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Started By
Message
Interested in vacation in Peru
Posted on 5/15/24 at 4:45 pm
Posted on 5/15/24 at 4:45 pm
Anyone been and have recommendations. Maybe 1/4 natural,1/4 historical/architectural and 1/2 food and culture. Tyia
Posted on 5/15/24 at 7:07 pm to Sixafan
Spent 17 days traveling the country in 2017. How long are you thinking about being there?
Posted on 5/16/24 at 12:16 am to Sixafan
Machu Picchu is a must. I'm aware that's likely a given, but still. Best day of travel in my entire life.
Everything in that part of the country is great. The Urubamba Valley, etc. Moray. Salt mines.
The dunes in Ica are incredible. The coast in Paracas.
Lima has some good restaurants.
Everything in that part of the country is great. The Urubamba Valley, etc. Moray. Salt mines.
The dunes in Ica are incredible. The coast in Paracas.
Lima has some good restaurants.
Posted on 5/17/24 at 8:05 am to Sixafan
quote:
Lima has some good restaurants.
^This^
Especially of the Chifa variety.
Posted on 5/18/24 at 8:04 am to Pioneer BS 175
quote:
Especially of the Chifa variety.
Americans think that "sweet-and-sour sauce" means something that comes out of a bottle and is made from sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. In a Peruvian chifa, it means a reduction sauce of jungle fruits that were picked a few days earlier. Chifas are awesome.
Posted on 5/19/24 at 8:43 am to GOP_Tiger
Probably not that long. More like 10 days from flight there to flight back.
Posted on 5/19/24 at 5:33 pm to Sixafan
quote:
More like 10 days from flight there to flight back.
Well, I would say that you'll need four days for the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. This is the main reason that most people go to Peru, and Machu Picchu lives up to the hype -- it's amazing.
You'll also almost certainly fly in and out of Lima (though I flew into Chiclayo), and you'll want to spend a couple of days there.
So, the question is what you do with the remaining four days or so.
The most common answer is the places generally around the bus route from Lima to Cuzco:
1) The desert oasis of Huacachina
2) The "white city" of Arequipa
3) Watching Andean Condors at Colca Canyon
4) Exploring Lake Titicaca
Of these, I only did a little of #4. Out on the lake are the "Uros Islands." These are not true islands, but are instead giant masses of reeds that float and have been used for centuries as homes by the Uros tribe.
Going out to these "islands" and spending a night with the Uros people is now a very touristy experience, of course, but I still enjoyed it tremendously.
The view at night was simply incredible, as the altitude, the clear air, and the distance from city lights made the Milky Way splash across the night sky, and this was my first time to see the Southern Cross.
And the wildlife on the lake is interesting as well, with unique species such as the Titicaca Grebe and the Andean Coot.
Posted on 5/19/24 at 5:57 pm to GOP_Tiger
You could also choose to go to Iquitos and spend several days at an Amazon River lodge. If so, then the choice of lodge is critical. Much of that area is not virgin rainforest, and I did not see the level of wildlife that I've seen elsewhere (such as Panama).
But Iquitos itself is fascinating, even if there's little to see and you can see it in a few hours. Iquitos is the world's largest city not connected by road or ocean -- you can fly in or travel on the river -- so there aren't so many cars on the streets, as the only road outside the city goes to the nearby town of Nauta and comes to an end there, so people drive around town in these motorcycle adaptations.
Iquitos became a huge boomtown a hundred years ago, when the areas rubber trees suddenly made some people very rich, like the builder of this mansion.
And the Amazon is so vast. Even so far upriver as Iquitos, it dwarfs the Mississippi -- it's about 4 miles across here.
I saw both the gray and the pink river dolphins, and swimming with the pink ones was nice.
Spending time with the monkeys, toucans, etc. at the animal rehabilitation center was certainly worthwhile.
Certainly, at any lodge, you'll be able to fish with a cane pole and catch some piranha. They are tasty, but you obviously want to be careful taking them off the hook. This little guy was a little small to eat.
Flying to and from Iquitos and spending several nights in a jungle lodge would obviously take up the right of the time on your trip.
But Iquitos itself is fascinating, even if there's little to see and you can see it in a few hours. Iquitos is the world's largest city not connected by road or ocean -- you can fly in or travel on the river -- so there aren't so many cars on the streets, as the only road outside the city goes to the nearby town of Nauta and comes to an end there, so people drive around town in these motorcycle adaptations.
Iquitos became a huge boomtown a hundred years ago, when the areas rubber trees suddenly made some people very rich, like the builder of this mansion.
