There was a couple from the Netherlands in the campsite and they found my general irritation with Peru quite amusing. They might mention a power outage when I got back to the campground and then in chorus growl: “But it’s Peru!” Or the food delivery might be down (a real crisis of course) and the chorus would rise up around us. Anytime anything went wrong it was and is a matter of blaming Peru.
So look at the picture above and ask yourself why has he parked his car in the travel lane? Answer: because it’s Peru! And he gets bonus points because there was plenty of room to pull off the street completely. We’ve been here far too long in this dusty desert town. Look at our windshield:
I’m not going to post a picture of the hole in Layne’s leg as it is a sight only a surgeon could enjoy but it is taking its sweet time to heal. The frustration level is high as we are running out of time in Peru and will have to save Lake Titicaca and Cusco for our return trip north next year. And there is no new sealant honey to be found around here. It would be quite soothing too for her skin.
This week, which has to be our last full week in Arequipa will see us start the process of checking Rusty out of Peru, a process that involves getting a vet to de-worm him. Child requires him to take a Nexguard pill (which we give him every month anyway) administered and recorded by a vet between five days before and up to one month before he crosses into Chile. So that we can do this week. He also needs a health certificate and an export certificate which are easier to get closer to the border. When you drive with a pet you don’t get to cross borders spontaneously; not that he cares.
I’ve also learned to manage 220 volt electricity outlets. I put the fan on the converter box as it was tending to overheat and shut down. It’s a ridiculous looking arrangement but the fan cools the box and we get 110 volt electricity to charge our batteries. Our Starlink internet connection on the roof of the van is a power hog:
Layne has started to refer to the campground as “doing time” so to relieve the tedium we try to get out and have lunch somewhere and on doctors orders we don’t walk but take Uber or a cab. I walk Rusty of course and take a stroll to do shopping or the laundry but we are mostly confined to the campground. I did manage to beat her twice at backgammon which felt like a victory as she is ultra competitive.
The good is really quite good in Peru but funnily enough a German couple who arrived a couple of days ago in a small Volkswagen van mentioned how grumpy Peruvians are, even before I started my lament, so I know I’m not alone. I’ve heard Chileans are just as bad but I’ve got to give them the benefit of the doubt first. A modest pork chop lunch eaten without electricity on Sunday as the restaurant luckily cooked on gas.
Layne also found a crepe restaurant and it reminded me of the place in Key Plaza in Key West with a burger in a blue cheese sauce in a crepe. It was pretty damned good actually.
Such are our amusements as we wait for a week from Tuesday to roll around. We’ll have some van cleaning to do as well to get the dust off. I cleaned the solar panels of accumulated dust and output rose to eleven amps from eight previously. I had to borrow a campground ladder and boil my brains in the sun but I guess it was worth it. Solar by day and 220 volts by night. They sell this tiny minivan in Latin America, and even though it’s a Chevy 300 ( or 400 for the bigger one) it’s made in China.
I find them fascinating especially as small vans in the US are so unpopular they don’t sell them anymore. I thought about them when I was in Key West last week and noticed all the huge modern pickup trucks parked in the narrow streets.
Drywall is I guess a word with no D equivalent. You’ll see lots of electricians and plumbers and various artisans including healers and snake oil sales advertised on lamp posts around town.
A fashionable yet abandoned Land Rover:
A Chinese built truck sold by the “Inca Power” dealership cracked me up. I am easily amused.
Rusty doesn’t mind the chaotic garbage situation at all. He came back from one walk holding a bond he found and refused to put it down. He gnawed on it for shes, being a dog I suppose.
One sunny day after another. What marks the start of Autumn in the northern hemisphere means it’s the beginning of Spring down here. Time to get moving toward Antarctica. And not Bolivia. From
the BBC:
3,600 miles to go to get to the bottom of the continent but I’ll bet we can easily double that distance going back and forth and sideways as we do. We’ve got lots of driving ahead.
