Page 57 - Bulletin, Vol.83 No.3, December 2024_version 11-12-2024

head for the Huacachina oasis for a lunch stop. Huge sand dunes surround us, and the
area is very popular with tourists. For lack of time, we are unable to stop and
contemplate the famous Nazca geoglyphs, which are several kilometres long. After
several hours of nightly drive, we arrive in Nazca.

Day 4

We continue without our guide who does not have the proper experience. At breakfast,
we meet Guido, a 73-year-old Belgian biker who lives in Peru with his wife Marie-
Antoinette.

15 hours on the motorbike: we ride along the coast towards Arequipa, the economic
capital of the south, close to Bolivia. The flatlands on the edge of the Pacific follow arid
steppes interspersed with a few green valleys. The scenery is superb, but marred by
heaps of rubbish on either side of the road. We however enjoy the ride, even though the
Peruvian kilometres seem longer than ours. We are now close to the legendary part of
Peru.

Arequipa Valley, 2,300 metres high, Cordillera... here we come! We are exhausted. At
the hotel, we meet Juliana, representing the travel agency, to take stock of the situation.

Day 5

Our bikes get a general servicing at a garage. Exhaustion will fade away and we hope
that the pleasure of the drive will be back. We visit Arequipa, the plaza de armas, the
San Catalina Convent and the market. We enjoy a
queso helado, an ice cream sprinkled with
cinnamon.

Day 6
Our new guide, Eduardo, takes us in the direction of
the Colca Valley. We leave behind us the pollution
and traffic of the city. Our sluggish engines reduce
our speed to 40km/h uphill. It's hard to describe the
landscape: a mixture of immensity and the power of
nature. We pass herds of llamas and magnificent
vicuñas. We stop at the highest point at 4,900
metres and experience altitude sickness in spite of
having chewed coca leaves. Arriving in Chivay, in
the Colca Valley, I am still a bit dizzy and my nose
bleeds. The hotel is a welcome sight.

AAFI-AFICS BULLETIN, Vol. 83 No.3, 2024-12 55

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