- Woke up at 7:30 am again and had a nice hot shower. Two things I really liked about the hostel were (1) When they said they have hot water, they meant it. One thing to keep in mind though is that there is a certain daily quota of hot water in each hostel, so after a certain usage, hot water starts running out. So shower early! (2) They provide free internet access, and their computers are fast. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for photos upload, so photos will have to wait. Also did some research on Tacna to see if it was worthwhile to stay a bit in Tacna. Probably not.
- Got my bus ticket to Tacna (Cruz del Sol again, on 7-18 morning) and made my way to Yanahuara area a second time (the Mirador plaza where supposingly we can see the three volcanic mountains) for lunch. There was this local authentic restaurant called La Nueva Palomino recommended by the locals. When I arrived there, I saw two restaurants with identical names sitting right opposite on each side of the road. I asked a guy smoking outside and he told me the second one was only opened recently. Ok, the expansion is a good sign - it must be good. Waited for the restaurant to open at 12 noon and had the pleasure to be the first customer.
- Ordered a signature Arequipan dish Rocato Relleno. Rocoto is an Andean chilli, and is supposed to be one of the world’s spicier chillis. Rocoto Relleno is essentially rocoto stuffed with minced meat. It tasted great, and it wasn't that spicy. (Later I learnt that the traditional traditional one is supposed to be really spicy. Restaurants made milder ones for foreigners/tourists).
- Went back to the hostel to extend my stay for 2 more days and was told that all dorms were fully booked. The only thing available was the single room, which was twice as expensive. (I seriously doubted that coz for the past few days, the dorms were only half full, i.e. half empty). Luckily I was already pretty familiar with the area, and found another hostel called Hostel Scandinavia - a couple blocks from the Plaza - which offered similar services. By the time I was done with the errands, it was 3-ish. Probably not worth the evening to bus to Aplao (3 hours bus and more walking). Will leave the trip for early tomorrow.
- Read about this iron bridge Puente Bolivar designed by Eiffel (well, that is before he became famous for his Eiffel tower). The bridge is located on another part of town Vallecito and walked 20 minutes to the bridge. Truth is the bridge was nothing special (at least that is what I thought) - doubt it would be known at all if it was not designed by Eiffel. An unexpectedly finding was that one can actually view the three volcanic mountains from the shot, and it would be a beauty to check out the sunset from this angle. Relunctant to wait around 5 or 6 though, I added this to tomorrow evening´s ´to-do´list.
- Had Chifa (Lomo Saltado with Fried Rice = "Saltado" with beef and fried fice) for dinner. This Saltado dish is everywhere, and apparently cheapest at Chifa restaurants. Not bad at all.
- Window at my room won't close, so pretty chilly at night. Luckily I was the only person staying in the room and I stole blankets from the other beds. Sweeeeeet!
