South America: Part One

Ecuador & Peru

Sea Day & Crossing the Equator

Our sea day didn’t go quite to plan because the weather wasn’t great for an afternoon at the pool, but we did have a fun morning.  We will be crossing the equator around 3:00am tomorrow, so in preparation we were invited to a ceremony this morning.  It was overcast, cloudy, and very windy on the pool deck where the ceremony was to take place.  To ensure everyone’s comfort the captain had the ship turned around out of the wind for the duration.

It is customary to ask Neptune’s permission to cross the equator and while there are a number of ways to accomplish this ours wasn’t too bad.  The captain asked permission for us to cross and was required to kiss a fish and be dunked in the pool (ours is currently filled with sea water).  All of the residents then had to file through and kiss the fish, have a cup of sea water dumped on them, and be presented with a lei.  It was all in good fun and the staff did a fantastic job making sure everyone had a good time.  Before sailing across the equator for the first time you are know as a pollywog and once the ceremony is performed you are known as a shellback.  We are now officially shellbacks!

Manta, Ecuador

Unfortunately, Ecuador isn’t a particularly safe place at this time, so we were cautioned to spend our time on land wisely.  The port provided a shuttle to the main gate and just down the block was a large shopping mall, so on our first day in Manta we ventured to the mall.  It was a great mall with lots of stores and a large supermarket.  Being the week before Christmas it was of course packed and a little overwhelming, but we had a good day. 

We felt very comfortable on the first day and did not feel that it was any less safe than other places we have visited recently; at least during the day.  So, on day two we wandered a little further.  About a 20-minute walk down the coast was a large park that they are currently working on, and it has a massive Christmas tree on display.  A large portion of the park is complete, and we saw several families enjoying the day. 

Afterwards we walked along the beach on the other side of the port before heading back to the ship.  We do find it a little disappointing when we visit places that make you feel like you have to take a paid excursion in order to safely explore.  Some of the locals indicated that it wasn’t as bad as the governments are making it out to be; although, they did caution not to wander after dark.

I would like to say that everyone we interacted with was incredibly friendly and we felt very welcome. Out of everywhere we have travelled so far Ecuador has been the friendliest.

Sea Day

We had another sea day on the way to our next port and again it was a little cooler and quite windy.  So, we enjoyed a quite day reading and doing laps.  In the evening the residents put on a show including a reader’s theater production, a choir performance, and a taste of Tom and Jerry’s Christmas drinks.  Fellow residents have a tradition where they drink warm cognac and rum topped with meringue and they wanted to share it with their neighbors.  It was an experience…lol. 

Puerto Bolivar, Ecuador

Well, we have officially reached a port where we did not feel comfortable leaving the ship.  The local authorities told several of our fellow residents that it was not safe to walk in the area surrounding the port and that they strongly recommended people take a taxi into the nearby city of Machala.  Several residents did this and said that they felt perfectly safe in the city, and it was an interesting place to visit.  The few people who decided to walk around nearby anyway ended up being escorted by police officers, so we decided to take a pass.  We aren’t keen on taking taxis unless we absolutely have to and while Mike was game to walk anyway, I didn't like the idea of requiring an escort. 

Instead, we are spending the day preparing for the Christmas festivities on board and catching up on the blog.  This morning, we had our toenails painted red and green in order to participate in the reindeer games scheduled for Christmas morning.  In the afternoon, Mike did his laps while I worked on the blog.

Guayaquil, Ecuador

Our first day in Guayaquil was Christmas Day, so we stayed on the ship and celebrate with our new ship family.  We started the day off with a Pajama Breakfast followed by Reindeer Games on the pool deck.  Santa visited before lunch, and we sang Christmas carols with the staff.  The staff prepared a feast for lunch with turkey and all the fixings, and it was extremely good.  We spent the afternoon relaxing and in the evening after dinner we played Christmas themed Jeopardy; our team won!  While it wasn’t a traditional Christmas for us, we had a blast and enjoyed spending time with the friends we’ve made so far on the cruise.

For the next two days in Guayaquil the Port Agent arranged tours for us.  The dock is quite far from the city sights, and we would have had to take a taxi regardless, so we opted for the tours.  Boxing Day was a full day tour that hit many of the city highlights. 

We started our day off at the Palacio de Cristal which was in a lovely square on the waterfront.  The Palacio is often used for community events.  There were monuments dedicated to Ecuador’s independence including the Jose Joaquin de Olmedo Monument.  We also got a visit from the Tourist Police who have puppets to help promote awareness.  This is also where we found out that we had a police escort for the day.  There were three officers on motorcycles following our bus from the port which we thought might just be traffic related.  However, once we reached the square they abandoned the bus to follow us through the square and on to the promenade.  In the end they spent the entire day with us and to be fair they did come in handy for traffic control as the bus maneuvered through the tight streets.

