Lomo con tres pimientos

After my Spanish lesson I stopped of at Capucino, a newly spotted cafe opposite the University. This is situated on the far North West of town in Avenida Ramon Mujica, next to Hotel Rio Verde. The two are separate and the cafe is really a restaurant, inside with fierce air conditioning and outside shaded tables text to its armed guarded car park. I entrusted my fast disintegrating bike to its care.

I ordered a beer and set about my homework, to write three paragraphs on alternative therapies. Dawdling over the beer I sensed that I unnerved the overly attentive waiters who really couldn't work out if I was just passing flotsam or I was going to stump up for a real meal. Anyway, they were too polite to bother me much and I prolonged their uncertainty by asking for some chiflas and a second beer.

I was drawn to remain a while longer by the arrival of a group comprising 2 Peruvian business women and 2 agricultural consultants from the US. Eves dropping their conversations I learned that the business was seeking to overcome various trade barriers to their entry to the US market in growing and selling avocados. Peruvian Avocados are great and seem to sell locally at about 50p a kilo. One of the consultants was on the technical side, stipulating the various processes needed against fly and fungus infestation, while the other had a more political mission, explaining the way in which such applications would proceed, albeit slowly against the undertow of regulations and bureaucracy. They reassured their clients, who were after all buying dinner, that Peruvian avocados would not threaten the home grown Californian produce but only the Mexican market where the fruit was of poorer quality.

Well I did call for the menu and the waiter seemed relieved. I try not to rave about meat dishes but I consumed the most delectable peppered steak accompanied by a gratin of potato and cheese and a glass of Chilean red. In passing I noticed a cocktail on offer called the kiss of an adolescent and wondered about its appropriateness!

I imagine that this insight into business here in Piura reveals some of the tensions with the neighbouring US. As a trading country, El Peru is an emerging force but relatively weak against the power held by its Northern partners. One forms the impression that around here the US calls most of the shots, either by stealth or power.

Exploring the hotel next door, the Rio Verde, it revealed itself as a 5 star paradise with a central concourse comprised of a beautifully presented pool and magically lit palm trees. I believe it is priced at around $100 a night but be careful that you don't get shunted to the annex next door. www.rioverde..com.pe

Travel in Peru (particularly Piura)

I have decided that I most enjoy the observation of the familiar in unfamiliar contexts. There is much to notice here in North Peru. The night before last it rained quite hard and the next day this was the topic of everybody's conversation. People were outside their houses and businesses sweeping away the mud that had been washed through. It struck me as not dissimilar to our reaction to snow in the UK. We all know it is on the way but we act as if it is a great surprise and are rarely prepared for its consequences.

Piura is dominated by a river and 5 bridges – normally the river bed, which is some 50 metres across is nothing more than a muddy creak. However, it rains in mountains during the summer and the river fills and sometimes they close the bridges. When the effects of el nino struck in 2002 some of the bridges were washed away and this gave rise to a new form of transport, the Moto Linear. Essentially these are unlicensed motorcyclists that at the time of the flood were more able to make their way across the muddy river bed. Now they form a noticeable percentage of the transport but are sometimes poorly regarded for their safety and potential for robbery. I am looking forward to the river being full as it will wash away all the accrued rubbish.

Very few people seem to walk more than 10 minutes distance – taxi transport is a cheap option and viewed as safer than walking, especially at night, but possibly this is debatable. The most obvious form of public transport is the motor-taxi, normally a 3 wheeled Honda motor cycle with a covered canopy – it is the favourite for a short hop. Most journeys cost between 1 and 2 Soles, up to about 50p but always ask the price before you get in and be prepared to take the next one – there is always a next one! As with the taxis if you look as if you are a potential customer they will beep at you. They maneuver into impossible gaps and sometimes don't have rear view mirrors. Also it is not unusual to see them transporting all manner of goods including, as I saw yesterday, 6 metre bamboo poles!

Hereabouts the yellow taxis are most often seen; they are small and generally you will notice more taxis than private cars – the cost is a bit more than the motor taxis and can carry more people, sometimes more than you would regard as safe. There is huge competition for trade but they have integrity and won't try and grab someone else's fare.

In most cities, including Piura, there are small 15 seater vans known as combis or colectivos. They run a set route which is usually posted on the side of the bus and they are cheap with fixed and reliable prices. If like me you are around 6 feet tall you need to select your seat carefully as available leg room is for people of more restricted growth. Combis will stop to pick up and drop you wherever you want and if they see a likely customer walking across the field a 100 meters away they will call them to hurry in order to win the fare. There is no timetable for Combis or local buses but in Lima and Trujillo they were unofficially regulated by boys who received tips; they would note the time gap between different drivers on the same route and relay this information to them – the value of this was to optimise the time between the preceding transport in order to find sufficient passengers to make a profit.

