Welcome to South America: Lima, Peru

On Tuesday evening, after four flights from Hong Kong to Guangzhou, Guangzhou to LA, LA to El Salvador and El Salvador to Lima, we arrived in Peru's capital city. We arrived at our hostel around 11pm and headed to bed. Our hostel is great. It is in a restored mansion in the center of downtown Lima. It was so comforting to arrive at a nice and welcoming place after days of travel.

On Wednesday we slept in until midday before exploring the city. We set off in search of food and followed a recommendation from the hostel. We had lunch at a great restaurant with outside patio seating. Even though it is a bit cold in Lima, we sat near an outdoor heater and enjoyed watching the city pass by. Once we were stuffed we headed to a main square. We walked around the square and observed numerous churches and government buildings. The architecture here is amazing. The buildings are all old, colorful and full of details. We were in awe of each building after being surrounded by Asia's square concrete buildings. After a coffee break we started to head back to the hostel. We stumbled upon a huge festival. We knew that one of the most important religious festivals was taking place however we thought that it was the day prior. We were wrong. We walked right into masses of people, closed roads and armed police everywhere. We watched a processional of people, religious artifacts and observers. As we made our way back we had to dodge thousands of people, street vendors and closed roads. It turned out to be a great unexpected surprise. We decided to stop for dinner at a small restaurant near our hostel. The meal was huge, filling and cheap. Fred had ceviche (fish marinated in lime juice) and I had chicken filet. Our bill for two huge meals and two larger beers was around $10.00! It was a great first day in Lima.











The festival we stumbled upon

On Thursday we woke up and headed to San Francisco Monastery. After a great English tour of the facilities and the connected church we were into the basement catacombs. The small walls and walkways were filled with bones. They were all on display in piles all around the basement. There were piles of femurs, fibulas and skulls. They piles were not covered and open to the public. Our tour guide said that an estimated 25,000 people are buried in these catacombs. A male was buried there about three weeks ago! It was a fascinating yet very creepy tour. We stopped at a very small restaurant for lunch. We each had chicken tamales and I had chicken and rice while Fred had an egg and veggie omelet. This meal was around $4.00! Once we left we headed to the Inquisition Museum. The tour was short but only in Spanish. After nodding along with the group and following their glances as the guide explained the exhibits we headed to another main park in Lima. We relaxed for a while before heading back to the hostel. We hung out in the common area with other guests and learned how to play a Peruvian dice game. We also learned that the hostel owners lived in Minneapolis for five years! What a small world.






Yesterday we woke up with no plans. We decided to go see some ruins, Huaca Pucllana, that are in the center in Lima. We took a guided English tour around the grounds and on the ruins. It was very interesting because it is surrounded by the city. From there we went to a seafood restaurant that was recommended by the hostel owner. It was packed! After a 45 minute wait we were seated. The menu was very difficult to understand however various staff members helped us translate it. Fred settled on a tuna steak and I ordered scallops. The food was incredible! The tuna steak was the biggest we have ever seen. It was seared perfectly and so tender. The scallops were also delicious! After we were stuffed we headed to the beach. After a short walk we were on the beach. It was beautiful but the water was so cold, even for a few seconds on your hand. There is not a proper beach in this area. Instead the coast is covered in stones. We then headed back to the hostel and relaxed in the bar area. We finally tried Peru's most popular drink, Pisco Sour. It is made with Pisco liquor, which is similar to a grape brandy. The Pisco Sour has Pisco, egg whites, bitters, ice and lima. It is sour but wonderful. After a few hours of hanging out with others and the very social owners, Fred headed to bed and I went with the others to a nearby bar. After a drink we were back and relaxing in the hostel.



Huaca Pucllana















Today we woke up and headed to a nearby market. We stocked up on water, fruit and snacks before getting lunch. We went to a popular Peru fast food chain called Bembos. They are suppose to have some of the best burgers in Peru. It was not fast-food like McDonalds but more of a quick restaurant. Fred said that the burger was okay but he isn't craving another. We then walked around and are now in the hostel. Tomorrow we have a flight at 11am to Cuzco, Peru. Lima has been busy, relaxing and intriguing. It has been a great introduction to South America and the time flew by!


