Arequipa is another nice old city, but I found there wasn't really a lot to do with only a day to spend there. Longer stays could involve mountain climbing, canyoning and rafting but for one day all I could really do was walk around, look at old churches and try some different cuisines. After that, back to the hostel for some pool competitions and gigantic Jenga (my new favourite game). A pretty big night not leaving me in the greatest state for another early morning bus ride.
This bus brought me to Puno, on the banks of Lake Titicaca - the highest freshwater lake in the world, in a mere 6 hours. Again, not a hell of a lot to do on the city itself, but there's day tours galore. An absolute must is a visit to the floating islands, centuries old communities that live day to day on floating islands made of tatora reeds. Life is simple for these people. So simple it blows my mind. Days are spent either out in boats collecting reeds to keep rebuilding your island or boat, gathering food to eat - usually in the form of fish, pigs or potatoes, or making tapestries and other arts and crafts to sell to one of the few tourist boats that come to your island each week. Overnight stays for tourists are possible, but I didn't have time for this unfortunately. I wish i did because i've been told its one of the most peaceful nights you'll ever experience. At the very least, it couldn't possibly be any worse than the hostel I stayed in.
I also took the opportunity to head out by myself on a hike recommended in my trusty Lonely Planet guidebook. Safe to say that a one paragraph description isn't really enough to get you to a place over 15 kilometers away by foot. I wasn't lost, but I never did end up finding the ruins I set out looking for. I did end up climbing to about 4300m before the setting sun stopped me and I had to turn around to get back to the main road to hitch a ride back to Puno in the dark. An interesting afternoon.
Not wanting to get another bus to get to Cusco, I again lashed out. The Andean Explorer is one of the most scenic train rides in the world, and the 10 hour journey was filled with colourful experiences. Starting with the train rolling slowly out of Puno, the tracks lead directly through a local market. Close enough to reach out and touch the market stalls, standing on the rear of the train allows you to see the market return to normal as soon as the train has passed. As the train trudges on through dead flat green farm land, it´s easy to forget that you´re actually at 3800m above sea level. Again, life in these areas is simple, and I can´t quite comprehend how these people do it. The scenery changes quite a bit as you enter a valley alongside the river and between some enormous snow capped mountains. This really is the stuff of postcards. On board there's local musicians and dancers providing some traditional entertainment, and the Pisco sour's flow, making the afternoon fly by.
Arriving in Cusco late afternoon, I switched back into true backpacker mode and headed to my hostel for the night, the busiest in town, and really more of a pub you can sleep at rather then a hostel you can drink at. Every night's a party of insane proportions, and bar tabs soar as the Blood Bombs and rum & pineapples flow.
So my first 4 or 5 days in Peru went by in a bit of a blur. Lots of time traveling and never long in one place. An excellent way to see the varying landscapes the country has to offer but again not enough time to see or do all that I would really like to. A couple of days relaxing in Cusco prepared me for one of the highlights of my trip, a nine day hike from Cachora to Machu Picchu, also taking in the Incan ruins of Choquequirao. More on that to come shortly...
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