Buses and motor cruisers run fixed routes, the latter often operate by night and it is worth paying an additional $5 for a first class with more comfortable and reclining seats. Arriving at a bus station early in the morning in an unfamiliar city with taxis competing for your trade can be a bit harrowing and you need your wits about you.

Other modes of local transport include bikes, sometimes 3 wheelers with carts in front, donkeys and carts and of course there are delivery trucks of all sizes and types. As a cyclist I have found that the experience isn't as dangerous as it may seem and the the attitude towards cyclists at least benign unlike the in UK . Where there are rules of the road, like traffic lights, they are studiously obeyed but few if any road users understand the concept of lane discipline. As you can see punctures cn be repaired at the side of the road.

I suppose in I am left with the conclusion that this growing economy (5% last year) is growing its transport use accordingly. The availability of cheap natural gas means that that some concessions to pollution are being made by the conversion of a few taxis. The emergence of a middle class and the now relatively common site of the Chelsea taxi means that there is a ready demand waiting to be filled and I have recently seen a Yamaha outlet selling Cuatrimotors those horrible 4 wheel drive buggys that seem to be so popular in Spain.

Que paso?

It has been a very busy fwe days, but interesting. I am settling into a sort of routine and blending in with the relaxed pace of life, enjoying the friendliness of the Piruanos and observing the many differences.

I have had my first 'helping' sessions at Hogar Anita Goulden. This is a home for children aged between 5 and 16 with physical and learning disabilities. It includes a very varied range of children from those only with only problems associated with walking to some children who are profoundly disabled both mentally and physically. There are 21 living here and 20 staff working in shifts. At the moment it is school vacations so those that would normally attend school mostly remain at the home. Everyone is very kind and the home is a caring and loving environment. Myself and 2 young volunteers from Europe take the older children for a walk in the park with their wheelchairs. The rest of the time I try and engage with the children and add some minimal distraction to their day and by now have invested in some counters and plasticine.

On returning from the home there are some neighbors in the street harvesting fruit of a Tamarind tree. This is a tropical specimen and its fruit is acidic and is used in many sauces including Worcester Sauce. They are friendly and offer to give me a bag full but I take a few to try.

Later I attend my first university session. I arrived in good time and am surprised by the scale and opulence of the site. It is very green with extensive buildings, some deer and pavos reales (peacocks). Shirley, my teacher is very nice, age 28 and 5 months pregnant – her husband also teaches on the campus. 2 other students arrive, Sebastian and Audrey – they are a couple from Korea and have been here about a year. The names are not their real ones but assumed for ease of integration. They have 2 children who speak more Spanish than Korean. Sebastian is a GP practising as a volunteer through and organisation called Koica. They seem very nice.

The next day I ride my bike back to Catacaos and on a bit further to the Pre-hispanic Tallan capital at Narihuala. This comprises a small museum and extensive adobe ruins. I think I enjoyed getting there as much as the visit but the site is interesting and the Tallan, coastal people, had their own language which possibly gives rise to the distinctive accent in Piura. It was also a Matriarchy. On the journey I stopped to talk to some rice farmers and was somewhat surprised by this form of agriculture. I seemed to be the only cyclists on the road between Piura and Catacaos and this elicited quite a bit of encouragement and friendly hand waves.

Back in Catacaos I stopped for some Chincha but was served the hard stuff so fearful of my stomach I only had a little and paid double to cover my embarrassment at leaving so quickly. In town I found a taller to check over my bike. He re-set the cotter pin, adjusted the wheel, raised the seat and oiled the chain. We had quite a chat but despite being the father of 4 he wouldn't accept any payment. This kind of kindness make up for being robbed and gives one hope. Later, I got a bit ripped off in paying for some punctures to be repaired this was at a roadside repair hut – I was surprised by the inner tube which probably had 50 or so patches already!

Enretenimiento (Entertainment)

Sitting in Plaza de Armas watching the world go by is really quite a connected activity. I am by no means the only lone person and there is a buzz about the place and obvious social functions in progress. At this time, in the early evening it is mostly families that occupy he space but several couples join me for a brief rest on my bench and I eves drop their conversations. Mostly I notice the different vending activities of the ambulentes who travel around and across the plaza. They sell different non-essentials including chicklets (chewing gum), sweets, cigarettes, candy-floss, balloons, bubble making toys and much more.

