Beach Time

The main reason I was so stead fast on the difficult route over the border was I wanted to go to Mancora, Peru. If I would have taken the other supposedly more tranquil border crossing, it would have put me way off course for Mancora, and I wanted to go. I had read about it and heard from a Peruvian-American friend (Karim) that it was very nice.

The Lonely Planet says this about it:

The small fishing village of Mancora, about 30km further north (than Cabo Blanco), has a lovely beach that is popular with surfers and beach lovers and is the most visited coastal resort on the north coast. It is unique in the area because it is directly accessible from the Panamerica (Highway), is far enough from Tumbes to avoid humidity and mosquitoes, and is sunny year-round. Although Peruvians and Ecuadorians flock here, it's not well known by international travelers.

Normally in my Blog I don't want to just quote the Lonely Planet (then you might as well just read their book), but I just wanted to show you what attracts me when I travel, and why I wanted to go here.
-small fishing village
-lovely beach
-accessible
-no humidity
-no mosquitoes
-sunny year round
-not well known by international travelers

Sounds nice doesn't it, well, I had to go, I needed some beach time. After a very crowded Combi (mini-van, usually packed to the hilt) ride of about three hours, the driver stopped to let me out along the Pan America highway that cuts through Mancora. After a little bit of walking back and forth in indecision, I asked a shop owner which way to the beach. I thought I followed her instructions, but ended up walking over some deserted swampy, marshy area that was not very nice. My first impressions of my beach paradise, not good. The busy Highway lined with shops and the swamp with (sinking) planks set up to cross it were not my idea of a beach haven. Then I wandered through some shanty town style shacks and suddenly out onto the beach strand. Things were looking up.

I wound up at a place that was not very nice, but I wanted to get my bag put down and check out the place. Besides it was only 15 soles (under 5 USD), but I think I was the only one staying there, and I wanted to meet others. After about 30 minutes of walking around I saw the place on the beach that I should be staying at instead, and for only 5 soles more I was going to check in the next morning.

I spent three days in Mancora, lounging around, reading, writing and swimming. I bumped into Adi and Lucy (The English couple from Banos) and also hung out some with two Dutch girls and an Irish guy. I had dinner with them one night, and they told me all about their day in a very fancy villa of a rich, gay Peruvian designer. The girls lounged by the pool and sipped drinks, while the Irish guy was encouraged to try on suits by the gay designer and did cocaine upstairs.

Mancora was one of those friendly little traveler communities where you started to see familiar faces and get comfortable. The first two nights (my first two in Peru) I'm not sure if Peruvian food was good, as I ate at the same Mexican place two nights in a row-and almost made it a third. Also Adi and I got really drunk one night on Pisco Sours (pisco is a grape Brandy first made in Peru, but now also produced in Chile), but diving in the ocean the next morning zapped away the hangover.

So all the things the guide book said (and the reasons I went there) were true, except I suppose about it being undiscovered by foreign tourists. But as all things, it had to come to an end, and after three days it was time to push on south.