Hey, My vacation's in ruins!

Franciso Pizarro found his favorite city in the midst of a barren and sand dune ridden desert.  He founded the town of Trujillo because he enjoyed the access it gave his troops to the supply lines of the Andes and the food.  We stayed at the Strenua- Las Quintanas a nondescript lovely place ten minutes out of the center of the Historic center.   Trujillo was the logical next stop for us on our journey to avoid a ridiculously long bus ride to Lima.

The city is beautiful despite being destroyed completely multiple times due to earthquakes and fires.  They have restored the colonial charm and polished the main square to gleam in the sunlight.  It is a nice departure from the often rubbish ridden city squares that we've seen in the other cities. The beach (2.5 miles from the center), on the other hand, was complete crap.

Rob was certain that the city would be nothing other than a stopover, but I had been doing my reading and found that this area has historically been an important trade center for seven different cultures over the past three thousand years.

I Suggested we hop in a cab 10k to the north of the city to the ruins of Chan Chan. The complex of Chan Chan is 15 acres today, and once was much larger when it was the capital city of the Moche culture.  The entire city is made of adobe which makes it the largest adobe structure in the world, by a lot. Regrettably El Nino is visibly affecting the complex and slowly melting the walls back into the sand. Adobe was the perfect construction material for this arid region but has recently seen unusual rainfall due to the phenomenon.

The walls are still strong; they are 30 feet tall in some areas and 10 feet thick. UNESCO has declared the area a world heritage site which allows it access to funding for roofing and some reconstruction. The Incas brought the proud Chamu to submission not by breaching the walls, but instead,  by cutting off water to the city by diverting an entire river.

After lunch, sunscreen and air conditioning we went 13km south of the city for more ruins I had read about. Huacas del Luna y Sol were built by the Moche for religious ceremonies. The Huacas are really just huge mountains built by millions of bricks.  The weather has also started to melt these structures. They once stood tall in the desert with a plaster facade that was neatly decorated.  Dunes protected the facade from the elements as they piled up and slowly covered and hid the frescos.  The restoration has started removing the dunes and once again exposing the magnificently colored and detailed reliefs.

Hey, What's Going On in Peru?

¡Hola familia y amigos!

After a lazy, hung over day in beautiful Cuenca, we went to the bus terminal to take an overnight, 12 hour trip into Peru!

As we were waiting for the bus we spent a few moments writing our final Ecuadorian post cards. We were told that the main bus station had a buzón (mailbox) and we figured that it would be very easy to write the cards and send them before we boarded. Once written, it became apparent that, in fact, there was no buzón in the station. There wasn't even one in the neighborhood! As we asked around we kept hearing that the mailboxes are only open during the day (which defeats the purpose of a mailbox) and that we would have to travel to the only post office in town the following morning.

We only had about an hour before we boarded, but we were determined to mail out postcards from Ecuador, and this was our final chance to do so! We made a mad dash to the post office, and after poking around we discovered that Brandt was able to stick his arm through the metal fencing and reach the drop slot of the buzón! If you receive an Ecuadorian postcard, then know that the mailing of them was quite the feat!

The bus ride itself was uneventful until the border crossing. Bleary eyed (it was about 2 in the morning) we groggily lined up in the Ecuadorian line to exit, then walked to the next line, which was for Peru, to get our entry stamp. About five years ago this particular border crossing station was widely considered the most dangerous in South America. However, at 2 AM, we found that the station was sleepy and oddly convenient.

Our trip continued, and after two police stops,  where all passports were examined, we made it into the city of Chiclayo.

Honestly, we chose to stop in Chiclayo because if we went straight to Lima, we would be on the bus for 26 hours. Therefore, Chiclayo provided a convenient city to crash for a night.

There was, unfortunately, little to do in Chiclayo. It is a medium-sized city with an overabundance of taxis (As I am writing this on a bus, I literally passed 24+ taxis waiting for a traffic light). The geography is of a desert, and it is hot! Why do people stay in a dusty desert town, you ask? Well, this area is home the site of a major archeological discovery.

The Mochica empire thrived around 1000 BC and was known for its excellent pottery, gold work, and pyramids. This area even used to have several, block-type pyramids. The museum a little outside of town holds many artifacts unearthed in an archeological discovery from the 1980s.

We found the museum fascinating, but unfortunately, we can't provide pictures of anything as cell phones were not allowed in the exhibit. We had to actually store our phones in a locker before we were admitted!

Believe me, when I say that the museum was wonderful, and if you ever find yourself avoiding a 26-hour bus ride to Lima from Ecuador, Chiclayo is a decent place for a quick stop.

Currently, Brandt and I are on a schwanky bus to Trujillo (schwany: adj., a superlative form of swanky). Not only are the seats leather and spacious, but the bus is a double decker, there is air conditioning, free snacks, and drinks (non-alcoholic unfortunately)! It feels like an airline!

Stay tuned for updates from Trujillo. Our next goal is to find a Pisco Sour and some fresh ceviche!

Ciao,
Rob