Back to the Beach

Since Chan Chan only took an hour, there is plenty of time to continue on to Huanchaco for another lunch at the beach. Can’t resist this place. There are bigger waves today. We listen to the pounding surf as we enjoy another fabulous lunch in a second story restaurant with a view of the entire town and the ocean beyond. It’s quieter here today than it was on Saturday – and we thought it was quiet then. There is only one other table of people at the restaurant. We shared another unbelievably good ceviche mixto and a fish in a garlic sauce, along with one of those big bottles of beer. We could…
Later in the day we met two cute brothers from Naples, Florida. Probably in their late 20’s or early 30’s, they said that people here really give them a hard time because of their accent. They moved from here to Florida when they were pre-schoolers. Their parents are both Peruvians, so they speak Spanish “fluently,” but it is not their first language, and their pronunciation, and their phraseology, is off. I guess people are more patient with us because they look at them and think that their Spanish should be perfect, like a native. Listening to their experiences traveling to the country of their birth as foreigners was interesting. They were just happy to find someone they could speak English to! They thought their dear mother was being ridiculous a few years ago when she insisted on buying a lot right on the beach in Huanchaco, which is where she grew up. She paid $US 10,000 for it. Her sons are now shocked that small houses right on the beach are selling for the outrageous price of $80,000 - $100,000.
This is our last day in Trujillo. It was a good day. We like it here. But we’re looking forward to getting back to Miraflores, which we love. Tonight’s another big bus ride.

Chan Chan

It’s hard to describe Chan Chan. The guidebooks tell you it’s the world’s largest adobe city.

Why We Love Demarco's

Croissants & cafe. Little tables crowded about the room. White-shirted, black-vested, black-bow-tied waiters rushing about making sure everyone has what they need. Front of cafe opening through French doors to the ever-changing street scene. Sparkling selection of wine glasses hanging above the bar on the far wall. A language that I don't understand being spoken at the next table. Swedish maybe. Soft classical music. Free wireless! Paris maybe? London? Madrid? No, we're in Trujillo, Peru's 3rd largest city. Not as cosmopolitan as Lima, not quite as sparkling, it nevertheless feels more like a European city than what I think of as Latin America. The Colonial city part of it reminds me a bit if Granada, Nicaragua. It's nice. We like it. But not as much as we like Lima.

El Mochica

It’s the sort of place you take your mom on a Sunday afternoon. Big menu. Excellent local dishes, some of it the kind that Mom used to make back when Mom used to cook. Several big dining rooms available. Going all the way to the back one, expecting a more intimate environment, we found – guess what! A very lively, very loud band! Probably great music but nearly as loud as the stadium. Gene saw the glazed look on my face and grabbed my arm, dragging me back into the very pleasant entry area room. Tranquilo. Cabrito with beans again. Love that stuff. Here, in the country where I came to eat fish, I am getting hooked on meat, which I always thought I didn’t much care for. Gene had a fabulous steak – 300 grams worth – and it was delicious – cooked rare just the way we like it. Add a Pisco Sour (Catedral – super sized!) for me and a media jarra de sangria for Gene – and we are happy!

Cursed with Good Hearing

There’s a free dance concert at the stadium around the corner from our hotel. It’s in a place that reminds me of my old high school gymnasium. Where we played basketball. But of course here there are soccer nets. We noticed a sign about the concert the day we arrived. So I really tried. I really wanted to see the dancing. And hear the music. But as we sat waiting for the folkloric dancers, the recorded “music” from the speakers assaulted us. Gene was enjoying it, I think. He should have stayed for the concert. I couldn’t. I was in physical pain. First my ears felt like they were bleeding. Then my stomach started doing flip flops. We decided we’d rather do lunch…
But I’m wondering, short of having my hearing surgically destroyed, so that I will be “normal” like everybody else, and be able to go to concerts and things – there has to be another way. What about that gizmo that they advertize on tv? The thing that allows the old geezer to hear his television without disturbing his attractive but bitchy wife. Do you supposed it works in reverse? To turn the sound DOWN for the user without disturbing anyone else? I’d be willing to pay good money for that.

Caballitos de Huanchaco

No, they don't have little horses at the beach. Those intriguing looking boats that you see in the pictures are called "caballitos," little horses. There are pictures of caballitos on some of the pottery found at Chan Chan, indicating their use 3,000 years ago. They are made of totora reed and while still used by some fishermen, they have become largely a tourist attraction.

