Paracas, Peru

April 30---May 03, 1998

Jere, Shelly and Tato on the beach at Paracas.

The candelabra as seen from the sea.

Erick, Kerri, Jere, Shelly and Tato with a whale rib.

On Thursday, the big festivities for the Universities 79th anniversary started and after fulfilling our duty at the parade, we decided to head out to the little fishing/resort community of Paracas for a much needed rest.   We saw Amy Leach at the parade, she was marching with her school, which is Aveneda Brazil I think.    We finally got off and on the road in the late afternoon.

About halfway between Lima and Paracas we ran into a Peruvian National Police checkpoint.  Our car was waved over and the officer came up to the window.    He wanted to know where everybody was from.   The girls and I answered Estados Unidos, and Erick and Tato answered that they were from Lima.     I got my passport out and so did the girls, but the police officer was only interested in the Peruvian men.   I really though that as a foreign male, I would be questioned.    The officers were really worried about Kerri and Shelly's happiness, and that they weren't bored.    I was slightly offended.   I wasn't good enough to be checked!   Maybe I was just to eager to show my passport!

When we arrived in Paracas we couldn't find anyplace to stay that night, so we headed back to Pisco.   In Pisco we found a bunch of two bit whore houses, but I've already done that scene, and we wanted something a little nicer.   We finally settled for a three bit house, I think that is just a step above the afore mentioned!   Tato parked his car in the discotech below and we barred the door and went to bed.  

Friday morning we woke up and had worship, and then headed out to take a Ballestas Islas tour.   When we arrived I bought a cheezy Ballestas Islas hat to protect me from the sun, and then we bought our tickets.   The Islas are part of the Reserva Nacional de Paracas which was established in the late 1970's to protect the large variety of wildlife here.   At first glance I said "why?"   It is nothing but desert, and it would be very hard for people to live here.     But then I saw the amount of wildlife that depend on this area.    It is said that this area has the largest concentration of sea birds in the world.   The Ballestas Islas have been exploited for their huge amounts of bird guano for centuries.  The Islas are literally white because of all of the bird poop.    A trip to the Islas is very exciting.   It takes about 30 minutes to get out to the Islas in a small ski boat.   On the out, the boats stop at the "Nazca Line" type candelabra that is carved into the hillside over looking the ocean.  It is very impressive.     It is very tall.    The people that made it must have had a lot of faith in the reason that they were making it, because it is out in the middle of no where and it it looks like very hot, dusty, nasty work.    The channels between the Islas are very tight, and when the swells come in, you are often in the valley looking up at waves 6-10 feet above your head.   The drivers are very skilled though and took us in close enough to get a taste!    The Islas are full of Sea Lions, Pelicans, Cormorants, Penguins, and other sea and land wildlife.   The sea lion population was down when we went, because so many of the mothers had miscarriages during El Niņo.     There was still allot of wildlife to be seen.  

After the tour we found a nice little hostel less than a 30  second walk  from the beach in Paracas.   It was 55 soles a night for a triple.    The exchange rate is currently 2.8:$1.  The name of the place is   El Amigo and it is very nice.   The owner Mateo, and his family were very kind.    I would highly recommend this place if you need to stay in Paracas.   It was very nice and very clean.  

After we got the hostel, we headed out to the Reserva Nacional de Paracas.  There are several beaches in the Reserva, and we found out that La Mina is the best.   Tato said that La Mina means "the woman" in Spanish, and that could be right.   All of the rich people from Lima come down here to relax.    Almost all of the women on this beach were very beautiful. Although none surpassed the beauty of Sandy.   Speaking of Sandy, the sand was very nice here.    The shell collecting is also very good to in the rocks around the point.    Swimming at La Mina is very nice because it is in a nice little bay, so the waves are really gentle.   You have to have a car to get the beach though.    It is along ways across the dusty peninsula, taking about 30 minutes in a car.    While we were on the beach, an ice cream vender came up and asked if I wanted ice cream.  I said yes, and then asked how much.   The price was 3 times what I usually pay, so I said no.   Later I say him peddling his cart across the dry, dusty desert and understood why the ice cream is so expensive.   

