Tuesday, October 21, 2003
Been a Long Time
Hola, Como Estas..
I have been off the beaten track for a while and have not really had tme for a grup email untill now, so appologies if this turns in to war and peace or something.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...Today I arrived in Cuenqa, Equador- It has taken us two days to get here, even though it is about 4 hours drive from Punto Sal (My last stop in Peru). It took us two days because the border between Peru and Equador had been closed to vehicles, due to the ongoing protests by the Banana Benders (Bender is Spanish for seller). So it was decided that we should grab a few days clothes, and wash kit, and try and cross the border of foot, whilst the truck drove through the night to another border.
You get the idea!
The most interesting journey I have ever had transpired...Mini Vans, Pickup Trucks, Farm Vehicles and on foot we negotiated numerious road blockades and unofficial border crossings.
Manned by around 10 - 20 banana farmers, armed with machetes and sticks most blockades are official union protests, and required a walk across rubble, glass, burning debris and or barbed wire for anything up to 2 miles, during which, the inovative protesters attempted to sell you ice cream, water, soup or beer, whilst drumming up support for their campaign.
Other blockades were more haphazard and less official, they were usually manned by 5 or 6 teenagers, again with machetes and often they would run to sit on the blockade upon hearing a vehicle approaching, and start reading a newspaper, before demanding a small tribute/bribe to move the blockade and allow us to pass. At either side of the larger blockades, we found other farmers competing for the business of transporting us to the next blockade. As the day wore on it became obvious what the purpose of this protest really was, ie to extract money out of anyone silly enough to want to travel through it. We picked up a couple of local guides in Peru and put our trust in them to negociate the best deal at each hurdle, they travelled with us the full two days, and left us when we finally borded a bus this morning for the final part of the journey this proved a shrewd move, as they ensured we were not lost, attacked, or more likely...fleeced by an ice cream vendor.
I thouroughly enjoyed the whole experience, as it was the closest I have been to feeling like a real traveller since this trip began. The highlight being, driving in to a banana plantation to avoid the blockades, and breaking the axle bolts of one of the trucks we were travelling on. I became McGivor momentarily, and showed the driver how to get the said truck moving using the bolts holding the handrail on the truck, whilst being eaten alive by mosqitoes and before being discovered by angry farmers....
So that was yesterday, and I need to fill you in on the numerious adventures I have had leading up to that point. Last time I wrote I was in Arequipa, in Peru, from there we travelled north to Puerto Inca camping on the beach and then up to Peru´s Capital Lima. Lima is a very busy place, and has the reputation of being a very dirty and dangerious place, allthough I found it to be an archetecturally stunning and a vibrant city. I guess my 7 years in London have left me feeling very at home in such a noisy dangerious place. Half of the group celebrated their arrival in Lima with Tatoos, I passed on this because I do not have the full alphabet of Hepititus inoculations, and because I need to keep something back for my mid life crisis.
From Lima we drove north to the costal Town of Mancora, staying in a nearby resort of Punto Sal - The pacific here is Azure blue, the sand is golden, and the water is warmer than your average indoor pool. We sat on the beach watching whales jumping clean out of the ocean whilst our hearts stopped.
What did you do to my donkey?
Unused to rip tides, a couple of members* of the group were caught in the current, and almost swept out to sea, fortunately one of the members of our group is an ex lifeguard, and was able to drag them back to safety, later there was speculation that it was all a ploy to be rescued by a beuatiful girl in a bikini, but this was never proven.
It was at night that I had one of the most amazing experiences of my life though, picture the scene, I am walking along the beach, by the light of the stars, along the surf, watching the crabs scurrying back in to their little burrows as I approach, and as my eyes adjust to the light, I start to see little blue flashes in the surf, then on the sand as I walk...and with every step I take, the bio luminescence of the plankton in the surf and on the wet sand lights up like something out of a Fred Astaire routine - by throwing a handful of sand out in front of me I was able to light up the whole beach in front of me(they only light up when they are disturbed) and I found myself running along the beach like a three year old, kicking up as much sand as I could, and lauging out loud............Life is still good .
Muchos besos perro las Chicas
E
* Yes, I was one of them, and no, it had nothing to do with bikinis...
