Day 102 Nov 13 2014 Los Organos Peru

Beach in Los Organos Peru

Day 102  Nov 13 2014  Los Organos Peru

We started the day with the kids playing in the pool and Evy and I planning the next step of the trip.  We booked a flight from Piura to Cusco Peru, we had considered taking the bus but it would have been a 38 hour ride and the cost was comparable to the plane.   In the afternoon we went for a long walk on the beach with the kids stopping to jump in the waves.  On the walk we saw the corpses of 7 southern sea lions.  It turns out that the fishermen kill them to stop them from eating the fish and also wrecking the nets. It is a shame to see such a large animal killed for such a bad reason.  The kids enjoyed the pool when we got back to the hotel.

Day 101 Nov 12 2014 Los Organos Peru

Waiting at a restaurant for lunch to be served

1 liter glass bottle of coke. Much better than plastic

view from Hotel Gran Velero 

Cat any one?

Day 101   Nov 12 2014       Los Organos Peru

We woke up around 11 am and left the room.  Once we were awake and talked to Angelo we soon discovered that the hotel was indeed worth the good reviews that it had received on trip advisor.  The hotel provides a shuttle service into town to the beach and to surrounding areas.  In the morning they also ask you what you want for supper and purchase the ingredients fresh.  We went to a place where the green sea turtle is fed by the government of Peru.  It cost 5 soles to enter the area and we saw lots of large sea turtles.  We had the opportunity to swim with them if we wanted but the air was cold and we decided not to.  We spent the afternoon hanging around the pool and relaxing.  The bad news of the day was my dad in not getting better is in a substantial amount of pain and the doctors are checking for cancer as they can’t find anything else wrong.  

Day 100 Nov 11 2014 Los Organos Peru

bus tour of Cuenca

100th day of the sabbatical celebration

Isabel on the path to a coffee shop in Cuenca Peru.  Safety First

Day 100  Nov 11 2014   Los Organos Peru

We started the day off by going to the bus station to buy our tickets to Mancora Peru.  We got a discount on the tickets as the bus was fairly empty so we only ended up paying $52.  We booked Las Balcones Hotel for the day at a cost of 40 dollars. Much better than dragging our luggage around the city for 10 hours.  We hopped on the tour bus and took a tour of the city.  The bus tour was followed by a trip to the Central Bank Museum.  A trip to an upscale ice cream parlor to celebrate our 100^th day of the sabbatical. At 10 pm we boarded the Super Semaria bus to Peru.  The type of seat was called a semi cama.  It might have been ok for Evy but it was short for me.  I would not have wanted to be any taller or the seat would not have been comfortable.  The bus got to customes at 2:15am and we did not have to get off the bus there.  A few minutes later we were driven to immigration where there was a line for exiting Ecuador and a few feet away was a line to enter Peru.  The entire process for the bus took less then 25 minutes.  We arrived in Macora at 4:30 am and took a motor taxi to the taxi drivers house where we were transferred to a regular taxi.  The hotel Gran Velero we booked on line is quite well hidden and the taxi driver took quite a while to find it.  The road into the hotel is extremely rough and bottom of the brand new taxi bounced off of a big rock.  When we finally found the hotel the room was not ready and we were not to impressed.  It turned out that the hotel was not expecting us till the next day.  Since we had planned on arriving at 5 am in the morning we thought we had to pay for that day but we did not.  By the standards of most other hotels we had stayed at we were given a free night. 

Day 99 Nov 10 2014 Cuenca

Inca Ruins in Cuenca

New Cathedral in Background

Puente Roto Cuenca Ecuador

Day 99  Nov 10 2014  Cuenca

We walked around the center of Cuenca today with no destination in mind.  We ended up visiting some old ruins and the old and new Cathedrals.  The kids and I all had our hair cut for a grand total of less than $10.  We ate a lunch leisurely at a restaurant and followed it up with ice cream and then a couple of cappuccinos.  David had what he said was probably the best hot chocolate of his life and Isabel and Evy had a dessert. When we were visiting the Cathedrals, Evy started to feel like throwing up and developed stomach cramps.  We returned to the hotel and the Kids did homework while Evy went to sleep.  David and I walked to a grocery store and bought wieners and bread for supper.  It was nice to eat in for a change.

Day 98 Nov 9 2014 Cuenca

view from hotel in Guayaquil

On the bus from Guayaquil to Cuenca

Day 98   Nov 9 2014  Cuenca

We took a bus from Guayaquil to Cuenca today.  The trip was about 4 hours and I am pretty sure we were climbing a mountain for a good part of that.  When we arrived in Cuenca we were supposed to go to a apartment that we rented through Airbnb.  We could not get into contact with the owner either by phone or by pressing the door button as instructed.  We ended up walking down the road a little and getting a hotel.  Airbnb I think is going to refund for one night but not the second night as we managed to get into contact with the host shortly after booking into the hotel.  When we were booking the hotel I told Evy that we should only get it for one day but she was adamant that she was not going to move and go to the apartment; obviously she was upset.  That is 2 screw ups with accommodation in 2 days and it is like throwing money in the garbage.  The upside is that we ended up in a junior suite for $70 us a night with breakfast included.  The suite has separate bedroom for us and the kids and an equipped kitchen.  The restaurant in the hotel serves excellent food, among the best I have eaten on this trip. 

Day 97 Nov 8 2014 Guayaquil Ecuador

petting an iguana

the iguana tree

the cathedral in Guayaquil

Day 97   Nov 8 2014   Guayaquil Ecuador

We took a bus from Montanita to Guayaquil today.  We checked in and were informed that hotels.com had somehow booked 2 rooms for us instead of the one required.  We have to wait till Monday to find out if the hotel will let us cancel one room or if we have to pay for both.  Since it was late in the afternoon when we arrived we jumped into a cab immediately after checking into the hotel to go to see Parque Seminario which is a park that is full of Iguanas. There was one tree that must have had at least 50 iguanas in it. After the park we went to a shopping mall and tried to get money out of the bank machines.  We tried 3 different banks and 6 different machines before we were successful in getting some money.  I always find it a bit stressful when we are getting low on cash and have trouble finding a working bank machine.  We also bought Isabel another pair of earrings today.  She lost another pair a few days ago and needed new ones; it has been an expensive year for earrings.

Day 96 Nov 7 2014 Montanita Ecuador

enjoying an ice cream on the beach in Montanita Ecuador

Surf School - so much better than real school

Day 96  Nov 7 2014  Montanita Ecuador

The day started with us eating breakfast on the beach, followed by Evy and the kids swimming while I was hiding in the shade.  Around noon I went swimming with them for 10 to 15 minutes; they were in the sun for hours while I was in the sun for minutes and I ended up getting a sunburn.  I don’t quite understand the white supremacists with their idea that being white is better.  Being of an Austrian/ Polish background and getting sunburned when as Evy puts it “somebody lights a match” I really have my doubts.  The swimming was followed with me watching David taking surfing lessons for 2 hours.  It was so much better than being in a cold arena.  The rest of the days consist of a late lunch or early supper and more playing in the waves.  We need to do this more often as it was another very enjoyable day.