We arrived in Peru after 3 whirlwind weeks in the UK. The plan was to head straight to our friends, Dan and Tammy who live in the north west, in a town on the coast called Huanchaco.
On the 10 hour bus ride north I learned a few things about Peruvians: They like to start building brick walls and houses and stop halfway through. Most houses are one story but have ugly metal struts sticking into the air like hairs out a mole.... just in case they want to build higher in the future, or get the money to do so. I also saw that the whole of west Peru is desert- dry, sandy, barren with huge cactus (cactae?) and high cliffs plunging into the pacific. I also sat through 9 hours straight of Mel Gibson films, in Spanish and at full volume.
On the 10 hour bus ride north I learned a few things about Peruvians: They like to start building brick walls and houses and stop halfway through. Most houses are one story but have ugly metal struts sticking into the air like hairs out a mole.... just in case they want to build higher in the future, or get the money to do so. I also saw that the whole of west Peru is desert- dry, sandy, barren with huge cactus (cactae?) and high cliffs plunging into the pacific. I also sat through 9 hours straight of Mel Gibson films, in Spanish and at full volume.The next day we grabbed our surfboards and headed to Chicama, famous for being the longest wave in the world. 
With perfect conditions, it can be surfed up to 2km, which in surfing terms is just unbelievable. When we got there it was about 3-5 foot and we surfed waves up to around 300m, which was still longer than any wave i have ever surfed. Instead of paddling back to the starting point, most people get out and walk. It was a perfect morning and just Dan, me and Ceri in the water.
With perfect conditions, it can be surfed up to 2km, which in surfing terms is just unbelievable. When we got there it was about 3-5 foot and we surfed waves up to around 300m, which was still longer than any wave i have ever surfed. Instead of paddling back to the starting point, most people get out and walk. It was a perfect morning and just Dan, me and Ceri in the water. The rest of the week, went like this: wakeup, surf, have lunch, have spanish lessons, surf, have dinner, play cards, sleep. When the waves werent so good we explored the nearby city of Trujill
o, which had some interesting colonial buildings. To get around, we caught Collectivos, which are little minibuses that shuttle back and forth between places, and cram about 25 people in a space designed for 8.
o, which had some interesting colonial buildings. To get around, we caught Collectivos, which are little minibuses that shuttle back and forth between places, and cram about 25 people in a space designed for 8.The area of Peru we were heading for was home to the most successful pre-Inca civilization in the America's, the Chimu and M0che. They built huge adobe cities and were a pretty advanced lot. The Temple of the Sun and Moon were huge Pyramids, that have been mostly destroyed over time, but you can still get a feel for how impressive they were.
The surf got bigger towards the end of the week and Dan and I got some great waves. The last session was the best, 7-9 foot waves and just the two of us out there surfing until it was too dark to see. 
2 comments:
Loving the blogs. Very funny entries from you both. But... I'm not jealous!! Oh.. maybe a little bit!! ;-)
Brian sent me the blog address so have really enjoyed seeing where you have been - you must talk to Helen Brownlow when you come back - Debs and I taught with her - she lived near Trujillo!! Enjoy the fun
Love
Carolyn
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