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

Hey, Magical forest

A friend we made suggested a city about 6 hours from Guayaquil. Las Cajas national park is a huge refuge high in the Andes that is known for its spectacular vistas. But first we needed to get there.

It started like any other bus ride, but things started really moving once we hit the rain. We lurched to a stop and many of us wiped the sleep from our eyes to see a river of mud crossing the road from the hillside. One hundred yards up, the hill slid due to the soggy weather. 

We sat. The driver was doing something or another while the temperature started to rise. He'd  turned off the air in expectation of the cool mountain air, but we'd yet to reach it and outside was 85 degrees, inside was approaching 100. We cooked.

An hour or so later the road crews showed up with heavy equipment to move the sludge in order for us to pass. Mothers were fanning their babies to keep them cool. Finally, we moved and fresh air entered the windows.

We stayed at Hostal Mallki just outside the historic center of Cuenca. The owner Andres restored the place by hand with a great result. We were eger to go exploring the colonial center.

The city abounds with churches. Nearly every corner has one if not two. We had reached the town after dark so we had the real pleasure of seeing the buildings with their lighting.

Next morning we awoke early to go to Las Cajas national park. The taxi driver took us to the main bus terminal, where we conveniently boarded another taxi to go to the transfer terminal on the other side of the city. By this time we'd missed the morning buses (8am and 830) and had to wait for the next at 1040. We went for an adventure.  

A block away from the Occidental bus office we found a huge open air market filling several square blocks. We wondered the food area and gawked at the food handling. Whole raw chickens skinned sweating more than the two of us. Fish weren't kept on ice, no plastics separating the food from the guests, not a single glove in use. I suddenly saw how important it was to have your food cooked fully because it has most likely picked up a few ickies that would give a tourist the trots or worse.We decided bread would be our lunch with some red grapes.

Forty minutes outside of town lie las Cajas named for their box shape when viewed from above. Hiking begins at 4000m which makes your lungs burn and your head pound. The park was carved by glaciers that have long since gone away. We were told route 1 (pink route) was a favorite and expected three hours hiking.

It must have rained through the night because  the ranger laughed when she saw our waterproof shoes and suggested an alternative hike. We were unswayed by her wise guidance and set off. Fifteen minutes later we were covered in mud to the knees and had nearly lost a shoe in some quicksand. We pressed on undaunted.

The path turned into a forest which I can only describe as magical. At neary 13000ft in altitude, these trees have weathered the constant wind, but have warped in every direction as if they were scribbled by a toddler.  Their paper thin smooth bark is translucent brown. The hike just got unexpectedly awesome.

We had some weather and lighting move in after passing the forest so we had to high tail back to the ranger station, slipping and sliding the whole way. We waited on the side of the road for a Cuenca bound bus to get us home.

That night was a bit blurry. Andres broke out some moonshine aguardiente called Pajaro Azul. Traditionally they make the stuff with a raw chicken which turns the booze blue hence the name "blue bird". 

Pablo Chichel and Andres jammed until three thirty in the morning with some very entertaining renditions of sings you know and their own compilations. Kathy, a very kind Canadian, rob and myself did our best to keep a beat on the box drum. The next morning was tough, to say the least, but we still made it out to the museum and ruins at Pumapungo.

Hey, Guayaquil

Recovering from the Galapagos was a priority when returning to the mainland. We overspent and got too much sun. We needed a couple days at a budget  hostel and home cooking sounded perfect. We overnighted to Guayaquil on the south coast of Ecuador  and found our way to the Dreamkapture hostel.

The hostel is also renowned for its Galapagos travel agency, go figure. The location is convenient to the airport and bus terminal but kinda far from anything else. Judging from the electric fence on the walls of the hostel, the hostel's neighborhood is probably not where you wanna go for a night stroll. The undersized dipping pool was an oasis fro the day's heat.

Guayaquil is Ecuador's largest city and an important port. The Malecon 2000 is a seawall built next to downtown containing amusements, malls, gardens, and restaurants. We strolled along while people watching until the soccer game started on TV and air conditioning was calling our names.

The other odd thing about Guayaquil is its iguanas that live in a park in the middle of downtown. These guys were huge, but unlike their Galapagos cousins they prefer to live in a dirty urban park and get molested by fat mouth breathing tourists.

Hey, Darwin

We left Montanita at 6pm to Sta Helena for a connection to Guayaquil. In Guayaquil, we took the overnight bus back to Quito once again.

We arrived in Quito earlier than expected at 6am and took our time getting to the airport for our departure to the Galapagos. Not originally part of our trip, when we found round trip flights for under 180 we jumped at the opportunity.

I love South America's airlines! No matter how long your flight time, you're sure to get food.

In 1832 Ecuador laid claim to the treasure of the Galapagos when no other country wanted them. Charles Darwin came to the island three years later and made the islands famous and suddenly sought after in territorial disputes. Nevertheless the islands remain Ecuadorian despite their position in a different timezone and 600 miles out to sea.

