Day 15 – Friday 12^th September

The alarm went off at 05:20 and was met with groans again!  We were now feeling jaded but were also looking forward to the second half of the trip.  Lima and Nazca will be great experiences.

After quick showers we headed down for breakfast in preparation for our taxi collecting us at 06:30.  At that early time we were the only three people in the breakfast room!  The taxi arrived on time and we set off on the scariest taxi ride of my life.  It took an hour to arrive at Juliaca airport by which time we were exhausted and couldn’t get out the taxi quick enough.  We has survived about 12 near death experiences along the way!

Juliaca airport is incredibly quiet and it took only 5 minutes to check in and clear security.  Before long we had boarded and were enjoying our LAN flight to Lima (with Paul and I at the very front and Sean at the very back of the plane!).

Arriving in Lima we collected our baggage and endured another scary 45minute taxi ride from Lima airport to our hostel in Miraflores.  Eventually we staggered out of the taxi into our hostel and our very smart dorm – which only had three beds.  We also spotted the interesting plumbing which turned on the shower every time the bathroom taps were used.

After a short rest we set out for some lunch and to mill around the local markets to get an idea for gifts to get the folks at home.  We actually spent several hours looking at various market stalls and found ourselves feeling somewhat hungry – it was 19:00!  We headed to a German themed bar and enjoyed some Cusquena and some pool.  After an exhausting few days it was nice to relax and enjoy a night out in Lima.  The barmaids were also very interested to hear about our travels and the evening passed with many laughs along the way.  We left the bar and headed to a restaurant for some tea.  The Lima nightlife has certainly proved enjoyable and we all looked forward to our return from Nazca in a few days.

After tea it was straight back to the hostel and off to bed for a well earned sleep!

Day 16 – Saturday 13^th September

The alarm went off at 08:00 and we slowly roused ourselves.  The drilling and hammering from the building site next door ensured no one fell back asleep.

By 09:30 we had all showered and prepared our gear for travelling to Nazca today.  It was another warm day and we decided to venture out to see our surroundings and have a late breakfast (as our hostel didn’t serve food).  Lima is an incredibly busy city and we found it much easier to walk down the quieter side streets.  We settled down for our breakfast and enjoyed watching the world go by.  With time starting to press on we went back to the hostel to collect our backpacks and check out.  We flagged down a taxi and headed off in the direction of the bus station.

The taxi ride was one of the scariest moments of the trip so far.  After telling the driver where the bus station was (what driver doesn’t know where the bus station is?) he proceeded to make wrong turn after wrong turn.  After several near death experiences too our patience (and time) was wearing very thin.  Eventually we screeched into the bus station car park just in time to board our Cruz del Sur service to Nazca.

On the bus we started to calm down and couldn’t believe the luxury of the bus.  We had been booked into first class seats and had never felt more out of place!  The journey passed in pure luxury with great food and enjoying the views along the Pan American highway.

The journey was unbelievably comfortable and we arrived in Nazca on time.  After crossing the road we booked into our accommodation which turned out to be a very posh hotel!  What a day this was!  Our travel agent had told us te youth hostel was fully booked so put us in this hotel for the same price.  We ate our tea in the hotel by the pool and relaxed.  This was a real change from sleeping in our tents on Monday night!

After our tea we headed up to our luxurious room for some sleep before our Nazca lines flight tomorrow.

Day 17 – Sunday 14^th September

The alarm went off at 06:00 and we clambered out of our beds.  To the sound of loud cheers we each enjoyed a hot shower for the first time since arriving in Peru!  We headed out for breakfast at 07:00 and enjoyed the food in our wonderful surroundings.  We were so lucky to be staying in this hotel and we knew it!

At 08:00 our guide picked us up and we set off towards Chaucilla cemetery, which is where many of the Nazca people have been buried over the centuries.  The cemetery is 30Kms outside Nazca city and we could feel the temperature beginning to rise rapidly as we parked up.  The cemetery was an amazing experience and gave a real insight into the cultures that existed in Peru before the Incas and the Spanish arrived/  With the world’s largest sand dune in the background the cemetery was in an amazing setting.