We (the vegetarians) among us ended up eating rice that night, and a little restaurant across from El Amigo.  I do love that rice!

The bay at Paracas is so peaceful at night.  It is really deep and protected, so the water is very calm.   I went out and sat beside the bay, watching the shadows of crabs scurry about in the moonlight.   The night was clear and the moon sparkled on the water very brightly.   

I went to bed and so did Tato.   We ended up staying up and telling tall tales about the women that had and will be in our lives.   Men have women troubles around the world.  It is just universal.    I must mention that my tales were all very tall.   This is because I didn't know any women before Sandy and I don't kiss and tell, so I had to fib the whole night through.    Although Sandy is a tall woman and I have got some tall tales about her!

Sabbath morning we decided to go out and have church on the beach.     Sabbath it was really crowded at La Mina, so we decided to try another beach about  1/4 mile back towards the road.   This beach is really hard to get down to, but once you are there, it is beautiful.   The problem with this beach though is that the water is unpredictable, and halfway through our Sabbath afternoon nap we all got smashed by a rather large wave.   So much for that beach. 

After we got attacked by that wave, we went back to the car and decided to go to the  mirador del lobos.  The mirador is a very high cliff where you can see the sea birds and sea lions playing on the beaches below.   There were also some men fishing from about 100 feet up, 150 feet below us.   I don't know how they got down there, but they seemed to be content.

Saturday night we went to the restaurant "As Del Oro" in Pisco.   (We think that that means "Golden Ace" in English.)   It was recommended by Mateo, the owner of our hostel, and it was very good.   It was kind of hard to find vegetarian food in Paracas, all they want to sell you is seafood.    They are always ready to serve up a steaming hot plate of rice for you though.    We got back to the hostel at about 10:00, and were all very tired.  We all sank into bed that night, ready for a long quiet night.  It was not to be though.   Sometime in the night a huge lawn party formed with all of the residents of Paracas.    It lasted most of the night.   We could have called the cops, but they were at the party too!  

Sunday morning I woke up and went to the markets in Paracas by the bay.     The markets are full of things from the sea, cheap T-shirts, and erotic art from Nasca.    I wasn't in the mood to barter, so the only thing I came away from Paracas with was a hat with flamingos on it.   

After we ate, we decided to drive over to Ica for lunch before heading back to U.Pe.U.   Mateo, had said that it was only a half hour drive over to Ica, so we decided to go.   Maybe we were just a little too trusting in Mateo after the As Del Oro recommendation.    It turned out to be an hour and a half, on some of the worst roads that I have traveled in Peru.   I really think that El Niņo hit the Ica area pretty hard.    Remember that it is desert out there, and they aren't prepared for a lot of rain.   When we got up to Ica, we found a pretty nice little town.   I want to come and visit again before I leave.    We went out to the oasis of Haucachina.   This place is lovely.   There is a lagoon in the middle of huge sand dunes.   you can rent sandboards for the dunes, and I want to do that next time I go.   It really looks like fun.   The guidebook describes this sport as one in which you get sand in cracks and crannies that you never knew existed.   I saw some people after their rides, and I would have to say that this is true!    We found lunch in Huacachina to be nonexistant for vegetarians, so we headed back into Ica for lunch.    We found a nice little Italian place right off of the plaza de armas.   It was very good, cheap and clean.  

The drive home went without incident.    We stopped at   a little town called Cerro Azul to  swim in ocean.  It was a little cold, but it was cool with the sun setting.   We made it back to the campus about 8:30 that night and there were still tons of people here for the anniversary.   I am glad that we left, it was good to get away and see some of the real beauty of Peru.    There are so many people in Lima and it is so dirty that I was beginning to think that Peru wasn't beautiful.   I saw the stars and the moon on this trip, something we don't often see in the Lima area.   Although the climate is getting better now that El Niņo is leaving.  

The only bad part of this trip was the pile of laundry that I saw when I woke up on Monday morning.    It was over 3 feet high I swear.    My wet clothes will probably be smelling pretty bad by the time next weekend comes!

This page was last updated on 08/29/99.

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