From the Crystal Palace we drove through the city to an incredible fresh market.  Along the way we saw some brilliant statues made of mosaic tiles.  I’ve never been a big fan of markets, too many people and smells, but I was pleasantly surprised by this one.  We went early in the day which apparently makes a difference as most locals shop in the afternoon, so it wasn’t crowded.  It was incredibly clean, and the produce looked and smelled amazing.  Unfortunately, because it was early on the itinerary for the day we couldn’t really buy much, but I did find a cute pair of cotton overalls for ten dollars.

Conveniently located near the cemetery, the flower market was our next stop.  The flower arrangements were beautiful, but we weren’t terribly interested in this stop until we found the cats.  We spent most of the time petting cats and feeding them treats.

Our next stop was Parque Seminario which sits in front of the Catedral Catolica Metropolitana de Guayaquil.  The square is mostly known for its iguana population.  It was neat to see them up close, but they were also relieving themselves from the treetops.  You had to be very careful where you walked in the park.

From the park we walked to the waterfront Malecon which is a boardwalk full of shops and activities.  Along the way were able to see more of the architecture of the area.  We also picked up some shaved ice which was a nice refreshing pick-me-up.

Next up was the Mercado Artesanal where you can find all kinds of handmade and not so handmade treasures.  They had some beautiful trinkets and souvenirs for sale, but this wasn’t our favourite stop, and the shop keepers were quite eager to make a sale.

The newer rejuvenated end of the Malecon is known as Puerto Santa Ana.  They dropped us off at one end and allowed us to walk back to the Las Penas stairs.  We found cats to pet along the way! Mike was disappointed because we didn’t have time to climb the 444 stairs up to the light house and Naval Museum, so we’ll have to come back at some point.  He did manage to make it up to the first landing while we were taking some group photos.

On the way back to the ship the bus took us down a street where they were selling effigies for New Years.  In Ecuador they make paper mâché effigies filled with wood shavings and dust.  At midnight on the 31st they light the effigies on fire in the streets.  It was pretty incredible to see all the different designs and artistry that went into making them.

The next day we did a half day tour with the same company.  They took us to the Guayaquil Historical Park which has a small zoo and a collection of historical buildings.  We got to see several critters and we really enjoyed a more natural environment after a full day in the city.  After the park they took us to ride on the mountain cable car that connects Guayaquil to the suburb of Duran.  The cable car runs across the Guayas River and offers great views of the city.  It was a great morning, and we really enjoyed our guides which were the same ones as the day before.

Overall, we felt we received mixed messages about the safety in Ecuador for tourists.  We were cautioned by our crew, but our local guides said that it’s not as bad as they are making it sound.  That being said, we did have a police escort both days for our tours, so I’m sure the truth lies somewhere in the middle.  Regardless, the people we interacted with in Ecuador were incredibly friendly and they are what we will remember most about our time.  Everyone offered a smile, a wave, or a kind word.

Salaverry, Peru

We almost missed this port due to poor sea conditions.  There were significant swells along the coast and the port is not very protected, but the captain said conditions were improving and we were able to get into the port.  No one really made plans for the day because we weren’t sure if we would make it or if it would be safe to get off the ship.  Luckily, we arrived safely and were able to disembark around 11am.  A shuttle was provided to take us from the ship to a park just outside the port area.  When we arrived at the park there was a local group organizing tours, so we decided to take them up on one.  The tour took us to the two major archeological sites nearby, La Huaca del Sol and Chan Chan.

La Huaca del Sol is a huge temple that was built by the Moche civilization between 100 and 800 AD.  It served as a royal residence, ceremonial site and burial chamber.  It consists of 5 known temples that were built one on top of the other over the course of the Moche era.  The walls and paintings have been preserved, but not restored and it is incredible how well they have survived. 

Chan Chan was the capital city of the historical empire of the Chimor from 900 to 1470, so it came after Huaca del Sol.  It was much larger and located closer to the coast.  It was an impressive site, and the walls were surprisingly high.  We really enjoyed our day and learning about the history of Peru.

Our second day in Salaverry was a short one; all aboard time was 3:00pm and the last shuttle back to the ship was at 2:00pm.  We decided to just explore the town of Salaverry, so we took the shuttle in, walked to the beach, explored the beachfront promenade and wandered aimlessly through town.  The residents were very friendly and there were a ton of stray dogs.  It’s a cute little town, but there really isn’t much to see.  We made it back to the ship in time for lunch and I cut Mike’s hair before we left port. 

