Paracas (06/03/2022) - Want some desert and beach?

Today started early at 05:20 to pack everything up for our pick-up at 06:00. The first bus route in Peru was ahead of us. We chose the company Peru Hop (https://www.peruhop.com/) to travel around the country by bus to Cusco, with only Cusco - Lima being an internal flight. The concept is simple, you can decide up to 24 hours in advance when you want to continue from the hotspots and whether you want to book additional guided tours.

We use the approximately 250km bus ride to Paracas to sleep a little more and to inform ourselves about the current events in Ukraine. After about 3.5 hours of driving, we arrive in the peaceful town of Paracas and check into our small hotel Casa Paracas (http://casaparacas.psp.com.pe/gallery/). Paracas is a small town right on the Pacific Ocean and is primarily known for its adjacent national park, the Paracas National Reserve. The area covers about 300,000 hectares and is one of the largest protected deserts in South America.

The national park can be visited by boat on the water or by land. The water option is on the program tomorrow, where we also hope to meet penguins. For today, we secured a desert buggy for a 2-hour tour in the park. In the rustic vehicle, a sticker is in vain ;-), we zoom off with our guide. Christian rides ahead on his moped and we are supposed to follow him at a distance of three meters. A bit strange at first, but really fun after a while. We visit sections with fossils, a beach section, and a viewpoint. At the viewpoint, which was unfortunately a bit foggy, again, we could also see Playa Roja, the red beach (created by volcanic activity). A exciting experience for both of us, as we have never been in a desert before and the landscape is really special.

After lunch with fish and seafood, we strolled through the bustling streets of the town. Since it was Sunday, the locals were also off and there was a small event with live music and many food stalls. The beaches were also full with umbrellas, chairs, and food and drinks brought along. We spent the rest of the afternoon fine-tuning our stay in Peru and catching up on sleep. Of course, Johannes also had to watch and analyze all the scenes and interviews about Rapid's victory and promotion to the championship playoff.

The daily two:

Insight: Pisco is located in the immediate vicinity of Paracas. Pisco is also said to be the birthplace of the drink of the same name (mentioned yesterday as the mix of the #1 drink Pisco Sour). However, Peru and Chile are somewhat disputed about where the name comes from and who is the #1 Pisco country. The name itself, however, is protected in a similar way to champagne, so any brandy sold as Pisco must come from the corresponding regions in Peru or Chile. More about Pisco https://thepiscopeople.com.au/history-of-pisco/

Moment of happiness: Today, the view of Playa Rojo (Red Beach) invited us to linger. A beautiful spot on earth.