2013 Nov. Arequipa.
Took a 1.5hr domestic flight from Lima to Arequipa. Arequipa is Peru’s second most important city (after Lima), and second most popular among tourists (after Cuzco). The city centre is a UNESCO world heritage site, and we were lucky to have a university professor who works part time as a tour guide to give us a very detailed introduction of Arequipa. Arequipa is an example of Spanish and mestizo culture developed in Peru. There are no Inca artifacts or ruins in the city.
2013 Nov. Buggy & Sandboard in Ica. Oasis in Huacachina.
First time in a desert with vast sand dunes, so exciting! Ica’s location in the desert provides unique opportunities for tourism. We moved around in sand buggy and tried sand boarding which was really fun!
2013 Nov. Ballesta Islands.
These islands are an important sanctuary for marine fauna, and best known for bird shit! Tonnes of bird shit here are harvested as fertiliser which is an important industry. Nicknamed “The Poor Man’s Galapagos”, the islands are home to thousands of birds and mammals including penguins, sea lions, Inca terns and pelicans. The islands are protected, so no swimming with the animals or walking on the islands, but you can get very close to them by boat.
2013 Nov. Paracas. Nazca Lines.
A long bumpy bus ride took us to Paracas, nearby to Ica where we took a flight tour to see the Nazca Lines. It was a nice way to see the country. The landscape was austere and bare for most part, where desert-like land meets the sea. Pleasantly surprised when we reach our hotel La Hacienda Bahía Paracas, it was a beautiful resort in the middle of nowhere. 🙂
2013 Nov. Peru. Lima.
Flew in to Lima from Singapore via Amsterdam. The most direct flight was operated by KLM with transit in Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, one of the nicer airports in Europe. Other choices involved at least 2 transits and would be painful to travel. We arrived and stayed in Miraflores in Lima.
Dinner was at La Lucha upon arrival, an extremely popular Peruvian fast food joint with great vibes. Casual and fast service for some great sandwiches and juices. It is open nearly all day adding to its street food like charm. I don’t speak Spanish but can feel that the staff were nice and friendly. Definite worth a visit while in Lima.
2013 Nov. Peru Itinerary.
Peru is one of the most memorable countries that I have travelled to. I had planned on visiting Peru for many years, but the cost and logistics challenges derailed my plans several times. The trip eventually happened in 2013, with the help of LA based travel agent Peru for Less. Making the trip from Singapore to Lima was literally a pain. The 36 hours of flight, transit and travel time was exhausting and painful on my butt, but the rich history, gorgeous scenery and interesting culture made it all worthwhile. I would love to visit South America again, anytime!
3 weeks is a good time to cover most if not all of the key attractions in Peru. I had such a great time that time seemed to pass by quickly. I experienced amazing cities and towns, unique culture and local practices, stunning landscapes, as well as interesting and friendly people. This is the final customised itinerary for the trip. You can read more on the different cities and places in my subsequent blogs.
Day 1 Arrival in Lima
Day 2 Lima City Tour
Day 3 Arrival to Paracas & Nazca Lines Tour
Day 4 Ballestas Islands & Buggy- Sandboard Tour, Return to Lima
Day 5 Arrival to Arequipa & Arequipa City Tour
Day 6 Colca Canyon Tour
Day 7 Colca Canyon Tour & Arrival to Puno
Day 8 Lake Titicaca Tour
Day 9 Arrival to Cusco
Day 10 Cusco City Tour
Day 11 Sacred Valley Tour
Day 12 Begin Inca Trail to Machu Picchu
Day 13 Hiking Inca Trail
Day 14 Hiking Inca Trail
Day 15 Arrival to Machu Picchu & Tour
Day 16 Machu Picchu (Huayna Picchu) Free Day
Day 17 Arrival to Puerto Maldonado
Day 18 Amazon Tours
Day 19 Amazon Tours
Day 20 Departure from Puerto Maldonado
… to be continued …
Click on link below to read the next blog…
2016 May. Yountville, Napa Valley, California.
Thomas Keller’s The French Laundry in Yountville, Napa Valley is legendary and every foodie’s dream to dine and experience once a lifetime. Securing a reservation is almost impossible and there are websites teaching you how to up your chances. Basically you have to time exactly the hour/minute/second when they start taking reservation a month prior, and keep calling, regardless of the timezone you are in, then pray very hard that if the line ever gets connected, there is still a table opening. Clearly, I was the lazy bum riding on my dining companion’s hard work. 🙂
The experience was as perfect as it can get. Our lunch was exquisite, worthy of all the accolades and rave reviews. Fresh, flavourful, and delightful to the senses and tastebuds, with non of those pretentious molecular gastronomy gimmicks. World class indeed, extremely impressed! I am thinking the food is so wonderful, words alone would not do it any justice, so I will just let the photos do the work.
2016 May. San Francisco
San Francisco was the last stop of my 3-week road trip. I have been to SF many times, so not very inspired to take a lot of touristy pictures, despite revisiting many touristy places to relive my memories.
2016 May. Marshall. Point Reyes. Mt Tamalpais. Sausalito.
Sonoma Coast Beach has beautiful coastal views along the scenic drive.
Hog Island Oyster Company is located in Marshall, by the Tomales Bay. The Boat Oyster Bar is an outdoor cafe at Hog Island Oyster Farm. Raw and BBQ oysters, local breads, cheeses, and beverages are served at communal tables alongside the bay. Open from 11am to 5pm daily, reservation is required especially Fri-Mon, or the wait could be quite long. Great relaxed ambience, and the oysters are so yum yum yummy! BBQ oysters was a surprise hit, juicy and flavourful and will have you ask for more after you tried. We had to order extra serving as it was fantastic!
2016 May. Vallejo. Napa. Sonoma. Russian River.
En route to Napa Valley from Yosemite, I decided to squeeze in a visit and spend a day at the nearby Six Flag Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo. I am a sucker for hardcore roller coaster rides. I used to love Six Flags but unfortunately Discovery Kingdom was a disappointment due to poor maintenance and management.