After stopping off at a pottery to see traditional Nazca pots being made we headed for the aerodrome.  We had been looking forward to our Nazca lines flight all trip and the time had arrived.  Just on 12:30 we took off and spent the most incredible 30 minutes in our Cessna 182 flying over each of the famous Nazca line designs.  Paul sat up front with the captain and filmed the flight with his camera.  Despite the serious heat in the plane we were able to enjoy seeing the lines and were pretty much speechless when we landed back in the aerodrome.

Arriving back at our hotel we said goodbye to our guide and headed out for lunch in blistering heat.  Our somewhat dim witted waiter ensured that Sean didn’t get his lunch until 16:00.  Nevertheless we enjoyed our meal and at last the heat was fading.

The afternoon turned to evening with us reading by the pool in our hotel.  So far this trip we haven’t had much free time like this and it certainly was being enjoyed.  We set out for tea around 19:00 and found an incredibly good, yet very cheap, chicken restaurant.  After 3 hours of gorging ourselves on chicken we headed back to the hotel to catch up with some of our sleep.  It had been an extremely remarkable day and we had enjoyed seeing the Nazca lines, whilst also loving the city itself.

Day 18 – Monday 15^th September

With the alarm not set we slept until 09:00.  We had all drifted into a very heavy sleep within seconds last night and took some time to wake up.

Eventually we made it down to breakfast just before 10:00 and devoured the food despite the huge meal we had the night before.  The plan for the day was to do the chores that backpackers need to do from time to time e.g. organising laundry, repacking the backpack for the trip to Lima tomorrow etc.

We set out to find a laundrette to do our washing and then spent about an hour at an Internet café emailing the folks at home.  It took over an hour to catch up with all the correspondence but we were in no rush at all today.

We arrived back at the hotel just after midday and read by the swimming pool for a couple of hours.  I managed to finish my book ‘Everest South West Face’ in that time and enjoyed being in the shade of a tree.  Just after 14:00 we decided to venture out for some lunch.  We called in at Grumpy’s and enjoyed the best meal of our trip so far for only 15 Soles (about £3).

To help digest our great lunch we set out to enjoy the sights and sounds of Nazca and its markets around Plaza de Armas.  Like the markets in Lima it was good fun to see what was on offer and what prices were made available for us Gringos.  By 16:30 the heat was really hitting us (34º in the shade!) so we stopped off for a beautiful homemade ice cream.  Watching the world go by and eating our ice cream ensured the relaxing process went smoothly!

Back at our hotel we spent our time reading in our room and by the pool until tea time.  We were all feeling better after enjoying a rest day.  We set out to collect our washing at 20:00 and I fond that this time none of my property had been stolen!  We enjoyed a very filling evening meal and went to a rock bar to enjoy a heated political and music debate.  By the time we arrived back at the hotel it was nearly midnight and we were definitely feeling suitably rested!

Day 19 – Tuesday 16^th September

We slept very soundly during the night and felt great when the alarm went off at 08:30.  It was clearly going to be another hot day, although it didn’t stop the shower from being cold!

We enjoyed our final breakfast at Hotel Alegria and set out to gather some more Soles from a nearby cash machine.  Sean also wanted to pick up a couple of items he had seen in a local shop as presents for people back home.  With his presents safely procured we headed back to our hotel room so Paul could pack up the remainder of his gear.  Somehow Paul had managed to scatter all his belongings throughout our room.  His clean up operation took until 10:30 which was time for us to check out of the hotel and catch our luxurious bus back to Lima.

The bus departed Nazca on time and we settled in to enjoy the scenery from our first class seats.  In the daylight the desert and sand dunes around Nazca were stunning and we were thrilled to have the chance to see the amazing views.  Enjoying our lunch and a couple of films on the journey we all felt incredibly privileged.

The bus journey passed extremely quickly and by 18:15 we had arrived at the bus station in Lima.  Retrieving our bags was a bit of an ordeal but eventually we found ourselves in a taxi bound for our youth hostel in Miraflores.  Unlike the previous taxi ride in Lima after only 15 minutes we had arrived at our hostel.  We checked into our room, which was probably the poshest hostel room I’ve ever stayed in before, and made plans for our evening meal.

