• Anke BB
  • Ben in South America
Oct – Dec 2018

Südamerika

Post-Examen-Rucksackreise durch Peru, Ecuador und Kolumbien.
Zzgl. Kuba.
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  • Trip start
    October 8, 2018
  • Barranco, Lima

    October 10, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Barranco, a really beautiful and artsy neighbourhood in Lima. Lot‘s of street art, galleries and interesting architecture. And of course ... a bohemian vibe everywhere.

  • Miraflores, Lima

    October 11, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    After mostly spending time in Barranco, Miraflores was a quite a change for us ... and kinda reinforced our love for Barranco. Much more western with many high buildings and lots of shopping malls, it had a really different vibe.
    Nevertheless, we enjoyed the nice view of the ocean, the many parks with tons of cats (😻) and also some hidden street art.

    After walking around there for quite a bit, we returned to Barranco for the last time by bus - a true adventure - and had a great late lunch at „Casa Rana“ with huge portions.

    Off to the next stop... Ica.
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  • Ica & Huacachina

    October 12, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    After arriving in Ica late at 10pm, we realized that night - and especially the next morning, that Ica is a noisy city! Many Tuk-tuks, many cars and a lots of honking. But the sun was shining and there was plenty of fresh fruit sold in the streets and therefore our mood was unaffected.

    Later that day -in the afternoon- we booked a trip to Huacachina, an oasis a few km outside of Ica. The oasis itself was not as beautiful as espected, it‘s a really commercialized place, but we had super duper fun driving crazily around in buggys and sandboarding down the dunes!
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  • Arequipa

    October 15, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    Staying in Arequipa for 3 days was a relaxing experience. The „White City“ offers a lot of interesting colonial architecture, the Market of San Camillo is a great place for trying the typical peruvian fruits (e.g. Chirimoya), tons of shops selling colorful handcrafts, beautiful view points with charming churches, amazing sundowns from our rooftop terrace and we could even pet some alpacas.

    We used the time there to plan further our trip, do some laundry and get ready for our next stop: the Colca Canyons!
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  • Food & Drinks Part I

    October 16, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Like every country in the world, Peru offers a great deal of typical dishes and ‚bebidas‘, aka drinks.

    So far, I‘m sure I’ve only tried a small percentage of all typical food but i will try to keep you guys updated on my olfactory experiences! And Benjamin‘s as weil, since he has to try everything that contains meat. Haha.

    1.) Pisco Sour - this alcoholic drink is made of liquor of grapes, lime juice, sugar and raw egg-white! The egg white becomes the white foam on top of the drink. I absolutely love this cocktail and I already drank it several times (e.g. on the rooftop overlooking Arequipa and another time in a bar while listening to a Peruvian Rock-Cover-Band called „Vigilin“)

    2.) Queso Helado - Cheese Ice? Sounds nasty, don‘t you think? I did so too and got prooved wrong! It‘s absolutely tasty and you can buy it for only 2.50 PEN (~ 65 cents) on every corner in Arequipa.

    3.) Aji de Gallina - Beni told me very simply: „It tasted nice!“ and he is definitely ordering it again.

    4.) Chicha Morada - a typical purple juice, made out of specific purple sort of corn boiled in water. I also really liked this classic of the Peruvian kitchen and I am usually no big fan of juices in general.

    5.) Empanda - what can I say? Empanada con queso, I have an addiction and I ate one (sometimes 2) every day while we stayed on Arequipa. Luckily, right before the door of our hostel was a cute little shop where you can get on for only 2.50 PEN from a lovely peruvian girl!

    6.) For fun: Chocolate Water Ice in a small plastic bag, sold by a woman on the bus to Cabanaconde - did not taste like chocolate, but certainly not bad either and was a nice way of cooling on a hot day!

    The order of the pictures got messy, but I think you can sort it out by the explanations. ;j
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  • Colca Canyon Day I

    October 17, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    After lousy WiFi for the last days, I finally have some working internet to overflow you with new pictures and updates.

    Starting from Arequipa, our next stop was the small village of Cabanaconde to start our trek into the Colca Canyon.
    Day I started early, since we did the tour without a guide and the other way around and therefore just had a rough idea on how long it would take us to our lodge.

    So we started the hike at 8 o‘clock in the morning and walked down for over 1000 meters and 2 hours straight . At the end, my thighs were shaking and I realized: going down is underestimated in terms of concentration and physical achievement.
    Our first stop was the beautiful oasis Sangalle, where we took a dip in a pool and had a little lunch (and I cuddled with a dog). So nice!
    Then we had to walk the canyon up and although the landscape was beautiful.... boy, it was hot and exhausting!! I kinda had like a little panic attack, because I was so out of breath. But I guess, sometime hiking is going to the maximum of your physical possibilities and realize, you can still make it to the top!
    Once we‘ve made it, the most beautiful part of our trek began. Really green and finally not that steep anymore!
    At 4 pm, we reached our lodge and were friendly welcomed. After a fantastic dinner we went to bed early to be ready for Day II.
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  • Colca Canyon Day II

    October 18, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Day II started early as well. And it went up again! For 4 hours, climbing over 1000 meters. Like the day before, it was really exhausting and if you look at the pictures and I look happy, it was either a photo from the beginning or I was forcing it! Haha.
    Nonetheless, in total the hike was a fantastic experience and I could enjoy beautiful landscapes and learned a lot about myself. And that Beni is really supportive, when I‘m grumpy because of tiredness. Haha.

