Marian Johns' Journal of the Desert
Explorers trip to Peru in 2002
Afterthoughts
The bottom line for me = about $2250 for four weeks, not counting souvenirs – less than my original estimate which was a nice surprise. $2250 included round-trip airfare, Lima airport tax, hotels, meals/food, rental trucks, fuel, toll roads, tour buses, guides, entrance fees, Ballestras Islands and Lake Titicaca boat trips, Nazca airplane flight, Machu Picchu train, undeserved traffic tickets, truck damage (broken spring, missing mud flaps {missing in photo taken when we had our first flat tire} and tire – not sure about the latter), and phone calls Kathy made to reserve hotels and trucks. I spent an extra $800 on souvenirs and gifts.
Getting cash was not a problem because ATMs were available in all the major cities and towns. Although I took some Travelers’ Checks, I didn’t use them. Charlayne brought some too and cashed a few, but it was a very time-consuming operation - on the back of each T check, she had to write her life history – practically. She used her ATM card after that.
The Peruvians are very picky about their money; they won’t accept any bills that are even slightly torn, and they examine coins to see if they are counterfeit. I had a couple of coins rejected once, but I used them later with no problem.
Twelve participants was an ideal number for our three double-cab pickup trucks. More people or vehicles would have been difficult to manage. In fact, I think traveling in just one vehicle with only four people was quite nice, but two vehicles would probably be better for safety and emergency reasons. During the trip, we tried to rotate so that we didn’t ride with the same people every day.
The trucks we rented were all diesels – noisy and underpowered, but diesels are very common, so finding fuel was never a problem. Plus, they got terrific gas mileage. Mary figured about 27 miles per gallon. (They measure fuel in gallons, not liters.) A gallon of diesel cost about $2.00. Years ago gasoline was incredibly cheap – only 8 or 9 cents a gallon – the government must have subsidized it back then. Gas stations in Peru are called “grifos” which means faucets. We four, who stayed the extra week, drove about 4,000 miles total.
Peruvians stretch their gas dollars (soles) by using cute little Japanese-made motorcycle and scooter “rickshaw” taxis. They are made with room for two passengers in a back seat and the driver straddles a single seat in front just like a regular motorcycle or scooter. Some are outfitted with an enclosed body to keep out inclement weather. I think they ought to import them here. They would be great for getting around town – to the grocery store, bank, etc. However, they wouldn’t do well for long trips, nor could they be driven on freeways.
Of all the sites and sights we saw, I would put the Nazca Lines, Machu Picchu, and Kuélap and the top of my “don’t-miss” list. And of all the museums we visited, I think I was most impressed by the Raphael Larco Herrera in Lima – with its hundreds and hundreds of Moche ceramic pots. The two other new museums in northern Peru were also first-class. The Chachapoya Culture museum in Leimebamba, and the new museum near Chiclayo featuring the Sicán culture would be on my “don’t miss” list. The Museum of the Tombs, with artifacts from the Royal Tombs of Sipan, also near Chiclayo – (the one that was scheduled to open the day after we got home) will be, I suspect, one of the highlights for future tourists.
Would I do it again? Yes, I certainly would, even though I had the usual tourist ailments, and despite the tribulations of the last day. And I wouldn’t mind going again because there is so much more to see. On the other hand, we saw a lot! - more than the usual tourist highlights. We explored Peru from top to bottom in a way that few travelers do. We kept on schedule; saw nearly everything on the itinerary, and several that weren’t. We were also lucky not to have been troubled with very many unexpected problems. Plus, the cost was quite reasonable, considering all we saw and the length of time we were gone.
