Sunday, April 12, 2009 4:00 PM (approx)
Train from Guancayo back to Lima
Saturday morning: Many of us were a bit hesitant about spending S/25 on an excursion that sounded like a hike through the jungle followed by a short wade through a river at the end. They really should have advertised it as hiking upstream through a river for four hours, including climbing several waterfalls. I obviously had no idea what I was getting myself into but we definitely got our money’s worth.
However, we were still disillusioned the first 45 minutes or so as we made our way through a simple river side path (starting at the bridge we went to yesterday) that dipped in and out of the jungle. I was definitely not dressed for the occasion with my falling apart sneakers, pair of jeans, and pretty button-up shirt (limited wardrobe choices, what can I say). It’s pretty laughable now that we were all so hesitant to get our sneakers wet when we waded through our first brook (instead we decided to climb across a precariously fallen tree trunk). Little did we know that we would be up to chests in water in an hour.
It was a perfect adventure through the jungle, scaling walls with jungle vines that were so strong they supported all our weight, crisscrossing through the river dozens of times, pulling ourselves up waterfalls with a single rope, climbing cliff walls, and viewing our final destination of a three story waterfall (I thought we were going to climb that one too). At one point when we were pushing through a narrow pass in the river I was the first to go and the current was so strong that I was stuck up to my neck in the river’s powerful flow and I couldn’t move any of my limbs - it took two really strong guides in front and behind to pull me out. After our final waterfall, we crossed our river for a final time and made our way back through the jungle. Our last stop of the day was to a coffee plantation, where we saw them roasting and grinding the beans. It was the first coffee I’ve ever liked (and it was yummy!) and the bag that I bought was so fresh the grounds was still warm!
We then took a bus to Tarma, which has a huge traditional Semana Santa procession with “carpets of flowers” (they literally cover every surface of the ground with flowers arranged in intricate patterns). We had the random fortune of talking to some people from a tourist agency (originally we just wanted to store our backpacks and use the bathroom) who took us on a mini tour to try manjar blanco (super sweet, perhaps comparable to Argentina’s dulce de leche) and dropped us off in another small town for their Semana Santa celebration, which was incomparable to any Easter egg hunt in the US.
There were at least four or five huge bands all around the main plaza square and we just kept wandering from band to band dancing to the music with everyone in the crowd. Then came the fireworks. Much like the bands, there were large wooden structures placed all around the square that took turns shooting off huge fireworks and sparks and unique lighted figures. It was awesome, and though at first I thought “Why don’t we have fireworks like this in the US!” I realized once sparks were shot off into crowds and rained down on us that safety regulations would never allow it. The whole experience was too much for words, it was so fun and unique. We tried lots of street food before rain put an early end to the party and the next few hours were a random blur of busing to Tarma, going to a discoteca, and miraculously meeting up with the whole group and our tour guides. The few hours following that consisted in a terrifyingly high-speed ride along slick roads to Guancayo in order to make it to the 7 am train on time (we made it with 10 minutes to spare).
Since we strategically stayed up all night, I slept a good portion of the train trip (through 66 tunnels and 59 bridges, for you data buffs) and now we only have a few hours left! The view right now really is incredible as we shakily pass through tall mountains, the winding river below, and the infrequent small towns with crumbling buildings. It’s interesting to see all the residents stop what they are doing to watch the train and wave at the passengers.
Later... I discovered that there is a club on the back of the train! The very last car is an open air car with a bar and as soon as we walked into the car, the director guy (we had met him on Friday at the discoteca) announced that because we were there the dancing was ready to start! Trying to dance, especially salsa, was hilarious because the train would pitch us in all sorts of crazy directions, but we did several trains on the train (ha!). Perfect way to pass the rest of the trip back to Lima!
¡Feliz Páscua! (Happy Easter!) Coli
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