Loving Peru!

Oceanside desert. Gotta love it. Hot and dry during the day, cools off at night, big sunsets, big stars at night...what’s not to love? We almost got caught staying indefinitely at the eco-hostel in Zorritos, but eventually peeled ourselves away and hit the highway once again. It was made easier because we knew it was a relatively quick 75 kms to our next destination, the surf town of Mancora. We have to keep moving or risk being one of the aging hippies we meet at these places. “I came here 5 years ago and just never left” they say in the midst of doing the dishes that pays their room and board. Hmmm, not what we have imagined our retirement to be. Let’s ride!

Despite the near-constant head wind, it was an easy ride and we landed at our target just after noon. We are trying out a new accom strategy this time. Our usual M.O. is to get on the beach somehow, and just buck up for the premium that entails. But after some google research, Amy concluded that our best bet would be a placed called Kon Tiki Bungalows – a Swiss-owned and run (so you can guess how dialed it is) place set on the cliffs overlooking town and the ocean. So we’re not on the water, but we have the bourgeois view overlooking the townies, and an ocean-view that goes on forever. Very nice. Oh ya, and that Swiss thing: best room set-up we have stayed in yet. Amy is very happy with her research J

Speaking of deserts, that is exactly what the coast of Peru is. Known as the Sechura desert around here, it extends south from the Ecuador border thousands of kilometers right into the Atacama desert of northern Chile – one of the driest places on earth. The terrain is very reminiscent of southern Nevada and the deserts around Vegas. Just bone dry and hot, but surprisingly comfortable temperatures for riding and lying on the beach. It’s that “dry hot” thing.

On the way here we ran into the second other cyclist we have encountered on our journey (we bumped into a solo French guy back in Ecuador). This guy was Japanese and appeared to be on an eco-challenge of some kind. Not a high-tech piece of gear in sight, he was riding from New York to Argentina on what looked like a kid’s bike (maybe 15-inch tires), and carried a garbage bag full of clothes bungied to the front forks. We got his story, and then he was off and pumping that tiny bike as hard as he could into the horizon. As they say, it takes all kinds.




So Mancora, population ~10,000. Peru’s go-to surf town. We’re guessing that being a long way from anywhere keeps it small. Maybe it’s the fact that we rode through the desert to get here, but it has a remote feel to it. Walking around the side streets also reminds you that Peru is a poor country (50% of Peruvians live in poverty unfortunately). Once “downtown” though, it has all the gringo comforts of home including the usual array of beachside restaurants, bars and palm trees. The beach itself is quite mellow and enjoyable , complete with ladies selling cheap beer and muy rico sanduches (delicious sandwiches). We had our first official happy hour Pisco Sour, Peru’s famous cocktail, which we will try to emulate this evening for our sunset cocteles.

At this early point into Peru, we are prepared to announce that Peru does in fact have the best food we have encountered thus far (also confirmed by what we have read). In fact, Lima (capital of Peru) was recently voted the next up and coming “food city” by Bon Appetite magazine. You can tell. Everything just seems to have that little bit more taste and flare. Yesterday we had a plate of ceviche that Amy says was the best she has ever had. Although to me, a non-seafood guy, it’s like chewing on an inner tube that tastes like lime juice and onions...I’ll just take Amy’s word for it that it was delicious.

On the topic of food, we have a major admission to declare. First and foremost, we apologize deeply to all of our friends in Nelson who consider Oso Negro their second home, and to John, the owner of Oso Negro, to all coffee snobs everywhere, and especially to my Italian espresso machine back home. We apologize because we have succumbed entirely to the dark twisted world of instant coffee. We know, “how could you!?” But in this land of powered coffee crystals, you swim with the current or you drown. We have tried the various brands proudly displayed on store shelves, and find, yes, Nescafe, the Walmart of coffee, to be the superior brand. Sad but true. In fact, we fully embrace the coffee tradition in this part of the world which is to be served a mug of hot water (unless you ask for cafe con leche, in which case you get a hot mug of milk – there is no word for “a black coffee with a little bit of milk” as far as we can tell, we just ask for 2 coffees and 1 glass of milk on the side). The jar of Nescafe (or another lesser brand) is on the table, permitting one to mix up just the right amount of powder to get that, oh so good, Nescafe taste. The conversion is complete. No going back now!

So back to that desert thing. Peru is a very very large place. Our next destination of interest is Cuzco, the famous Inca capital and launching point for Machu Picchu, which needs no description. Cuzco is a mere 2300 kms from here, through the desert. Yikes! Option 1 is a two-month cycle/slog through no man’s land, option 2 is two 20-hr bus rides, or option 3 is to hop on a plane and be in Cuzco the same day. Hmmm, option 3 is looking good! So that’s the current focus. We are a few days ride from the city of Piura, which has a regional airport we can tap into and make our way to Cuzco via a connection in Lima. It’s an inland journey to Piura, which should be interesting (i.e., hot and dry) in this desert landscape. As long as the water bottles are full, what could possibly go wrong? More on that soon.