¶ 1:53 pm
I have been off the beaten track for a while and have not really had tme for a grup email untill now, so appologies if this turns in to war and peace or something.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...Today I arrived in Cuenqa, Equador- It has taken us two days to get here, even though it is about 4 hours drive from Punto Sal (My last stop in Peru). It took us two days because the border between Peru and Equador had been closed to vehicles, due to the ongoing protests by the Banana Benders (Bender is Spanish for seller). So it was decided that we should grab a few days clothes, and wash kit, and try and cross the border of foot, whilst the truck drove through the night to another border.
You get the idea!
The most interesting journey I have ever had transpired...Mini Vans, Pickup Trucks, Farm Vehicles and on foot we negotiated numerious road blockades and unofficial border crossings.
Manned by around 10 - 20 banana farmers, armed with machetes and sticks most blockades are official union protests, and required a walk across rubble, glass, burning debris and or barbed wire for anything up to 2 miles, during which, the inovative protesters attempted to sell you ice cream, water, soup or beer, whilst drumming up support for their campaign.
Other blockades were more haphazard and less official, they were usually manned by 5 or 6 teenagers, again with machetes and often they would run to sit on the blockade upon hearing a vehicle approaching, and start reading a newspaper, before demanding a small tribute/bribe to move the blockade and allow us to pass. At either side of the larger blockades, we found other farmers competing for the business of transporting us to the next blockade. As the day wore on it became obvious what the purpose of this protest really was, ie to extract money out of anyone silly enough to want to travel through it. We picked up a couple of local guides in Peru and put our trust in them to negociate the best deal at each hurdle, they travelled with us the full two days, and left us when we finally borded a bus this morning for the final part of the journey this proved a shrewd move, as they ensured we were not lost, attacked, or more likely...fleeced by an ice cream vendor.
I thouroughly enjoyed the whole experience, as it was the closest I have been to feeling like a real traveller since this trip began. The highlight being, driving in to a banana plantation to avoid the blockades, and breaking the axle bolts of one of the trucks we were travelling on. I became McGivor momentarily, and showed the driver how to get the said truck moving using the bolts holding the handrail on the truck, whilst being eaten alive by mosqitoes and before being discovered by angry farmers....
So that was yesterday, and I need to fill you in on the numerious adventures I have had leading up to that point. Last time I wrote I was in Arequipa, in Peru, from there we travelled north to Puerto Inca camping on the beach and then up to Peru´s Capital Lima. Lima is a very busy place, and has the reputation of being a very dirty and dangerious place, allthough I found it to be an archetecturally stunning and a vibrant city. I guess my 7 years in London have left me feeling very at home in such a noisy dangerious place. Half of the group celebrated their arrival in Lima with Tatoos, I passed on this because I do not have the full alphabet of Hepititus inoculations, and because I need to keep something back for my mid life crisis.
From Lima we drove north to the costal Town of Mancora, staying in a nearby resort of Punto Sal - The pacific here is Azure blue, the sand is golden, and the water is warmer than your average indoor pool. We sat on the beach watching whales jumping clean out of the ocean whilst our hearts stopped.
What did you do to my donkey?
Unused to rip tides, a couple of members* of the group were caught in the current, and almost swept out to sea, fortunately one of the members of our group is an ex lifeguard, and was able to drag them back to safety, later there was speculation that it was all a ploy to be rescued by a beuatiful girl in a bikini, but this was never proven.
It was at night that I had one of the most amazing experiences of my life though, picture the scene, I am walking along the beach, by the light of the stars, along the surf, watching the crabs scurrying back in to their little burrows as I approach, and as my eyes adjust to the light, I start to see little blue flashes in the surf, then on the sand as I walk...and with every step I take, the bio luminescence of the plankton in the surf and on the wet sand lights up like something out of a Fred Astaire routine - by throwing a handful of sand out in front of me I was able to light up the whole beach in front of me(they only light up when they are disturbed) and I found myself running along the beach like a three year old, kicking up as much sand as I could, and lauging out loud............Life is still good .
Muchos besos perro las Chicas
E
* Yes, I was one of them, and no, it had nothing to do with bikinis...
¶ 1:53 pm