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Weekend in Hong Kong

Last Friday we travelled to our final destination in Asia, Hong Kong. The trip from Hanoi to Hong Kong was a bit more stressful than it should have been. We had a tight transfer window in Guangzhou between the two cities where just about everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong: our flight was delayed fifteen minutes, we had to taxi from a runway that seemed like it was in Beijing, the plane did not go to a jetway/gate, and we could not get our tickets for both flights at check-in. The window of 65 minutes suddenly became only fifteen. Luckily an awesome lady at the transfer window was able to help us get our tickets, rush through customs and security, and get to the gate. She was even yelling at everyone to get out of the way in Chinese. It was hilarious looking back at it now, but we were freaking out while it happened.

The rest of the weekend in Hong Kong was much more relaxing. We spent most of our time walking around and exploring the districts of the city. On Saturday we hung out in the business districts and along the waterfront. We found a cool Chinese "diner" for lunch that offered all sorts of weird porridge and other Cantonese dishes (we opted for egg sandwiches and peanut butter toast). At night, we walked into the the main nightlife district to catch the Man U v. Liverpool game. Every pub on the block was packed with foreigners, which made it more exciting. After the game we headed to a good spot along the waterfront to snap some photos of the city.







On Sunday we took a ferry to Kowloon Island. It is known more for its residential life than its business. We found a couple of beautiful parks, a temple, and a handful of traditional markets. If we were not taking so many plane rides, we would have spent a small fortune. In the evening we headed back to the waterfront to watch the sunset and see the lights of the city turn on. After we had a few good photos we headed back to our island, then ate at a sushi-go-round for the second time in three days.



















On Monday we started our biggest travel day of the trip. We spent the morning relaxing and gearing up for the almost 40-hour journey ahead. After four flights and a night on the floor of LAX we arrived in Peru. It's hard to believe that we are here, but so far we loving it. We will post about it soon.

Hanoi and Halong Bay

After we left Mui Ne we headed back to Saigon for one more night. We spent the night walking around and talking with some Vietnamese English majors. They spotted us in a park and started up a conversation to practice their English. In the morning we caught a quick flight to Hanoi.

We checked into our hotel and headed our for dinner. We found a great small place specializing in wrap your own spring rolls. After a filling meal of beef spring rolls, pho and wine we headed back to the hotel.

The next day it was rainy and cool. Although we were excited for the fall weather, we were hoping for a nice sunny day. We suited up in rain gear to explore the city. We wandered through the Old City all day. We passed tons of shops, old buildings, stone streets and markets. The roads were filled with motor bikes and ladies selling everything from fruits to rain ponchos. After a few hours we settled in a tea shop to play cards and warm up. We then headed to a travel agency. We knew that we wanted to escape the city for a few days so we were off to plan an excursion. We decided to go to Halong Bay for 3 days/2 nights. After booking the trip, we relaxed before heading to dinner. For dinner we found a nice quiet place near our hotel. After filling up, we headed to bed.






In the morning it was still raining. We decided to do a little shopping then we sent a large box home. We had accumulated a lot of stuff so our packs were getting full. Once we left the post office we went off in search of food. As the rain poured down we found a western spot that happened to be playing the Rugby World Cup. We enjoyed some pizza as we watched Wales vs. Ireland and England vs. France. The restaurant was full of rugby fans so it turned into a very entertaining afternoon. After a few hours we headed back to the hotel to pack up for our trip to Halong Bay.






In the morning we left at 8am for Halong Bay. We took a mini bus with about 15 others for the 4 hour journey to the sea. Once we arrived to checked into our room on the boat. The room was nice with a bed and our own bathroom. Our room was closest to the engine room so it was a bit loud but not a problem. After a huge lunch of fish, veggies, meat and rice on board we headed off to a floating village. We were able to kayak around and explore all that we wanted. After 90 minutes we were back on our big boat. We spent an hour or so swimming in the warm clear water. We then had a wine and fruit party with all of the other guests. Around 7pm we had dinner and then were able to try squid fishing. Fred tried, along with a Dutch guy, for about 90 minutes to catch a squid. After having no luck, we retired to the deck to enjoy a nice cold beer.









