Traveling through the never ending desserts of Northern Peru, we finally made it the seaside resort town of Mancora. There is not much to see along the way, only a few dry and dusty small cities.
We first crossed Trujillo, a sleepy outpost in proximity to the more touristy town of Huanchaco, a small beach side resort village with towering waves. Further north, Chiclayo has a pleasant restaurant scene but really not much else. The only attraction we would suggest in the area is the coveted Museo Tumbas Reales Sipan featuring the treasures once belonging to the Mochica civilization who lived between 200 - 700 AD. The museum, rated amongst the 10 best in the world, holds tons of gold jewelery, ornaments and the remains of the Lord of Sipan himself. Hostal Amigo is one of the best, if not the only option in town.
We first crossed Trujillo, a sleepy outpost in proximity to the more touristy town of Huanchaco, a small beach side resort village with towering waves. Further north, Chiclayo has a pleasant restaurant scene but really not much else. The only attraction we would suggest in the area is the coveted Museo Tumbas Reales Sipan featuring the treasures once belonging to the Mochica civilization who lived between 200 - 700 AD. The museum, rated amongst the 10 best in the world, holds tons of gold jewelery, ornaments and the remains of the Lord of Sipan himself. Hostal Amigo is one of the best, if not the only option in town.
In Mancora we stayed at the Loki Hostel which looked much more like a resort than a hostel. Great food such as the traditional alli de gallina or special menus such as the Mediterranean buffet or barbecued tuna kebab meant we actually ate a large portion of our meals there. Around town there are also a mix of local restaurants offering the usual all starch diet of fried fish with rice and fries, a few burger and pizza joints and some more upscale places.
This destination marked our first initiation to surfing, which regrettably comes after more than 9 months of traveling. Classes at the Mancora Surf Club consisted of a bit of theory and then tossing you out amongst the crashing waves while waiting for the words "ariba" which meant it was time to stand. A brisk start which resulted with a few adventures amongst the sharp coral frantically trying to regain the board as the waves threw us around and hearing pleas from afar by the instructor screaming "levante Juan, levante". Despite many aches and bruises we were hooked. Hopefully in time we can overcome our fears and gain the ability to gracefully ride the waves.
awesome Museo that is!
ReplyDeleteYeah it was incredible to the point we were saying "ok its just another huge solid gold necklace, let's take a look at the solid gold statues now". Never seen such abundance.
DeleteWe ended up taking the lessons in Mancora after all. I don´t know if it was the waves, board, push or all of the above, but it was SO MUCH easier than in Montanita. Got to ride lots of waves. I think I had a different teacher than you. No "ariba"s. Only invitations to hot springs and dancing... which I had to decline.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the food really is great at the Loki. We ate a meal somewhere else- big mistake. They gave us the wrong orders (Sarah got an extra egg on her burger that she didn´t ask for), gave us our plates a couple minutes apart, and the food kinda sucked.
We're glad you enjoyed it, the waves are much more powerful in Mancora! We arrived in Canoa tonight and will go out to surf tomorrow, hopefully the conditions will be good. The people at the Surf Club welcomed you with their hospitality!
DeleteThe plates being served minutes apart is routine nearly everywhere! Most people begin to eat as soon as their plate is served! Safe travels to Lima, take care.