I was impressed the level of biological  security the government imposes upon airlines. Our bags were xrayed three times and the overhead compartments were fumigated mid-flight. 

A fifteen minute bus from the terminal where we had a lively boatride to Santa Cruz island. We expected a bus,but found out the last bus stops at 10am and we would be taking a cab at 5 bucks per person.

Isla Santa Cruz  is the most populated islands of the Galapagos, however, it feels really small and unfortunately very touristy. The upside of the island is everything else. The flora consists of cactus trees, bushes and mangroves.

The first night we went to the marina which has a pier lighted underneath. After  Rob was scolded for taking pictures with a flash, we saw manta rays, stingrays, small sharks, sea lions, crabs, turtles, and batefish all from the comforts of the dock. We were dumbstruck with the variety of animals already.

We woke early the next day to catch a cab to the Highlands to a sanctuary we had heard about containing some senior citizens.

The galapagos tortoise roams the hils beneith a gigantic shell and tops 600 pounds. They have been recorded to have lived for a record 200 years and the ones today nearly survived extinction. Today they roam a mowed yard and eat mangos that fall from the trees while enjoying the option to come and go as they please.

El Chato reserve hosts these magnificent creatures on their ranch and charges a mere 3 bucks for entry. An extra bonus of the reserve are the lava tunnels twenty feet high and twenty feet wide that speckle the property. 

The day continued after three hours  exploring  the ranch, spelunking, trying on turtle shells,  blushing while turtles--we'll just say be turtles.

The day hardly was over there. We at once suited up for the beach. One and a half miles from town is a beach called Tortuga bay. Simple said, wow. If I discribed walking next to a pool on baking flour, I'd be describing the fine white sand of the beach and the crystal blue water of the seemingly endless beach. Easily the most beautiful beach I've ever seen.

Hey, The beach is eroding

We made it to the coast. We spent a few days in the northern city of Atacambes at Hotel la Barca. The rooftop pool and location on the malecon made it a perfect  place to relax in the sun.

We continue to be perplexed that Ecuador and Colombia do not have very good food. The markets are packed with wonderful vegetables and new fruits, but the typical plate consists of chicken or fish or steak, fries, and iceberg lettuce. If they really want to mix it up, they fry the protein.

Jess' vegetarian diet baffles the restaurant owners who proceed to ask, "what about chicken, fish?" We found Domingos restaurant on the malecon the exception. The owner went to his fridge and whipped together a rat-tat-touli consisting of a huge delight of vegetables and rice.

We waited in the shadow of a huge KFC for the bus that the guy who sells hard-boiled quail eggs said would be coming.  He's quite a legend in these parts, known for his extensive  knowledge of the buses and timetables. Thank God for him because beforehand had to run to each bus inquire where they're going and sulk back having our  heart sink again and again because it was the wrong bus. To top ot all off was the extreme heat of nearly 100 degrees with 95 percent  humidity.

Without concern for how haggard we looked, we took turns running across the street to the supermarket to stand in front of their fan displays to cool down a bit. Finally, the coastal bus arrived after two hours of waiting. The egg guy was equally excited as we were as he rushed from behind his stand to make sure we got on.

We rambled three hours down the coast with the usual vendors, musicians and beggars coming on at each stop. We finally reached Mompiche. My first thought was how closely it resembles the North Shore of Hawaii with its hippie surfer vibe.

We found the Oasis Colibiri one block off of the coast. The sand floor was such a cool touch.

After  settling in we hit the beaches. Twenty minutes outside the city and a short boat ride to enjoy the island Purrte. Right in the middle of the delta of a river lays a black sand island which is part fancy hotel, part private and part public. Much like the town, the beachfront of the island is quickly going away as the sea reclaims it. 

The town's seawall is smashed to bits due to the rising tides. 4-meter waves have proved the wall inadequate and poorly built. Everyday the tides retreat 100 yards revealing a huge beach and come back to batter the wall again. 

The island too is losing ground as El Nino releases its wrath. The locals have installed tarp cloth on the banks so the water takes less of it away. Sand bags and pylons are placed  on the break lines so the water hits the beach  gently.

Our  goal was to take the coast from top to bottom. Unfortunately, between Mompiche and Manta or Canoa you must hire a transfer company  (30.00pp 8hrs) or transfer multiple times on the buses (4 buses and 10-12hours).We chose a transfer  service that would drive us through the night so we'd wake up in Montanita. He tried to make us pay an extra 30.00 to keep the trip told us we could take a very round-a-bout route that would be particularly tedious. We canceled our ride and told us we'd be able to go in the morning. Rather than kill a day on the bus through transfers or a direct daylight route. we went back to Esmareldes for a night bus south. Ten min into the trip the bus broke with a radiator problem.