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Tom's Blog: After five or so weeks of rapid travel around this giant continent, a week of doing little more than nothing on the beach was in order. We ventured north along the surf laden Peruvian coast, with a first stop at the rustic fishing village of Huanchaco. There was a real laid back vibe here where you can still watch the fishermen take out their cigar shaped reed woven paddle boats called Caballitos (little horses). Despite this, the scene is really dominated by the surf crowd. The waves are consistently big here, but as I wasn't in the mood to embarrass others with my skills, I took to watching this time and offered advice where required.
We spent three relaxed nights in Huanchaco, Anna in particular enjoying the cocktails and seafood on offer (including the Peruvian speciality of Cerviche - raw fish marinated in chilli and lime). We also got to see some of the best sunsets we have ever seen. "I like it here" smiled Mrs Hughes.
Well I also liked it there, but the day we left to head further up the coast proved to be my least favourite of the trip. I had picked up a bug and for 24 hours was in a very 'unhappy place'. For everyone's benefit, that is all I will say about it but I can tell you that over a week on and I'm still not 100%. To put this in context, I haven't had a beer in all this time.
In any case, we made it to Mancora (I thought I hallucinated most of the way, but Anna later informed me that actually we really did watch 'Hot Chick' in spanish). Mancora is another rustic surf village with hordes of backpackers, but compared with Huanchaco, the laid back vibe wasn't really there. It reminded me of a party island in Thailand. Tuk tuks manically roamed the streets offering to take you 5 metres here or 10 metres there and the loudest music I have ever heard blared out from every bar.
The hostel itself was one of the best we've stayed in and really catered for you to have a great time. It seemed everyone who was staying there had been there for some weeks or months on end and everyone appeared to do a shift at the bar. This was one giant 'beach bum' family.
We spent four days doing little by the pool and on the beach. As we are on honeymoon I allowed Anna to beat me at giant Connect Four. Aside from master-minding my downfall Anna 'the book monster' Hughes went to work. She devoured book after book after book and hardly flinched. It was impressive. I, on the other hand, worked on developing my big fluffy blonde hair whilst people-watched.
Disappointingly we have had to miss out on Ecuador. The two week forecast was thunderstorms and heavy rain. Thus we have ventured south again and as I write I find myself on a bus heading inland to Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Our itinerary re-jig ensures we can see Bolivia in more time and for that we can't really complain.
Another terrifying border crossing awaits...
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