Lima, Peru

This was the end of the first segment of the cruise. Approximately 100 people left the ship and about the same number of new passengers got on. We didn’t have a tour scheduled because we’ve been to Lima before, so we used the day for a little R&R. Pete and Sharon’s excursion to Machu Picchu was cancelled. Probably by now everyone has heard what happened there. They had torrential rain, more rain than they’ve had in 15 years. It washed away the railroad and flooded the area very badly. Since the railroad is the only way in or out of Machu Picchu, the visitors had to be air lifted out. The Peruvian government isn’t letting any other entity help them with the evacuation so it’s very slow. A couple new to our ship was one of the first tourists taken out; they were told they could take their passports, medications and money with them. They had to leave everything else there so they have no idea when they’ll get their belongings, if ever. As of now, there are still people trapped there.
The ship put on a lively barbeque that evening around the pool, complete with a Peruvian band and red and white bunting decorating the deck. After dinner the 4 of us were having dessert in the Lido restaurant when our entertainer from a few nights before, Bobby Brooks Hamilton, asked if he could sit down with us. He’s the one who is Jackie Wilson’s son. He spent about an hour regaling us with stories about show business and entertainers; who is nice, who is not, how they make their money, etc. etc. When he left he kissed Sharon and me and we promised to see his show when he comes to Lawrenceburg, Indiana.
The next day the 4 of us, plus Jan and Karen, hired a car and driver who took us outside the city to some Incan ruins. Our driver’s name was Elias and he was a lot of fun. He spoke English with a heavy accent so I had some trouble understanding him and missed a lot of what he was telling us, but the ride was nice and the views of the cliffs and the sea were spectacular. The ruins weren’t really much to look at but check out the world’s ugliest breed of dog!!!
We asked Elias to take us to a supermarket so we could pick up some wine and soft drinks. He took us to a nice grocery store that had an underground parking garage. We had to go up about 2 stories from the garage and there was a moving ramp to take us up. When we came out with our carts laden with heavy bottles I was a little hesitant to get on the ramp to go down, but as soon as our carts rolled onto the ramp they were magnetically attached to it and didn’t move until we reached the bottom. Just when you think you’re in a backward country you discover something amazing like that!
We’re approaching cold weather again. We saw a picture of the Veendam, Holland America’s ship that is two weeks ahead of us, cruising now in Antarctica. The decks are covered with 2-3 inches of snow!! That’s what we have to look forward to.