El Arriero

Hello Everybody!

Last wednesday I went on a trip to Santa Cruz.I met in my hostel a Swedish girl and another Belgian and together with 2 Italians we packed our bags and put our alarm on 5.30 to hit the road.

It turned out to an amazing 4 days!The first day we climbed to Lake 69, as an starter.Pretty hard labour for our untrained leggs.The day after we took a bus trip of 1,5 hour to the real starting point.It was a crazy ride, a little van, 20 people inside, the roof packed with all kind of stuff, and a driver who thinks he is Sebastian Loeb.But we made it in one piece, so we could start properly.Really nice walk with lots of sun.

You have to know in the mountains it is rainy saison, so we got every day a good natural shower!But in the end that was really good, because in high saison, the camp sides are occupied with approx 500 people and now it was just us!

The next day we went through rain and snow whole day to reach the highest point of the trip.Because of the rain and the many clouds that often blocked the view, we agreed to finish the trip the day after.So after a walk of 7 hours and a bus trip of 2 hours to Huaraz we made it home safe!That night we went for a dance and a beer in downtown Huaraz and that was a really good end of those 4 days.

Yesterday the Itallians made some Itallian pasta to close this nice week.

So that's all for now,keep up the good work, i'll do the same!

un ambrazo por todo

Andries, x

El Zapatero

Hello Everybody,

first the pictures:

A la Punta

Lima

Chan Chán

Huanchaco

Museo de Sipán

Huaraz

and then the story:

After a trip of almost 24h, I arrived in Lima.

Levy, Maria Christina's (my cousin that lives in Lima) boyfriend, who had never seen me, came to me and said: 'Andries?'

I said: 'Yes'.

So that's how we met:)

I stayed with them at their place for 5 days.

They guide my through the big city that Lima is: almost 9mil people live there.

We went to Barranco, the artist neighbourhood, to La Punta, where we had a nice meal (Cebiche, a traditional dish of fish with lemon) and a nice walk, to a spanish play, to Maria Christina's university (or maybe better univercity, really big).

Last day I hooked up with my uncle Julio and went to the museum of gold. A whole lot of gold.

Then we travelled together to Trujillo. 8h by bus, north of Lima.

I visited the city and at the evening I was invited by Julio's sister that lives there, for a nice meal. The hospitality is enormous here!

The day after I visited the ruines of Chan Chán. Nice!

And afterwards I went to Huanchaco, a little town east from Trujillo. This is a surfers town, so I took a surfing lesson :)

That was fun, I actually could stand up 3 times!

The whole town was crowded with volunteers from all over the world. I volunteered to be their friend, and that's how I was invited to their party, on the rooftop of one's appartement.

A heavenly party, with the summerbreeze, the view over mountains at one side and sea at the otherside, and ofcourse with some rum!

The party ended at a bar, near the beach with some live music and some dancing.

The day after I went to Chiclayo to visit the ruines of Sipán, that was a bit of a dissapointment, they were no more then some hills that used to be temples.

The museum was better.

And now I'm in Huaraz.

That is in the mountains. Some other views here!

I'm going on a trek one of these days and afterwards I will travel to the rest of the family in Cusco.

So that's all for now,

keep up the good work, i'll do the same!

un ambrazo por todo

Andries, x