Beach and Sun in Mancora

Another day and another early start. Cuzco is left behind and replaced by Lima. We had 6 hours before our flight to Piura in the north and so decided to check out the city centre. It was very hot and the city was unimpressive. Apparently the place to visit is the Miraflores area which we skipped. We arrive in the central square and wandered around a bit, watching the changing of the guard and having a really good lunch. We managed to get into the Catacombs nearby and got to see an impressive old Spanish Cathedral along with an intact ancient library along with the bones of lots of people.

The main Plaza de Armas

Changing of the guards. They had to change themselves whilst playing in an orchestra

The Cathedral de Catacombs

Bones!

There were bones in the cell behind me from some naughty blasphemers

We moved back to the airport with relief and caught our plane to Piura. Upon arrival we were hustled by a million taxi drivers for a lift to Mancora. We got together with an American, Aussie and 2 Peruvians and shared a taxi to the beach. 3 hours later we were dropped off at our hostel called The Point.

Wikipedia:

"Máncora is a town and beach resort in the Piura Region, in northwestern Peru. The town has 8,852 inhabitants (1999).
The Pan-American Highway serves as Máncora's main street. The area is known for its attractive turquoise beaches and good waves, making it a surfing destination. This beach location is favored by two ocean currents year round: the cold Humboldt Current 14 to 19 C° and the warm Nino Current 21 to 27 C°, giving it a tropical-dry climate with ocean waters averaging around 24 C°"

As described, this place was on the beach and we were shown to our bungalows which were literally 30m from the surf. All looked good until we were told that there was only one very dim light in operation. The shower didn´t work. No air conditioning. The only bed was VERY basic and we had been given another smelly mattress to sleep on. We both decided that this was not good enough and secretly took a moto-taxi around town looking for alternative accommodation. It was now around 10pm and we were struggling to find anything available. In the end we resigned ourselves to a night at the Point which actually turned out to be fine. I think the crashing of the waves had some sort of soothing effect and we both woke up refreshed.

From the bungalow

We took a stroll down the beach and found another hotel called Buena Vista. This place was much more decent (en suite, jacuzzi, pool and hammock!) and only cost a fraction more. We promptly checked out of the Point and into our new residence (owned by a friendly Scottish chap).

Moto-taxis: loud and bumpy deathtraps

Buena Vista. This looked pretty good

Life is good

We moved back to the beach and sat down at one of the restaurants in the sand. We both ordered some seafood dishes (fuente) which turned out to be massive!! I only managed to finish half my ceviche (raw fish marinated in lemon juice, chilli and onions). The town itself is pretty dusty and unremarkable. There are lots of bars and restaurants dotted along the main strip but we were there in the low season so the place was fairly quiet. Most Gringos simply hang out on the beach or in one of the hostels. There is a great variety of tropical fruit around. I particularly enjoyed ordering a large sliced pineapple and snacking on it for several hours.

The place was infested with freaky red headed vultures

This picture pretty much sums up the idyllic beach life. Ceviche and Papaya juice on the beach

The contender for the title of "Ugliest Dog on the Planet". This pooch looked like a cross between a hyena and Beebop from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Another day and another sweet sunset

So we had done some research and found out that the Mancora and the surrounding area used to be frequented by Ernest Hemingway and just a short way down the beach was where he took fishing trips out to catch marlin. They also say this is where he wrote his book "The Old Man and the Sea". Britters and I were keen to catch some fish too so we booked onto a trip for some grouper fishing. We were picked up early and taken to the harbour where boarded our boat. The sun was beating down from the onset and we lathered on sunblock. Fishing boats were returning from their expeditions, followed by flocks of pelicans and gannets looking for an easy meal. Throughout the 5 hour trip, we didn´t even get a bite, leaving us a bit disappointed.

Out fishing

Giant squid. I prayed we wouldn´t hook into any of these

I love this picture.

The seas were dotted with oil platforms

Grouper fishing... Not even one bite all day!!! All I caught was a sweet tan

We decide that the fish will not get off that lightly so we book onto another trip the next day but this time we are armed with bait! This second trip was a whole lot more interesting with us landing a variety of freakish sea animals including Scorpion Stonefish, Moray Eels and an Octopus. I would normally throw all these fish back but the gillies thought we were crazy that we wouldn´t eat them. A funny moment was when Britters caught the first Moray and squealed like a girl upon seeing it. Never have a seen a man move from one end of a boat to another with such speed and urgency.

First catch of the day... Scorpion Stonefish. One prick of those spines on the back and you would probably die

Moray Eel!! The gillies had to be careful when removing these from the hook. Normally it involved smashing them off with a metal baton which wasn´t very nice

I couldn´t get over these sunsets!

The haul for the day

Our penultimate day was spent nursing a hangover. The Loki hostel had parties just about every night so we indulged. I booked onto a surf lesson with a long-haired local Peruvian surfer bum called Racer. I managed to stand up on my first wave which was great! Luckily for me the surf wasn´t too heavy and the reef break on the main beach provided some nice gentle waves to make learning easier. After another hour of surfing I was totally exhausted and decided that the rest of the day was best spent relaxing on the beach, drinking beer and eating seafood. I also booked my bus to Quito in Ecuador for the next day.

Loki hostel. Not bad for a backpackers

Chilling around the pool at Loki was pretty much the standard practice of all Gringos in the area. Nick, an English friend I had met in El Chalten, was around so we enjoyed several beers whilst catching up on our travels.

After a relaxing week, Britters had to return to London to face the economic crisis whereas I had to go visit Colombia. I now faced a daunting task. Bussing it from Mancora through Ecuador and into Bogota. A journey estimated to be around 44 hours.