Tuesday 13 November 2012

Day 129: Puno to Arequipa, Peru.

Greetings all,
Well we made a major decision last night. After a long discussion, study of maps, meetings with Liz and Karen, and calculators, we have decided to postpone our visit to Bolivia and go straight down the coast into Chile to make sure we get Shirl to Calama on time. So here we are in Arequipa.

I have also been feeling my blogs are getting into a bit of a rut. You know, we got up, got packed, hit the road, saw this and that and arrived in the next place and then did it all,over again. Getting a bit monotonous maybe. In addition the altitude has been affecting me quite a lot so I am a bit lasitudiouseos. Even to the extent of nodding off while riding which is a bit scary.

So we were out of Puno pretty early and rode along the road past Lake Titicaca. That's Puno in the background.








To get to Arequipa we had to backtrack to Juliaca. Bugger.





It was ok this time, just boring stop start stop start.

Then a few sights as we went on.
Dick in front of brick making plant. Bricks are big (and drab) here.









Including this little boy riding dads motorbike!


And a cement factory.


Shirl took lots of landscapes/skyscapes today. We went up to 4,500metres asl at one point. (Goodness me that's high.)












There were also flocks (herds?) of llamas, alpacas and sheep along the way.






And a few random shots. Dick and I in serious discussion.


An amazing change in landscape.









Finally we arrived in Arequipa where after a short battle with the traffic we found the San Francisco Hotel. The bikes were parked in the foyer.



We went for a walk. Arequipa is a lovely town being ruined by cars.






with some quirky people.



And lovely old buildings.






and pigeons in the park. (Tom Leher, where are you?)










And that was it really. Dinner, cervesa for me, pisco sour for Shirl and bed. Will be an early rising tomorrow for the crossing into Chile. A big day.

Today's ride : 306km
Cumulative: 31,758kms
Tipovers: 7

Location:Arequipa, Peru

3 comments:

  1. Ken, do you notice the climb to altitude or is it gradual?

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  2. Oh by the way, the blogs are just great. Very enjoyable reading.

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  3. Hi guys, sorry have not been able to catch up on your travels for a week or so - my you are covering some distances. Shirl seems to have recovered from her unwellness. What is the deadline for Shirl getting where she must get to? And no your blogs are not boring at all - your days are all pretty much similar! But all the pics and commentary is great.
    PS we are off to Sth Is on Saturday for a week, so will have lots to catch up on when we get back, but I will check on your progress before we go, hopefully. take care you both :-)

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