Penthouse Camping

Daryll writes:

We wanted to be on the Peruvian coast for New Years however couldn’t find accommodation at the well known beach town of Mãncora, so decided in the end that we would spend New Years Eve wherever we found ourselves (Chiclayo) and then try and get to the coast thereafter.  We visited Peru 5 years ago, but spent most of our time in the southern parts and hadn’t ventured up north, so wanted to see some of the sights we missed the first time round.  Crossing into Peru was uneventful and we soon found ourselves in Piura, Peru.  The town was bland, but was the closest biggest town we could find to spend the night after the border.  I had forgotten how insane drivers in Peru are as compared to Central America – they honk for everything, try to squeeze their way in between other vehicles and will cut across traffic without any notice. 

We were warned that the ride from Piura to Chiclayo was through a desert with nothing but sand and true to form, it was barren with the odd house/restaurant catering to truckers.  So far, I haven’t seen any billboards, just brick walls with the advertising painted onto the wall.  Peru had it’s elections a few months ago, so every wall facing the highway advertised a political candidate.

Our aim was now to get to Huanchaco (another beach town) for Jan 1st for the weekend for some R&R.  We didn’t have any accommodation pre-booked, so were just going to wing it.  We got into Huanchaco around midday on Sat. Jan 1st and the streets were chaotic with people coming in to the beach.  We pulled into a resort hotel that our guide book said had camping as we knew we were going to find any hotels on the holiday weekend and managed to convince the owner to let us camp.  It was expensive camping, but well worth it.  We camped on the roof terrace overlooking the resort, pool, beach and the rest of the town and even got our own private washroom with hot water.  We did get a few stares as we rode our bikes into the resort parking lot and set up our tent as we were the only campers. 

Penthouse Camping

We took the bikes into the town in the afternoon to find a grocery store for dinner and had to ask a few people along the way only to be directed to the general market where Ang found a few items to sustain life.  The traffic was insane and there was people everywhere.  Most people were trying to get back home and both taxis and bus’s were overcrowded with people trying to get home after spending a day at the beach.

Caballitos deTotora (Little Horses)

These reed boats are used by fisherman and are left out in the sun to be dried out; however I hadn't seen anyone take them out.  Guess they were there just for the tourists.  Visiting a Peruvian beach town isn't complete without one of the traditional dishes of Ceviche (made from fresh raw fish and other seafood marinated in citrus juices such as lemon or lime and spiced with hot peppers) and Inca Kola which tastes like cream soda.

Happy with Inca Kola

Ceviche Mixto

New photos added to the Peru photo album.