El Gran Marquez Trujillo

... like this are all about pushing yourself out of the comfort zone. So on that note, and because in reality because I had no other choice....i took one step closer to nature whilst in the quarry - twice. I was however careful not to step in nature afterwards. Big tick in the box for that one then! Luckily we were away by 7am, before the quarry guys rocked up and discovered us, or discovered anything else for that matter. <br>By 9am we´d crossed the border out of Ecuador and ...

Once the strike mentioned in the last post had abated we were on our way again; heading south from Loja and into Peru. We had spent longer than planned in Ecuador and so had a great many hours of bus awaiting us before arriving in Cusco in 4 days time. Apart from some dramatic scenery, massive cliffs dropping away from the road and daring driving from our caffeine-fuelled bus driver, there is not much to be ...

... through the haze. As we whizzed along the seafront passing the weird fishermen surfer boards and early morning joggers, I began to feel revitalised. It was gonna be a good day after all. <br><br>The taxi man skidded to a halt in the dusty car park, and after kindly refusing the option of a Chinese looking Spanish guide that spoke no English, we sneaked off into the maze of Chan Chan that remained. <br><br>I´d seen pictures online of triangulated ruins that spanned ...

... to look at.<br>The ticket for the ruins also gave you entry to the museum and two other small ruins around Trujillo. I went to one of these ruins, La Huaca Esmeralda. Pretty small, and maybe not worth it either. I dont know if other people might be impressed by this, but after the ruins I have seen in Mexico and Central America, its going to take alot for ruins to impress me these days.<br>The security guard at the site tried to walk me out of the neighbourhood to the main ...

... the El Niño rains would damage the Temple so badly that it wasn't worth fixing, so they simply filled it in with bricks and built a new one on top of it! Bear in mind that it NEVER rains here, as in not at all, ever. Except for when the El Niño phenomenon is passing over which is why things built here are not really geared up to withstand rain. Seems strange that they can withstand earthquakes, but not rain! Anyway...the Archiologists ...

... to anyone in English) with visitors from Lima, Piura (in the north), and Argentina. There was one girl from France. We pretended we didn't speak each other's languages and conversed en Espanol.<br><br>Our first stop were the Huacas del Sol y de la Luna, more Moche pyramid-temples. The Huaca del Sol is the largest single Pre-Columbian structure in Peru, but like the Sipan mounds, it has melted away with time and now resembles a muddy hill. The Huaca de la Luna, however, has had extensive ...

... English. The cop shook his head and told me to go on my way and be careful. I thanked him and left. &#8230;. Still not sure what exactly had really happened or had been prevented from happening, but I figured I owed the cop a thank you. Strange things go down when you travel alone. <br> After that, I stopped at the bus station. No tickets left for tomorrow. I called Jen and made a backup plan. We would be going to Chiclayo tomorrow instead. I walked back out and made way ...

... plank, cut through the sea like a hot knife through butter. Something to do with the shape and being very very light. Absolutely unique to this part of the world apparently. And when the fishermen come back in with a netful of fish, it would of course be rude to not partake of their catch... I've had the best ceviche ever in the past day or so. Truly worth coming to Peru for... fresh as its possible to have it and as zingy and spicy ...

... position for the remainder of the journey. Granny Binbags had huge face glasses and greasy black/grey hair. She sat with her rustling refuse sack upon her lap and kept making weird noises to herself, whispering sweet nothings into the bag´s opening. Every now and again the bus would move in such a way as to make Granny Binbags push up against my leg. I was scared I´d get fleas! <br> <br>Once at Trujillo we found the Linea ticket office after a silly ...

... when the driver was back at his seat when one of the guys that he was fighting with, pulled out a hammer from his rucksack and was about to smash the direct opposite window to where Wendy and I were sitting. His mate stopped him; more swearing going on; the colectivo finally left; Wendy and I in shock. <br><br>After all that and a short ride, we got dropped off at the side of freeway to look for the entrance to Chan Chan. Apart from the main road ...