Later I am joined by Juan Miguel my Spanish friend who has been to the cine and we go to bar Marquis and indulge in cocktails. Juan reminds me of someone famous in my youth, a DJ and now sadly passed away – see if you can guess who? As the evening passes we chat a little and then enjoy the karaoke – this isn't as cheesy as it sounds as most of the singers are very tuneful and they all make a good fist what must be well established Peruvian love ballads. For me it is an excellent language learning activity as I can both listen and watch the words passing the screen. Later we are joined by a professional singer who does well at playing the crowd, engaging with and sometimes teasing her audience. I try to avoid her eye contact in case she picks on me but there is no hiding place!

The next day I head off for Anita's place for breakfast at 8. I am enjoying getting to know my bike but have discovered that it has a wonky crank. This means by right leg has to push much harder than my left and I worry that my carefully tuned physique will become unbalanced. It also has a squeaky pedal.

On the way I buy some flowers for Anita's mum which are well received. Breakfast comprises two types of tamales and a warm and vaguely sweet drink that I can't identify. They sell the tamales to neighbours from the window and our meal is interrupted a couple of times by requests for breakfast tamales – they seem to be very popular. I take some time to play chess to amuse Fabrizio, Anita's son, managing to lose convincingly to a 5 year old. We set off for Catacaos a small town 8km distant where they sell artesana.

Catacaos is a busy small rural town with an extensive market. Much of it is given over to food set out in 4 main sections of fruit and grain, vegetables, fish and meat. We look at the fish and none of it seems familiar, except the calamaris, prawns and crab. I am told by the vendor that the crab is an aphrodisiac but this doesn't encourage me to buy these half dead and quite small specimens. Anita tells me that the best fish goes to the restaurants, particularly the many cevicherias.

Passing through the various jewelery and ceramic stalls I chat with a girl from New Hampshire, she has a beautiful baby in a sling, very cute, wearing a small panama hat with curios eyes - she lives in Cuzco with her jewelery-making husband; when chatting with her I realise that this is the first English I have spoken for 3 days. After buying one or two items we aim to stop at a chincharia. I am advised to look out for its bandera blanca (white flag) and on arriving we oder a jug of chincha between us. Chincha is mildly alcoholic, made from fermented maize. Anita explained that there are 3 types depending on level of fermentation – we drink the lighter second level called claramente and is is cool and refreshing, drunk from communal bowls made from a kind of gourd. We also snack on chiflas (banana crisps) and cancha (fried corn).

First Impressions of Piura

I have found that people in South America often exaggerate physical danger and discomfort. I have been told so many times how hot it is here in Piura and although true, I have experienced hotter in Southern Spain. I haven't felt overcome by Piura's dryish heat. The Plaza de Armas is typical, fairly family based with a friendly feel. There is some begging around the place but it is not as intrusive as in Cuzco. Around the town you notice in fairly high numbers and roughly in this order, Banks, street traders (mobile) kiosks, farmacias and boticas, restaurants and photo-copying shops.

Peru is far from emerging as a paperless economy and I was surprised to come upon a thriving market of copy typists, all men, hunting and pecking on aged manual typewriter, creating formal letters and documents which were commissioned by individuals with a particular requirement; nearby photocopying businesses complemented this trade in bureaucracy.

I was as impressed with the tourist office as I was unimpressed with the library. The latter, the second that I have visited, continued the trend of aged and very worn books, poorly presented and very little IT access. The librarians are very welcoming but library use is thin owing to the poor resources. I have yet to build up the confidence to ask why there is no fiction! But, at the tourist office I received great assistance and nothing was too much trouble – I emerged with some useful literature and a fully annotated and personalised map of the city.

As luck would have it today is the 27 anniversary of Caja Piura, a large national bank with services in all Peru's regions. I happened on a procession in preparation and became absorbed in the varying costumes depicting all the many and varied cultures. I particularly liked those of la selva reinforcing my my intention to visit - you can probably appreciate why!

I had two tasks today, firstly to confirm my place on a Spanish course beginning on Monday. It looks to be a viable group and I am looking forward to some regular study. The second was to get some keys cut – I had expected to find key cutting in a ferreteria (ironmonger), but no, it was among the photocopying shops – logical if you think about it!

I have just bought a second hand bike for 22 pounds and am looking forward to my enhanced mobility - it is a bit of a wreck but the largest I could find. The main problems seem to be a bent crank and untrue wheel but the top gear works well and as there are no hills here I doubt the need to change it. More of this anon!

Piura like the rest of Peru has all aspects of society but I suppose it is more marked by its growing middle and lower working classes. This is a cash and increasingly a credit society and everywhere you can hear people talking about the products they have bought or are going to buy. The world economic crisis does not seem to have impinged yet and maybe it won't. Luckily Peruvian's have not lost contact with their culture and although there is a growing tendency towards fast foods you can see here Anita's mum and a friend preparing a bucket of tamales. But equally there are luxurious hotels and people who live here and earn a western wages have tremendous spending power as can be evidenced by the splendid pool in a local hotel which is a hive of business rather than tourist activity.

