We are now in Peru.
Yesterday we had a day loaded with moments of oohing and aahing as we took a tour of the mud pyramids of Tucume and The Lords of Sipan and the museum of the artefacts of the tombs of Sipan at Lambayeque, all three at short distances from Chiclayo, where we are staying at a hostel called, Sican.
Peter had read about the ruins and the excavation of them, begun about 1987 and that the museum is one of the best in the world.He really wanted to go to see them. It did not disappoint.The restoration work on the items, made from gold, silver, copper and precious stones and shells is incredible. It made you feel as if you were in Egypt.
We decided to go on a tour with an English speaking guide to get full benefit and have a worry free day for transport as we had to go to three different sites. The young fellow who was the guide was fantastic and was very good at one liners once we were into the day a bit, so we had a really happy day.
Today we have relaxed and walked through the very busy markets and I had a hair cut for $2! It is good . I don´t know if I mentioned Peter took himself off for a haircut in Quito and after an hour with the barber fussing over this hair and that , walked out with the shortest, but best haircut he has had, for $2.50.
We are heading later for a meal at a restaurant the guide recommended. Chicken is a popular dish in Peru. We just tried King Kong, a sweet of this area. It was nice. Biscuit, layered between date, then caramel then pineapple fillings.Must keep up the energy levels!
Our last few days in Ecuador were interesting.
We left Cuenca by bus for Vilcabamba.We were very excited to be heading for the Valley of Longevity. We were quite disappointed when we arrived as it was a bit dismal in the little town and the cafes left a bit to be desired. However as time ticked on we found ourselves outside of town and up higher on the mountain side and the scenery is magnificent. We met up again with our Irish friends and had a lovely dinner, then breakfast in the eating area overlooking the valley.There were many birds about. As you look down the homes of the retired Americans are very obvious and one wonders about the have-havenot society that is obviously established there. We all dacided it is a wonderful place to visit but none of us could imagine living there. It is quite isolated , even though it is a glorious place. We could only have one night there and ended up at another place on the other side of town.It was a great find .We had the most beautiful meal there at night and Peter organised a few spa treatments for me in the afternoon.It was wonderful and great to relax before our trip across the border which was concerning me a little.
All went well however, thankfully.
We drove through such desolate areas as we headed to the border. It is hard to imagine people eeking out a life from the land in some parts. Then you would see a strip of green and there would be the crops beside the river.
We drove through the Sechura Desert on the way to Piura.Then we saw such poverty and shacks made from mud bricks and sticks. One place Sullana, smells like a rubbish tip, shockingly stinks,would better way to describe it.. In fact the area is littered with rubbish for kilometers, as the rubbish is just dumped anywhere.
We overnighted at Piura which did not call us to stay longer, before we came here to Chicalayo.
One funny recollection we will have is of the little yellow taxis. They are like dodgem cars.We had to use two taxis as the four of us could not fit in one.They tear around the place and are full of dings! They are also here in Chiclayo.There must be hundreds of them. Some here are jazzed up with spoilers and strips! This morning at the market we saw one nearly disappear down a hole in the road! The grill over a manhole had collapsed and the front wheel went into it! only the bumperbar made it stop. A man helped the driver lift it out. Sometimes you look down the narrow side streets and the street is full of little yellow cars end to end!They beep at you hoping for a fare or to let you know they are coming.
Tomorrow we fly to Arequipa via Lima. We do not need to leave the airport at Lima. We have only heard bad stories about Lima and have no desire to go there. We are not worrying about seeing the Nasca Lines.