Floating village



Floating village



Floating village





Squid fishing

In the morning we had breakfast before our full day exploring the bay. We were able to kayak again. This time we explored a new area complete with two caves and a lot of bats. We had lunch on board and then spent hours swimming. The water was as smooth at glass and very salty. This made it very easy to float in and a lot of fun to jump into. We then headed to an island that had a nice look out point. After climbing around 400 steps we had a great view of Halong Bay. We then relaxed on the white sand beach before heading back to the boat. We again had wine and dinner on board and were able to try to catch squid (this time we didn't even try).
























Overlooking Halong Bay


Overlooking Halong Bay


Overlooking Halong Bay

In the morning we had breakfast before heading to the Surprising Cave. We wandered the cave for about an hour before going back to the boat. After cruising around for an hour we had lunch then headed back to land. We jumped in another mini van for the trip back to Hanoi. We checked into our same hotel in Hanoi and Fred played the workers in a few PS2 soccer matches. After the matches we headed off to find food. We settled on a nice place that again had make your own spring rolls. We paired them up with some soup and beer. The restaurant was very nice but full of tourist groups. We were the only table that did not have at least 6 members.



Surprising Cave

Today we headed back out into the city to explore. We found a great place for lunch were we ate on a patio overlooking a city side street. After some cards we headed out. After a while we stopped for coffee and to plan out more of our trip. We planned out a little more for both Hong Kong and South America. We are now relaxing back in the hotel. We have one more day in Hanoi before we head to Hong Kong!

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First Week in Vietnam

On Friday we flew from Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh City (a.k.a. Saigon), Vietnam. We had been looking forward to our time in this country, and it was hard to believe we were already on our way there. After our short flight, we took a taxi to a guesthouse in one of the city's many alleyways. We were immediately overwhelmed by the traffic in the city. We were pre warned about this but until you see it, you cannot imagine what it is like. Vietnam is filled with motorbikes. Everyone has a motorbike and packs it full of things from bags of goods to three passengers. There are traffic lights on most corners but most people don't follow them. Crossing the street is extremely hard. We learned that once you go you do not stop. Just walk and cross your fingers that the motorbikes avoid you. We settled in and gained our bearings before heading out for dinner. We found a small outdoor restaurant that had cheap beer and good Vietnamese food that was not too far away. We both got a bowl of pho, then headed back to plan our only full day in the city.



We woke up early on Saturday and grabbed some coffee and pastries at a bakery down the street. From there, we decided to head to the War Remnants Museum. We had heard a lot about this place from other travelers that we met and from the owner of our guesthouse. The building looked kind of similar to the Korean War Museum in Seoul with all kinds of military aircraft and tanks out in a courtyard, but the inside was very different. Many of the galleries had some pretty graphic images that were very powerful. The most powerful of which was the "Agent Orange" gallery. After we toured the various rooms, we felt bad about what had happened to a lot of people in this country and about the role our country played in everything.

After we left the museum, we headed to the Reunification Palace. This building was the old estate for the president of South Vietnam until the end of the war. The cool thing about this attraction was that instead of renovating and updating the place, they left it in the same condition as it was in 1975. Walking around it felt like a time-warp. The furniture and decorations were really retro and fun to see. The basement of the building was even stocked with the usual bomb shelter gear from a few decades ago. Overall, it was definitely worth the hour or two that we spend there.



Reunification Palace















Later that evening, we headed back to a street where we saw some food carts that an expat had recommended the day before. We stopped for a quick bowl of pho on the street that was probably the best we have ever had. We thought about getting another bowl, but decided to save room for snacks at a local night market. That ended up being a bad decision in the end. The seafood place we stopped at was overpriced and the food was terrible.



Best pho ever!







On Sunday morning we took an early bus to Mui Ne for some beach time. We have been here for a few days and have enjoyed the slow pace of life after the chaotic traffic of the city. We visited some sand dunes and other attractions nearby on a short tour yesterday, and had a relaxing morning at the beach today. We head back to Ho Chi Minh tomorrow for another day, then fly to Hanoi on Thursday. When we were planning our trip, Vietnam was one of the countries that we were most excited for and it has not disappointed us yet. Let's hope the next leg of our trip is just as exciting.



Fred on the crazy sleeper bus to Mui Ne.

Location:Nguyễn Đình Chiểu,Phan Thiết,Vietnam