Lima!

I left Paracas on Sunday, 21 April, for the last stretch up to Lima. On the first day I had some problems with my bicycle. After a few kilometres one of the screws of the lowrider at the front broke (!). I stopped, and after a few minutes a driver of a pick-up stopped, but he couldn't really help me. But he told me that there is a hardware shop in a village just 2km away. And so I continued slowly up to the village, and in the end I found the hardware shop, and they had the screw I needed.

I then continued until Chincha Alta, where I spent the night. I didn't do much in Chincha – it was Sunday and many places were closed.

On the next day I went to Cerro Azul, a beach resort on the Pacific. I arrived pretty early, and first had a coffee near the beach. I had to wait for my room, as it wasn't ready yet. In Cerro Azul I had a walk along the beach, and for dinner I went to a restaurant – I ate fish, as I absolutely couldn't find anything vegetarian.

On the third day I did 96km up to Punta Hermosa, another beach resort. But it wasn't as beautiful as the name suggested. Originally I had planned to have another break there, but in the end I didn't. I also didn't do much in Punta Hermosa.

Yesterday, I did the last 40km to Lima. I cycled along the Panamericana up to the junction with Avenida Benavides, for safety reasons. But it was hard – lots of traffic, including buses stopping at any place. I think that was probably the most dangerous cycling bit... but well.

In Lima, I'm staying in the Red Psycho Llama hostel, a hostel with some ecological touch. It is also pretty central in the neighbourhood of Miraflores, where most gringos stay. Miraflores is an upper middle class neighbourhood (that's what I think), and because of that it is reasonably safe.

Today I went in search of a cardboard box for my bicycle, and luckily I found one easily in a bicycle shop. Later, I went to the coast in Miraflores, with a nice view, but I didn't go down to the beach.

In the afternoon I went back to the hostel, to write a little. Later I went to a supermarket to do some shopping for dinner – a salad. And now I'm ending the day with a Pisco Sour in the hostel.