Huanchaco - Day at the Beach

More Bad Coffee - & then Off to the Beach

Oh, my God! For coffee this place is the worst! Did that stupid thing again this morning of going downstairs for the included breakfast! Poured myself some “coffee” out of the little white pitcher. Added some “milk” from the other pitcher. Took a taste – of cold axle grease, I guess! Jesus! Am I ever going to get a decent cup of coffee in this place??? So I asked the waiter what the hell is this all about! He explains to me that I am supposed to pour myself a cupful of hot water out of the big coffee urn. Then I am supposed to add a bit of the strong cold black stuff that looks like axle grease. Then I can add some of the weird tasting “cream” if I want. OK. So that’s closer to an actual cup of coffee, but, I really just need a real cup of coffee in the morning! Without all this work!
So ultimately we find a place that will serve us an actual cup of actual coffee. After that we are able to function well enough to decide to go to Huanchaco, the nearby beach town. Fun day. A real beach. Beach-town type restaurants. Great ceviche and cold beer. We’re happy again! It is fun wandering around a beach town but not burning up. It was so comfortable. And tranquilo. Not wild and crazy with weird tourists. Just really pleasant. Kind of like a Maine beach town. Nice town, good food, cold water. But here they surf it wet suits. Looks pretty weird, but they all seem happy. I like this place.

Trujillo Architecture

Trujillo is known for it's beautiful colonial architecture. We could just walk around all day looking at buildings.

To see some more of what we saw, click here. The photos will open up in a separate window and you can click on Slide Show.

Arrival in Trujillo - Please Just a Decent Cup of Coffee

Well, first off the bus ride wasn’t as great as it sounded, but I think it was all my fault. I just couldn’t figure out how to make the seat work right and it was dark so I couldn’t see what I was doing. Everything else was ok and if I could have got my seat adjusted, it would have been very comfortable. Definitely recommend bringing munchies and drinks. The little sandwich and brownie things didn’t look bad – wasn’t hungry, didn’t try them. But first thing in the morning, as we wheeled into Trujillo, the “conductor” came around with what I thought was to be coffee. Just what I needed at that point. Thank you. I took one sip and nearly spewed it across the bus! I don’t know what it was. Something like a strong blend of very old coffee and engine grease, maybe? With about a half cup of sugar added, so that it had the consistency of syrup and the taste of – well, I don’t know what, but trust me, it was really bad! After a week of raving about how incredible the coffee is in Peru, it was all destroyed with that one sip!
At the bus terminal, while I was in the bathroom, Gene, friendly guy that we all know him to be, befriended a charming taxi driver who wanted to help us out with all of our plans. Well, of course, the bitch traveling with Gene didn’t want help from anyone about anything. She simply wanted to be taken to Plaza Central, so that she could find a decent cup of coffee. No, she did not want to be taken to Huanchaco because all the hotels in Trujillo were full. No, she did not want to check in to the hotel in el centro that he recommended. She just wanted a damned cup of coffee. Finally convinced, and tired of the discussion I assume, he managed to drop us off at a coffee shop a block away from plaza central. The worst coffee shop I’ve ever been in. Absolutely the worst coffee I’ve ever had. Well, ok, even this was not as bad as the bus coffee thing. But still! We’re talking a tall glass full of lukewarm milk with a little side pitcher of coffee. Helloooo! This is what I get when I ask for “café con leche!” The waiter didn’t seem to understand and asked me if I wanted “coffee with milk.” OK, I agreed to that, not understanding why he didn’t understand it in Spanish. Well, apparently they do coffee differently up here in the North. By now it was looking like I was never again going to get a decent cup of coffee. Somehow we walked around (with fully loaded backpacks) until we found a normal coffee shop and obtained really good cups of cappuccino. OK. Happy now. After our first cup, I left Gene at the café with all of our bags while I walked around and quickly found a hotel. The one I was looking for, the charming old, slightly run-down colonial building one, of course was closed. Just because the guidebook says it’s there … OK so I find a hotel. Good location. Even has wireless, so I can do a little blogging. Has all the usual stuff. But a bit boring. A newer hotel with little or no character. But fine. And it’s in the area that we wanted. Lots of cafes and colonial architecture. We’re good.
Later in the day we stumbled into a great little neighborhood restaurant for lunch. Unfortunately I don’t remember now where it was or what it was called. But we had some fabulous food! Cay Estofado (Guinea pig), Papas Huancaina, Arroz Chaufa.
There is some interesting colonial architecture here, as promised. But I think I’m going to miss my sidewalk cafes. And good coffee. And the park.