Day 3- Ica

Today was beyond incredible. We woke up really early to meet up at 6:45am and leave for the Paracas islands. It took about an hour to get there, and we got on a boat to the islands. The water was blue and I heard we were going to see penguins, but I had no idea what to expect. About 15 minutes later, out of the blue I see amazing tall cliffs, covered with thousands of birds and plenty of seals and penguins. It was breathtaking.

sunbathing sea lion : )

Apparently there used to be 45 million birds on the island, but now there are only 2 million. Still, the rocks were completely covered with birds. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I took lots of pictures and was really happy that we went. Afterwards, I bought a bun with sweet potato for a small lunch and went shopping at the outdoor stores. They sold lots of souvenirs, from shot glasses, jewelry, textiles, pottery and more. I bought 3 red and black bracelets made (what type) from potato seeds, which is a very common jewelry in Peru and is supposed to bring good luck. I also bought a pair of black and red earrings and multicolored earrings, and beautiful coasters for my roommate.

We left Paracas and went back to Ica to go on a city tour. First though, Kat and I went looking for a quick meal. We couldn’t find anything immediately and ended up eating in what we believe was a flea market. We saw a menu on the outside of a building, and a woman came up to us and asked what we wanted. Then we walked back through lots of shops in a little complex/building and ate in the back. It was really sketchy but we got soup, a main dish and soda for 5 soles. The food wasn’t that great but it was still an experience.

Soon after, we left for a city tour of Ica. All major cities in Peru have a central plaza, where lots of people hang out and talk. A woman told us about the history of the plaza and we later got in the bus to go to a bodega, a place where they make wine and pisco, the local liquor made from sweet grapes. They explained the process of choosing the sweetest grapes (the warm climate allows the grapes to be so sweet), stamping on grapes for 8-12 hours a day, processing the alcohol and more. We sampled different types of wine and pisco.

The first wine was way too sweet, sweeter than any dessert wine I’ve tasted, but I really enjoyed the second pisco sour. The other piscos were very harsh/strong, and we tried a chocolate wine last. I had already tried a different type in the states, and it tastes similar to Kahlua.

After that, we hung headed over to the sand dunes. We were in the middle of the desert and took a buggy ride to go sandboarding. I thought we were simply driving up a smooth path and “sledding” down the sand dunes, but after we’d been driving for a few minutes, I noticed we weren’t on any path. Our driver was apparently the craziest one of the bunch, and he went super fast over the dunes. It was like a rollercoaster, only in the sand. We were all screaming and laughing the whole time. I was in the front seat, which was really fun and had a great view. I was shaking from complete shock and an adrenaline rush once we got out of the car. We were at the top of a “hill” and rode down on boards. Some people stood up and rode down as if they were snowboarding; the less adventurous of us rode on our stomachs. I was really nervous because the hill was steep and long, so I stuck my feet in the sand to slow down. Once I started my descent, though, I realized it wasn’t scary at all (especially compared to the buggy ride) so I went down faster on the next two. Each hill we went to was increasingly taller and increasingly better. After the last hill, we drove around and stopped in the middle of the desert with a perfect view of the sunset. Of course, we had to take plenty of pictures there. I couldn’t believe what we were doing; it was such a surreal experience that it might never kick in. 

Once we headed back to the sand dune entrance we saw an oasis, filled with water in the middle of the desert. We stopped to take pictures and got back on the bus.

Then we went to a witch village nearby, where we heard about the history of the village and met a local witch. He gave some people palm readings, although I've heard that the entire village is just a hoax.

Afterwards, I went out to dinner with Kat, Tara and Carlene. We were so hungry that we were ready to eat about anything, but we had terrible, greasy food with worse service. Still, it's probably the only meal here that I haven't enjoyed. Later, I went back to the hotel and hung out in my room for the rest of the night.

Day 2- Ica/Paracas

Today I woke up early and went to the supermarket with some people to buy breakfast. We were supposed to leave for Ica at 10am but waited around for everyone until 11. It was a four hour drive and the scenery on the way there was breathtaking. One minute we would pass beautiful beaches with tall rocks, then next we would pass desert, then next we would pass green grass with palm trees. Once we got into town, our bus driver made a seemingly impossible turn onto a tiny street. Everybody was staring at us as we barely missed running into poles, people and signs. We clapped for him at the end and walked into our hotel. Hotel, not hostel… I’m much happier with our accommodations here. Outside, there’s a pool, tiki bar, pink and purple flowers and lots of wooden accents.

I’m sharing a room with Chris and Kat; we each have our own beds and a nice bathroom, albeit without hot water. A big group of us went out for lunch and I ended up ordering chichirron (flavorful fried chicken) with rice, cucumber and lettuce. I spent 6 soles, which included chicken noodle soup and juice.

Afterwards, most of us got together and hung out by the pool beforehand. We didn’t have any plans until 8:30pm, when we were to meet up with Monica and go to a karaoke bar. We had our own room, which wasn’t really big enough to fit everyone at all. Our first song was “My Heart Will Go On;” we also sang Fireworks by Katy Perry, Baby One More Time (my choice), and a bunch more. It was great to see Monica join our group and sing and dance. Since it was so crammed in our room, some people drifted in and out or went to the bar or restaurant. Later I walked off with a bunch of people in search of food and ended up getting una hamburguesa royal, which has a fried egg on top and is muy sabrosa. I went to sleep soon after since we had to wake up early the next morning. It was a really fun night and didn’t feel like only the second night in Peru at all.

Day 1- Miraflores

Today was our first day in Peru. We arrived at our hostel early in the morning and rested until breakfast. Afterwards, I was still very tired since I didn’t sleep on the plane, so I napped again. Then I went out for lunch with two of the girls and ordered a Peruvian hotdog y huevo. The meat and egg was all fried together and served on a hamburger bun. It wasn’t what I was expecting but was really good.

Later, I packed a backpack for our trip to Ica and dropped my suitcase off at my host family’s house. They weren’t home, but a woman who seemed to be a maid took my bag. I’m curious to meet my family and see the house; I also can’t wait for home cooked meals and planning activities with them.

Once we had all dropped off our suitcases, we got ready to go out to dinner at a fancy restaurant where we had a fixed menu that allowed us to sample local cuisine. We ate dinner at 7:30… I don't know the names of our dishes, but we had shrimp, chicken and yucca, pisco sour, and a postre with a crunchy shell that tasted like coffee and had strawberries and a local fruit. My table had a blast and laughed a lot. We all went out looking for a good club afterwards and ended up finding a good club not too far from the hostel where they played house music. Almost all of us were there and we were basically the only people at the club; no one else was dancing until we started to. Once we had enough, we all walked back to the hostel together and hung out outside. It was amazing to see us all getting along and having a great time, and I’m surprised at how quickly I learned peoples’ names.