    After a shower in Cabanaconde, we drove back to Arequipa by bus to catch another bus to Puno.
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  • Copacabana & Lake Titicaca

    October 19, 2018 in Bolivia ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    From Puno, we crossed the border to Bolivia and decided to take a look at the Lake Titicaca from the Bolivian side. And we didn’t regret it for one second!
    Copacabana is not the most spectacular town, but it had some nice corners and an even nicer „Mirador“ (view point), which allowed us to enjoy the highest and largest lake in all its glory!Read more

  • Isla del Sol & Isla de la luna

    October 20, 2018 in Bolivia ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    From Copacabana, we did a day tour to the „Isla del Sol“ and the „Isla de la Luna“.
    The boat from the harbor was going painfully slow for 2 hours to the islands. The „Isla de la Luna“ was a pretty small island with nice views and we could walk across the whole island in an hour.

    Unfortunately, the northern part of the Isla del Sol is not open for visits anymore. Due to conflicts between the communities of the northern and the southern part, we could not do our planed hike across the island.
    Nonetheless, we did have a nice walk in the south of the island, had fun with donkeys and dogs and enjoyed a „mate de coca“ in a cafe with a beautiful view.
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  • Humantay Lake Part I

    October 22, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    From Copacabana, we took a bus to our next destination: Cusco (Footprint in the making).
    A day trip from Cusco (ca. 2,5h by car) lies the beautiful Humantay Lake.
    Thankfully, we did not have to take part in a tour, but just went with 3 other people on our own. The consequence of that was absolut loneliness at the lake where the 5 of us could simply enjoy the fantastic view and the amazing nature!Read more

  • Hike in the Sacred Valley

    October 23, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    On our second day in Cusco, we decided to take a stroll to parts of the Sacred Valley.
    We actually bought a „boleto turistico“ for a day, but wouldn’t recommend it because of its high price. It‘s just not worth 70 soles.

    Nonetheless, we started our hike after a 30-minute Taxi drive to the first ruin „Puka Pukara“, continuing with „Tambomachay“.

    Although it rainend, we got lost in between and we were a little disappointed with the ruins, we had a great day hiking by ourselves in the wild nature and exploring the „temple of the moon“.

    We finished our day-trek with the ruins of „Q‘engo“ and „Saqsaywaman“, which were more impressive than the first two. Especially at „Saqsaywaman“, we had a nice view over Cusco.
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  • Jungle Trek To Machu Picchu

    October 24, 2018 in Peru ⋅ 🌧 18 °C

    Our next adventure was the climbing of the „Machu Picchu“, a real classic.
    After thinking about the pros and cos of the different treks, we decided to go with the 4d/3n Jungle Trek since we hiked the days before and were planing more hikes after and the tour promised more action than the Salkantay Trek. And we could sleep a little longer because the tour started later. Haha.

    We started with a nice downhill cycling, beginning at over 4000m and ending up at 2000m. Luckily, the more we descended, the warmer it got. It was real action, since we had to cross little rivers, we cycled a normal autoroute and it was freezing cold and foggy the first 30 minutes.

    Later on the first day, we did some rafting. It was my first time and I loved it! Afterwards, we even had a little sauna time arranged. Than we went to bed early, since We had to get up early for our second day.

    The second day was the most intensive day of hiking. Starting early at 6am In the pouring rain, we were lucky as the sky cleared later and we could hike a part of the traditional „Inca trail“ whilst staying dry.
    We stopped at a little stall to learn about different products, that grew in the jungle area, try a little Inka tequila, pet some cute dogs and cats, and got organic face-paintings Inca-style.
    The second day ended with a short cable car ride over the river (very fun) and a visit of some „baños termales“ aka hot springs. Very relaxing after a long day hiking.
    This night we had a little party and thanks to an insane happy hour (4 drinks for the price of one!!), we got pretty wasted. Whooops.
    Benjamin and I met the sweetest Australians ever, and we had such a fun night out.
    We would regret it the next day, though. Haha .

    Day 3 started with a painful hangover. And some pain medication.
    We then went zip-lining, which was fun and thankfully not that exhausting (although....there was a part, where you could go upside down. Many of our group didn‘t even do it because of the fear of puking. Haha. We did it, but it was a close call. Hahah.)
    After lunch, we walked three hours to Aguas Calientes. We were so tired and honestly, couldn’t really appreciate the scenic route.
    In Aguas Calientes, after a tasty dinner (Spaghetti!) we all just fell into bed at 9pm.

    The last day started early at 4am with half an hour walk to the first check-point, opening at 5. Then we had to walk up an hour -just stairs!!- to reach Machu Picchu. Boy, that was some hard exercise at 5 o’clock in the morning!
    But it was totally worth it! Machu Picchu made us forget all the pain! It was much greener than imagined and just beautiful. At first, it was really foggy but as it cleared up.... ugh!

