Into Peru

After two weeks in Cuenca, we left for Peru in two separate vehicles.  Yipee!  Our first day was an 8-hour marathon complete with border crossing.  The sky was darkening as we left the border for Tumbes, and by the time we hit the hive of three wheeled moto-taxis swarming the Friday night of Tumbes, it was oh-dark-thirty, as my brother would say. 

Like all bad dreams, these moto-taxis look pretty harmless in the daytime, but on our first exhausted night, they were terrifying!

We made our way to the first petrol station on the Pan American highway in Tumbes.  It took a pep talk from a nice young Peruvian at a truck stop (and Luc on the radio) to get me to cross the divided highway and back up the other side about a half a kilometer to the only hotel that didn’t require us to drive into town.  I think if the van hadn’t fit under the gate, I would have just lain down in the middle of the highway and cried.  I’m sure no one would have been able to distinguish me from the unmarked speed bumps in the road.

The next morning, we took a ride into town in a moto-taxi driven by our sweet waiter-bellhop-delivery boy to get money.   He was proud of his spotless bike, of his taxi license (which he encouraged me to examine), and of his border town.  In fact, he was a good driver.  In the video Luc took in the taxi, I am only holding on for my life with one hand.

It was still disappointing how quickly my understanding of Spanish deteriorated in the 25 k from the border to Tumbes!  I have rediscovered that wrenching feeling during the 3 seconds between someone’s utterance and my thirty-percent comprehension.  I know that my face resembles the fixed smile and uncomprehending gaze of other travelers as they lean forward thinking that proximity will bring them another centimeter closer to comprehension.

We are now in Zorritos, Peru, at a beautiful “eco-lodge” with an incredible beach where we are camped less than 10 paces from the high tide mark.  We have met two other groups of travelers here.  One, a lovely Austrian family that started in Bolivia, is heading north into Ecuador.  They generously shared their advice and gave us their maps of Peru and Bolivia in exchange for a few extra square centimeters in their van, a short list of camping suggestions for Ecuador, and our best wishes in selling their van before they head back to Vienna (know anyone looking to buy a cool van in Ecuador in December?).  The best part, at least for me, was to be within eavesdropping distance of children’s voices.  It didn’t matter at all that the homeschool lessons I was hearing were in German! 

The second was a French couple visiting Peru for a month.  Paloma, whose father is a Peruvian archeologist now living and working in Paris, had timed their visit to celebrate her grandmother’s 101^st birthday.  We shared two delicious meals and fascinating conversation with them.

Tide is going out.  Time for a walk on the beach!