Pisco, Perú

Yesterday we were positively thrilled to be off the bus. It was pretty unpleasant, but as always we gutted it out and laughed it off. Pisco's already pretty intense. Andy almost got hit by a taxi RIGHT off the bus and we got swarmed by taxistas and street vendors. It's probably about 110 degrees here. We're definitely back in the Atacama region even though we're right on the ocean again. This city is... interesting. On August 15th of 2007, an 8.0 earthquake destroyed about 80% of the city and killed more than 500 people. The large city is now quite unpopulated and struggling to get back onto its feet. There's a substantially higher crime rate than before after the huge exodus of the locals out of Pisco and the new influx of tourists into it. We've been warned plenty to watch out for theives and scam artists. Don't worry, as always, we're three body builders in our prime, we travel in packs and we stay alert. A couple dudes have already tried to herd us into a "bar" that had no sign in it, so I aggressively told them to cram their theft where the sun shineth not.
However that's only a tiny slice of the whole picture. The town is full of old destroyed lots that used to be buildings. It's interesting to walk around. Also, there are cool little motorcycles that have been converted into taxis that motor around and produce a high-pitched rev. The plaza is charming and we're about 8 blocks from the ocean. It's hot all the time, so it's back to shorts and a tank top. The crooks on the bus from Cuzco to Pisco stole my sandals out of an outer backpack pocket, so it's boots all day from now on. Oh well, only 8 more days til I leave anyhow. We've met some GREAT people already. The artisanship here is by far the best I've seen anywhere. For some reason, the rent is cheaper than anywhere we've been before, but the food is about twice as expensive. Today, one of our missions is to find the cheap places to eat. Granted, the meals we have eaten are delicious and sizeable, but it's nice to have cheap options as well. This city has a good feel to it, so we'll likely stay a few days before moving up the coast to Lima. Eventually. It's only 290 km to Lima, which runs about $5 and three hours by bus. So we'll take our sweet time. There's a huge national park called Paracas that is fairly close, so we may go there and do some camping within this week.
Poor Pat got some kind of fever last night, so we're nursing him a little bit until he springs back to life. He's basically superhuman so we anticipate that it won't last very long. Plenty of water, some Ibuprofen, and he'll be back to kicking tail pretty soon. I need to be vigilant with the sunscreen as it's like an oven out here. I'm considerably whiter after my stay in Cuzco, since the sun rarely comes out there, so it's back to hiding in the shade until my skin acclimates once again.
As stories happen, I'll tell them. Also, I'll put a bunch of photos of Pisco up once I take them. It's got a unique look for sure. Ta ta for now. It's ciesta time, then off for another adventure. The nights here are long and warm, so it's best to stay out late.

Dignified,
Brad