    After spending 3 hours up there, we had to walk 4 hours back to the bus stop at Hidrolectrica. Thankfully, we were not as hung over as the last time, so the way was bearable and we had a nice chat with our lovely Australian mates.

    At the bus stop, the bad luck started. We, and another sweet German couple (which we shared rooms with during our trek -greetings to Cathi and Dennis!) from our hostel weren’t picked up. We had to pay another taxi, which broke down twice! The 2nd time, the damage couldn’t be fixed and we were stranded in in the middle of the night in the absolute nowhere. Oh, and it rained. We were luckily picked up by a local bus and after arguing to get into that bus, we could sit on the floor until reaching Cusco at 12.30am.
    But that happens while traveling, and in end, we reached our hostel, even not the way we planned.
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  • Cusco

    October 28, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Cusco - an everyone’s favorite!
    It really is a lovely city: a wonderful historic center, tons of colorful stuff to shop, nice food, narrow streets, vibrant night clubs, the crazy San Pedro market and so much charme! We loved every second of our short stay and had the wish to never leave.Read more

  • Iquitos

    October 29, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    After a short flight (ca. 1h40min) from Cusco, we arrived at the small airport of Iquitos and had to basically take of all of our clothes! Leaving in a jumper and a jacket in Cusco at the morning, it was 31*C an 100% humidity when arriving in the Amazonian city.

    Iquitos wasn’t our favorite place to stay. The atmosphere was just not as relaxed as hoped, more offers for drugs than in the other cities we‘ve been before, lots of police (because of the Amazonas borders) and not our kind of vibe.
    We also checked out the Belen Market at 3pm and although it was already closing, it was a shocking thing to see: tons of flights, dogs and vultures eating left over meat from the dirty (really dirty!) streets. We decided to not go there anymore, although we didn’t see „the crazy jungle stuff“ people are selling there -partly illegal.

    Nonetheless, we had two half days there and found a nice bar and some pretty views. And enjoyed taking the cheap Tuk Tuks for a little wind and less walking.
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  • Welcome To The Jungle I

    October 31, 2018 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    At our second day, we were so excited für our jungle encounter to begin.

    We started by visiting a small local market before getting on the boat. There we could try some typical fruits from the Amazonas and brave hearts could try some „suri“ (maggots). We weren’t that brave, though. Haha.

    Our boat ride was so nice, the amazonas ist astonishingly big and we ended up in a rescue center for animals from the Belen market. Those animals were treated there (mostly because of mean skin rashes) with the goal to release them back into freedom. We had the chance to hold an incredibly cute sloth.
    Also, our guide told us a lot about the native medicine made out of the plants of the jungle and their use - very interesting.

    Afterwards, we had lunch and could discover our lodge a little - the lodge even had a small pool to refresh!

    In the evening, it started raining heavenly since we were on the edge to rain season. We therefore went to bed early to get up at 4.45 to spot some typical pink dolphins and to see the sunrise.
    The sunrise we did not see, because of a cloudy situation, but we could spot some dolphins after driving around for an hour and almost losing hope.

    We than visited a local tribe, which Beni and i did not enjoy that much, because we had the feeling that the indigenous felt forced to welcome us and really needed tourists to buy their products. Nonetheless, there were the cutest little kids, looking all like Mogli and having a sloth as a pet!

    In the afternoon we had a little jungle trek, where Beni and I learned again about many plants and animals and spotted some monkeys and insects.

    In the Halloween night, we went out again to see the nocturnal animals. Mostly spiders - a little nightmare for me! You can tell by the look on my face in the picture below. We learned how to walk in the jungle to not get bitten by snakes, spiders and scorpions.

    At our last day, wen went fishing for piranhas and swimming in the amazonas! This was really such a fun end to an amazing experience and we are very thankful for it. Not even 1.000.000 moskito bites and sweating like crazy because of 100% humidity could lower our excitement.
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  • Huaraz & Laguna 69

    November 5, 2018 in Peru ⋅ 🌧 14 °C

    After flying back from Iquitos to Lima, we took a bus to Huaraz.

    At first Benjamin was a little sick, so we decided to take a first lazy day there, exploring the city and sleeping a lot.
    The city is a bit smaller, but nonetheless it was super lively, since there were some holidays in Peru.

    At our second day, we did a little and easy hike for acclimatization. We went to a small lake near Chiwipampa and enjoyed a stunning view and the nature by laying in the grass and breathing fresh air.

    Our next hike was more tough. We did a tour to the Laguna 69, which is at an altitude of over 4,000 meters.
    The hike itself was beautiful! It was one of the nicest landscapes we‘ve seen so far in Peru! Very green, many small and colorful lakes, small water“streets“ everywhere and peacefully eating cows.
    At the lake, you could just sit on the rocks and enjoy the amazing view and listen to the ice crack in the glacier above.
    On the 2-hours- way down, Beni could even take his shoes off.

    We loved the hike but it had one downside: as we returned to our hostel, some horrible headache showed up. Later I was feeling quite nausea. Thankfully, I could suppress all with medication and we were planning to go to the coast next.
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