We managed to find a place that served incredibly cheap and tasty food.  At one point the place even had a transvestite dancer prancing through the restaurant in front of some TV cameras!  Not what we were expecting to see but interesting all the same!

After tea we went for a wander around the Miraflores region to see the nightlife and talk through the things we had done on this trip, and what we will do on future trips together.  By midnight we had turned in for the night.

Day 20 – Wednesday 17^th September

Although our alarm went off early no one got up until 09:00.  We were sound asleep as the fatigue of the trip was finally starting to effect us.  I was the first to get up and, apart from a short 30 second blast of hot water, endured another freezing cold Peruvian shower.

After my shower I went downstairs to check my emails whilst Sean and Paul got ready.  Eventually they were ready and we set off for some breakfast.  Sean managed to find the only Starbucks in Peru and wanted to have a coffee and his breakfast there.  Paul and I didn’t complain as we were too hungry.  After our breakfast we set out on a walking tour of Miraflores.

Miraflores is by the coast but set up 300ft cliffs, which people enjoy paragliding off.  We set out along the cliff tops enjoying the views.  Below us were surfers enjoying the waves, above us paragliders and at our level incredible mosaics and statues throughout the numerous parks along the way.

We paused for lunch in a very attractive spot overlooking Miraflores bar and its promenade.  For the first time in many days the temperature was cool and we were able to relax and take our time with our lunch.  Afterwards we kept ambling back in the direction of our youth hostel.  We had decided over lunch to explore the ancient archaeological site of Pachacamac before we left for the UK on Saturday morning.

Back at our hostel we spent some time flicking through our brochures and got our tours booked.  In the end we reserved a place on a Lima city tour for tomorrow and then on to Pachacamac the next day.  This would still leave us with two half days free to enjoy Lima and pick up some presents for the folks back home.

Just after 19:30 we decided to head out for tea and ended up spending our time in a very nice pizzeria and German pub called Treff.  Despite still feeling jaded we enjoyed our night and especially the food!  With 23:00 approaching we set off back towards the hostel to enjoy another heavy and deep sleep before the Lima city tour tomorrow.  As had been the case recently we fell asleep with seconds!

Day 21 - Thursday 18^th September

The alarm went off at 07:45 and despite feeling tired I leapt into action.  Our showers proved to be either scolding hot or freezing cold.  Despite this the shower was better than it was yesterday.

Whilst Sean and Paul got ready for the day I checked my emails again and ensured that my flights to Istanbul on Sunday were reconfirmed.  By 09:00 we were all ready and waiting for our Lima tour bus to arrive.  Before long we were fighting our way through the chaotic central Lima traffic on our tour.

We managed to visit the Peruvian national bank which had a huge vault full of treasures from each of the different cultures before the Spanish arrived in Peru.  Moving on to the main square we could enjoy the presidential buildings and cathedrals, along with beautiful fountains.  The Spanish colonial architecture is incredible and provided a real insight into what the Conquistadors brought to Peru.

After seeing the main square we went into the Franciscan cathedral.  The cathedral has survived all Lima earthquakes since it was built in the 1670s.  Sadly we couldn’t take any pictures inside the cathedral but the artwork inside was something to behold.  Lima is a city steeped in history and incredible architecture.  The tombs underneath the cathedral were also truly remarkable.

The tour came to an end as we boarded our bus bound for Miraflores.  After another scary bus ride we were back in Miraflores and enjoyed our lunch in a Lebanese restaurant.  The meal was very cheap and gave us plenty of opportunity to plan for our afternoon.

It was agreed that this afternoon would be used to buy our presents for the folks at home.  The local markets held a vast array of items in a similar fashion to a North African bazaar.  We managed to get most of the things we wanted but with time reaching 19:00 we thought it best to return to the hostel so as not to carry bags of presents through the streets of Lima in the dark!

<<Previous                                                                                                                          Next>>