There was some debate over when we were going to leave.  Several ports across Peru have been closed recently due to unsafe sea conditions, our next destination included.  Luckily the sea state has started to improve, and the Port Authority assured the captain that the port of Callao would be open when we arrive tomorrow, so we set sail on time as planned.  On the water the wave conditions don’t seem bad at all, but the swell has been pretty bad for the last several days which was making port conditions dangerous.  There was also an underwater landslide that triggered a tsunami wave which hit the northern coast of Peru and did substantial damage.  Conditions have been steadily improving and we are hoping for a safe, uneventful passage.

Callao, Peru

We arrived safely in Callao, sailing past several cargo ships to slip into port just after lunch.  Because of our late arrival and the fact that it was New Years Eve we decided to stay on the ship for the afternoon.  There was a special dinner and a presentation of ‘Baked Alaska’ for dessert followed by a concert from Steve Simone. 

At midnight we were treated to a pretty impressive fireworks display.  The port lights were distracting, but the whole skyline was alive with fireworks.  It didn’t touch Albania’s display last year, but that had a lot to do with our location.  The port lights were very bright, and the wind was blowing towards the ship, so we got smoked out after a while.  In Albania we were in a top floor apartment on a hill overlooking the city, so it offered a much better vantage point.

On New Year’s Day the chef prepared a special brunch, so we got to sleep in which was glorious.  Of course, that meant another late start and the shuttle schedule was a little chaotic.  We made it into town around 1:30pm and walked down to a large shopping mall…turns out it was closed. 

Day 3 in Callao was a little more successful.  We went to the Park of the Legends Zoo which features a zoo, botanical garden, museum and ancient ruins.  It was massive and we spent several hours exploring.  We even saw a couple of critters we’ve never seen before like the pacarana, a large rodent.  Of course, the best part was the corner full of cats we found behind the lake. 

On our final day we wanted to explore the historical center of Lima, but we didn’t feel like taking a cab from where the shuttle drops off.  Instead, we just headed back to the mall to window shop…it was open this time.  On the way to the mall, we wandered into a large electronic store and on the way out we pet their fluffy security guard.

Pisco (Paracas), Peru

The itinerary said Pisco, but we were actually docked at a container port in the Paracas Nature Reserve.  Several of us booked a boat tour to the Ballestas Islands for our one day stop.  We were up bright and early to catch the first shuttle into town.  With time to spare before our tour we walked to the Paracas sign, over to the Mirador San Martin monument and then wandered town until it was time for the tour. 

At the beginning of the boat tour, they took us past the Candelabra of Paracas geoglyph and then we headed out to the islands.  Known as the ‘Poor Man’s Galapagos’, the Ballestas Islands are known for their wildlife.  The water around the islands was not calm and I ended up needing to take antinausea tablets while we were floating around, but we got to see Peruvian boobies, seals, and Humbolt penguins.  The islands were also interesting to see, and they harvest guano from them.  Mike got soaked on the way back because the wind was blowing the waves right into his face.

After the boat tour we had lunch and tried a Pisco Sour, the local drink.  It was surprisingly good, but they do sneak up on you. And there was a cat!

Sea Day

I did absolutely nothing today…and it was glorious.  I got dressed and left the room for meals; otherwise, I just watched a movie and read my book.  Mike did his usual laps and spent some time downstairs socializing, but I just needed a day to myself.  We did attend a Canadian dinner in the evening where all of the Canadians onboard got together for a meal.  There are about 20 of us and it was a nice evening with great food.

Matarani, Peru

We had a one day stop in Matarani, Peru.  All of the ports in Peru are container ports and Matarani was no different; however, we had a quick 10-minute shuttle ride into town which was nice.  It’s a very small city and we just went for a nice long walk around town.  The most surprising thing we found was the infrastructure.  The roads and sidewalks were in really good shape and the sidewalks continued into areas that were mainly under construction.  The town is on a slope and there were steps in the sidewalks as well making it easy to get around.  There were several small squares and parks throughout town, and it was very peaceful.  As usual there were a ton of street dogs.  One was on the roof of a building and followed us along the street barking; that was a little unnerving.

One thing we know for sure is that we'd like to return to several of these places to spend more time. The landscapes in South America are so varied and interesting and we'd love to get further inland to explore. Many residents took advantage of the ship being in Peru to travel to Machu Pichu, but Mike really wants to take a couple of weeks to explore and hike the Inca Trail, so we'll save it for another trip. We knew the cruise was going to limit us to coastal areas unless we overnight on land, but we're taking the opportunity to create a list of places we'd like to spend more time in. Travelling this way feels like we are just scratching the surface of each destination, but it's better than not visiting at all.

We'll pick you up down the coast in Chile. See you soon!