And the Amazon is so vast. Even so far upriver as Iquitos, it dwarfs the Mississippi -- it's about 4 miles across here.
I saw both the gray and the pink river dolphins, and swimming with the pink ones was nice.
Spending time with the monkeys, toucans, etc. at the animal rehabilitation center was certainly worthwhile.
Certainly, at any lodge, you'll be able to fish with a cane pole and catch some piranha. They are tasty, but you obviously want to be careful taking them off the hook. This little guy was a little small to eat.
Flying to and from Iquitos and spending several nights in a jungle lodge would obviously take up the right of the time on your trip.
Posted on 5/19/24 at 6:16 pm to GOP_Tiger
The other alternative, though, is to spend time north of Lima.
We started our trip in Chiclayo, a pleasant city in the north, though without a lot of sights in the city itself.
But just outside the city is the Museum of the Tombs of the Lords of Sipan, and this is one of the greatest museums in South America. It's simply stunning to see the incredible riches and artistry of the Moche people. Unfortunately, photos aren't allowed inside, but you can google the museum if you like.
From Chiclayo, we went south to Trujillo, where the Spanish colonial center of the city is very pretty.
The nearby Moche Temple of the Moon is very interesting. Everyone has heard of the Inca, but the Moche who were there just before the Inca deserve to be better known.
Also near Trujillo is Chan Chan, an ancient city of the Chimu people who also predate the Inca.
We started our trip in Chiclayo, a pleasant city in the north, though without a lot of sights in the city itself.
But just outside the city is the Museum of the Tombs of the Lords of Sipan, and this is one of the greatest museums in South America. It's simply stunning to see the incredible riches and artistry of the Moche people. Unfortunately, photos aren't allowed inside, but you can google the museum if you like.
From Chiclayo, we went south to Trujillo, where the Spanish colonial center of the city is very pretty.
The nearby Moche Temple of the Moon is very interesting. Everyone has heard of the Inca, but the Moche who were there just before the Inca deserve to be better known.
Also near Trujillo is Chan Chan, an ancient city of the Chimu people who also predate the Inca.
Posted on 5/19/24 at 6:38 pm to GOP_Tiger
Those then, are what I would say are the three real options for your other time in Peru:
1) Southern route
2) Iquitos and the Amazon
3) Chiclayo and Iquitos
And, as others have said, Peruvian food is amazing, because the different climates allow for such regional variation and fusions. You must eat some cebiche (spelled with a v instead of a b in other parts of Latin America). My mouth just waters at the thought. There's a new Peruvian restaurant here in Baton Rouge, but the cebiche didn't compare to what I got in Peru, and the rest of the food wasn't anything special either.
In the dry, almost desert area of Chiclayo, you might get some delicious cabrito, or goat:
The Inca ate cuy, or guinea pig, as part of religious rituals. It's still a special meal. I found the game flavor strong, but not at all unpleasant. Though the one on my plate is fried, it's more often served roasted.
In the Andean area, you might get alpaca steaks or even ravioli stuffed with alpaca meat, as I had in Urubamba.
In areas closer to the jungle, you might get something like this incredible seafood meal that was steamed in a banana leaf in Tarapoto:
And, yes, there are good chifas all over Peru, and you should eat at a couple of them. You'll notice the yellow liquid in our glasses. That's Inca Kola, the Peruvian answer to Coca-Cola (and actually owned by Coca-Cola).
1) Southern route
2) Iquitos and the Amazon
3) Chiclayo and Iquitos
And, as others have said, Peruvian food is amazing, because the different climates allow for such regional variation and fusions. You must eat some cebiche (spelled with a v instead of a b in other parts of Latin America). My mouth just waters at the thought. There's a new Peruvian restaurant here in Baton Rouge, but the cebiche didn't compare to what I got in Peru, and the rest of the food wasn't anything special either.
In the dry, almost desert area of Chiclayo, you might get some delicious cabrito, or goat:
The Inca ate cuy, or guinea pig, as part of religious rituals. It's still a special meal. I found the game flavor strong, but not at all unpleasant. Though the one on my plate is fried, it's more often served roasted.
In the Andean area, you might get alpaca steaks or even ravioli stuffed with alpaca meat, as I had in Urubamba.
In areas closer to the jungle, you might get something like this incredible seafood meal that was steamed in a banana leaf in Tarapoto:
And, yes, there are good chifas all over Peru, and you should eat at a couple of them. You'll notice the yellow liquid in our glasses. That's Inca Kola, the Peruvian answer to Coca-Cola (and actually owned by Coca-Cola).
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