Finally Piura

Well after 10 days I am finally in the colonial city of Piura in the Northern Peru province of the same name. Before telling you about my arrival my last day in Truillo was OK and I managed not to lose anything else! In fact it went very well, with a visit to Arco Iris the last in the Chan Chan group of monuments. This wasn't as breathtaking as the previous day's visits but I managed the transport independently by taking taxis and buses. Afterwards I hopped on a combi and headed for the beach at Huanchaco. Here I strolled and observed, taking time to enjoy the breezes and watch the surfers and other visitors. I found a restaurant with a balcony and a table overlooking the sea and dined on seafood and rice. Waiting until sunset it was one of the best I can remember and a positive note on which to leave Trujillo.

Arriving by bus in Piura at 6am I was met by Anita and a friend and transported to her house. I was pleased to be welcomed at such an early hour and as her mother, father, brother and sister made a one by one entrance from their sleep I finally met Fabriozi her 7 year old son. I immediately made a hit with him as he seemed more than pleased with the Chelsea shirt I had brought him. The family were incredibly kind and after breakfast I went to the pool with the youngster and his sister and watched his swimming lesson – this went went well and I applauded the playful instructor who worked skillfully to boost the confidence of his group. They had a lot of fun and all emerged cheerful and tired after a 2 hour session.

Piura is the 5th largest city and is about 1000km North of the capital Lima. Human activity here dates back to 1000 BC. The various cultures of the Wari and Vicus people preceded the Spanish conquerors who invaded in 1532 when Francisco Pizarro founded Piura as the first colonial city of Peru. In 1821 it was declared independent from Spain.

The region of Piura is varied including coast, desert, and mountains. It is arid and hot and subject to el nino which can create a substantial and forceful rainfall. Today it is at least 30 degrees and they have a siesta similar to southern Spain.

My accommodation plans were slightly put off course as my homestay seemed to have fallen through, but not to worry, Anita found me a hostal and arranged transport, her Brother Eric accompanying me or safety. On leaving the hostal for a stroll round the Plasa de Armas I hadn't walked far before someone shouted “Alan”. It was Juan whom I had met in Trujillo. He invited me for a drink and agreed to put me up in a spare bedroom. Que suerte!

Juan is from Madrid. He is an agronomist and works for a small NGO supporting the development of nutrition and the agricultural economy. His child and wife are in Spain as his son recovering from a successful cancer operation. I am extremely lucky to have found this accommodation and it is an ideal base for further exploration of the region.

Victimised by crime not me

It is both sad and ironic that I had my Nokia N810 was stolen during the scrum to see the priest and celebrate the procession of the 3 kings who brought gifts to baby Jesus. I had in fact watched a foul movie called Three Kings with George Clooney on the bus to Trujillo. It was about the liberation of Kuwait and was supposed to be somewhat comic but I recommend you not to see it. Possibly it was prophetic of my later troubles. I believe I have identified the exact moment of my loss – you can see the priest being chatted up by a pretty girl – another irony?

Insofar as crimes can be victimless I wasn't too bothered by the loss as I have been coveting some other stuff and will cash-in my insurance; but yes I was careless but that said the thief is to blame for his or her crime and I must move on from it.

Traveling to Trujillo I chatted with Jill from NY state, a park ranger and cyclist. She told me how to avoid confrontation with different species of bear so Paddington had better watch out! The road took us in turns through desert and fertile valleys whith much agriculture. I was forever dissuaded of the idea of cycling the Pan Americana which seemed to me both relentless and dangerous.

The next day I booked a driver and we went to some pre-hispanic sites of Huaca de la Luna and Chan Chan. These were at opposite ends of town so couldn't be reached without a driver, costing 100 Nuevo Soles – I have now used all my cheap Soles and the exchange is 4.3 = 1 pound, so about 23 pounds. I also spent 50 Soles on entrances and guides so altogether about 36 pounds but great value.

Huaca de la Luna is the larger and more restored of 2 monuments, the other being Huaca del sol. These belonged to the Moche people and there are fine buildings and an entrance that is magnificent in its scale and ornamentation – it is sad to think that the Conquistadores plundered this beautiful civilisation. There is a good website here and I will add some pics to my Flikr site for which there is a link at the side.

The other place I visited was Chan Chan, the scale of this is phenomenal and and I spent an hour and a half with my diminutive guide, Gisella. You can see more of this at the same website.

Well, this evening I head overnight for Piura where I will stay for at least a month, My friend there Ana says it is a splendid 33 degrees. I am a bit unsure about my accommodation and internet access, but hopefully all will be well. Thanks for the comments and please do leave more on the blog as it encourages me to know that it is being read.