Glacier Lakes to Lima to the Desert

Here we are with the month that was- central Peru and all it's glory! (Rewind to early-mid March, lo siento...)

Meeting the locals at Willcacocha 

This place continues to be nothing but awesome; it has truly been an unforgettable experience. Our next stop after leaving the north and the windswept beaches was quite a contrast, as we traded sand and sun for snow-capped peaks and glacier lakes. 

Downtown Huaraz

Huaraz is a grubby, bustling city nestled in the Andes about 7 hours north of Lima. We were so fortunate to find a cozy home-stay through AirBnB with Nancy and her family in the hills outside of town for our first few days, in the tiny village of Cashipampa. By the time we arrived at her place, 30 minutes from the city centre and down a bumpy dirt road, it was nearly dark. We had to stop to ask for directions a few times, and when we finally arrived at the doorstep we were greeted by her two young sons, Lennin, 11, and Juan Carlo, 8. They were just beaming, and although Nancy was at work at a guesthouse down the road (and had no idea we were coming due to the lack of internet), the boys showed us to our room and gave us some tea with fresh garden herbs. This Quetchua family was as lovely as can be! Nancy's husband was away for work, but we did also meet her younger brother and father who also lived with them, along with their dogs, Tipsy and little Pit Bull. They have a modest home, with the kitchen open to the outside courtyard, and a separate little building for the bathroom and shower. Nancy cooked everything over her wood-burning stove, and had a gas stove on the side used as a shelf with random things piled on it, since I suppose old habits die hard. The eucalyptus wood did make the kitchen smell wonderful! The boys were proud to show us around their place to see the sheep and pig outback that they were responsible for caring for, and the many many cuy (guinea pigs) in the old family home turned animal residence behind the house. The boys took on a lot of responsibility without complaint, and spent their days (as it was still their Christmas holiday until early March) roaming outside.

Feeding the cuy cuy with Juan Carlito

Nancy's kitchen

Meanwhile, Bri and I spent our afternoons out hiking, far down the road and into the mountain pass to see the glaciers. Although we didn't quite make it far enough to see the glacier lake we enjoyed stunning views and turquoise-blue streams and craggy rock faces over the valley far below. Even from the house the views were stunning, and it felt amazing to be out enjoying the mountain air. It was of course still the rainy season, and it would rain almost without fail after 2:00 every afternoon, but with the intense UV down here we almost preferred it... almost.

Feliz cumpleanos Juan Carlos!

Although it was only a few days, and some very chilly nights here, we were so sad to leave! Brian and little Juan Carlitos really hit it off, it was so sweet to see. It was actually his 8th birthday while we were there, and when Bri had a migraine that came on from altitude sickness one night and couldn't join for cake, Juan Carlos wanted to wait until the next day so that Bri could be there. Such an adorable kid!! There was no big party or gifts, just a little cake that his brother bought in town and later shoved his face into after we sang! We gave the boys some macrame bracelets and our extra sunglasses as a parting gift, and you'd have thought we just gave them each a new bike, they had the biggest grins with those sunnies on. 

Laguna Churup

We moved down into Huaraz at Vaca (Cow) House Backpackers, and although we only planned to stay one night there were just too many trails here calling our name! In the end we hike 5 out of 6 days in this area, all around the Cordillera Blanca.  Willcacocha lake was our easiest day at 5 hours through the countryside, where we were lucky to meet a sweet older lady named Maria knitting cozy wool socks by the lake. We each got a pair and they even still smelled like a sheep! We did a tour out to Laguna 69 which was a tough hike but brought us to a gorgeous turquoise blue glacier lake at the end, with views of Peru's highest peak, Mt Huascaran at 6768m high. Our favourite hike of the week though was through the hamlet of Pitek to the glacier lake Churup. This one took us along a ridge and up to a steep rock face alongside a waterfall, that you had to use ropes in 3 places to scale the rock face. Our bodies paid the price for all of our time on the trails, but it was sooo worth it. The sites and sounds of the Huaraz mountains left a lasting mark on our hiking souls, not to mention the adorable pup Cocha who lived at our hostel. :)
                                

Southbound we went to Lima on an overnight bus. This city was a pleasant surprise, and held us there for longer than we expected. We stayed in the bohemian neighbourhood of Barranco at a hostel for one night before we found a much nicer place with Monique and Mario at their AirBnB. (They had a quasi-guesthouse with 3 dogs and even 2 cute little quails running around the courtyard). Barranco was a hip place to be, with cool graffiti, an outdoor Art Market, funky bars and a happening central square. We found an excellent pint of beer at the BBC- Barranco Beer Company, and had a great night out at La Noche music bar, and the very swanky Ayahuasca bar which was in an old mansion. We were so glad to have found this neighbourhood, it was just a perfect fit. We spent a bit of time exploring the more popular tourist destination of Miraflores, which was nice but felt more like Europe than Latin America. We loved the park that was home to heaps of cats, and the delicious Turkish restaurant where we found falafel. Other sites in the big city were the National Archaeological Museum, and the old city centre Plaza d'Armas where we saw the Presidential Palace and the Cathedral. We also trekked out of town one day to see Pachacamac, an ancient temple complex site along the coast. We climbed the mudbrick temple of the sun, and did our best to not get a terrible sunburn! 

A highlight for Brian was going to the National Stadium to see his first South American futbol game. We watched both of Lima's teams, Universario and Cristal go head to head with the most energized crowd you'll ever see. Be prepared for a sports experience where police with riot gear are stationed outside, and inside the stadium, and where not a drop of beer is sold for all of the hooligans in the crowd. When finding our seats we were warned not to sit in the fan section as it was too dangerous- and sure enough the mob in our end never sat down- with only a few visits from the riot police. Go Cristal Go!  

One more quick stop before Cusco, 5 hours south to Paracas region to the desert oasis of Ica. This place was something from the movies- a real lagoon surrounded by palm trees and a smattering of hostels and restaurants, all surrounded by towering sand dunes stretching on forever. It was a beautiful place, and so surreal! The heat was oppressive, but the shade of the palms by day was perfect during the day. We went out on the 4pm dune-buggy sandboard trip to catch the sunset over the desert, and despite Brian's sandboard being lost (never strapped down by the driver, augh, talk about heartbreaking!), we did make it down some dunes on our bellies and loved the roller-coaster dune-buggy ride. 

Onwards to Cusco- 18hour bus ride next, eeeek....