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Since the last time I wrote in Paracay, we rode to the town of Pucasana continuing north up the pan-american highway. Pucasana was a nice, small fishing village along the Peruvian coast. In between, we passed through Chincha Alta which is the capital of afro-peruvian music. Unlike the last little while, the riding now has all been flat. People are recovering from our last pass through the Andes. From Pucusana we all loaded our bikes and stuff onto our support bus and rode into Lima because of the danger of the city. This is the biggest city we have hit since Buenos Aires and is the giant capital of Peru. In terms of population, it is roughly equivalent to New York City. The outskirts of the city are quite rough looking but once we get to downtown it is quite nice. We are staying right near the Plaza de Armas, which is in the main square.
The first night here I went to Miraflores, which is where many of the nice restaurants are. During my day off I did some work for the fundraiser and went to see sights in the city. I also went to the Uruguayan embassy because someone on our trip who is from there needed a visa for Ecuador and it required a witness. At night we had a birthday party for someone on the trip who celebrated their 66th birthday party; quite nice to be so fit at that age. We went for Chinese food which was excellent. After the Chinese, we went to a club near Miraflores for salsa dancing lessons. While I don't think anyone really learned anything, it was fun to watch people try. The highlight was watching the teachers perform for us at the end. They were incredible.
Right now I am waiting to get on the bus to exit Lima, but our support vehicle had mechanical problems and we are delayed waiting for it to get back from the shop. Midway through today, after exiting Lima, we will all get off the bus and ride our bikes to a park outside the city. Should be fun.
Also a reminder to go check out the LivBlu fundraiser which will take place tonight, Thursday, Nov. 19th. LivBlu features an auction whose funds will be split between the David Suzuki Foundation and 12000km.org. My friend Meaghan will be presenting about our trip and causes there. Thanks Meaghan! Hope you can make it out! Tickets and more information are available on the site at http://www.livblu.com/
Also check out one of my blogs and a slideshow of my pictures on runaway now which is a popular travel website. Thanks Deana! http://www.runawaynow.com/2009/11/gringo-trail-by-ryan-stotland/