Off-the-beaten-path / South America / Tropics / Wandering
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 22, 2018 · Last modified February 20, 2018
Me: “Is there a malecon in Trujillo?” Martin (who owns the hostel where I’m staying): “If you want a good malecon, the one in Huanchaco is much better. You should go there.” At least that’s the gist of what he said. Martin speaks very clear Spanish but it’s still sometimes...
Activities / Moderately Active / Off-the-beaten-path / South America / Tropics / Wandering
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 20, 2018 · Last modified February 12, 2018
Trujillo, Perú has so many amazing doorways and alleyways, it’s tempting to want to just wander through every one of them. Instead I decided to design my own little walking tour and photograph some. Quite a few doors were closed and alleyways gated. That only added to their mysterious allure....
It rains every day in the tropics. At least it does in Ecuador at this time of year. Usually, the rains come at night or in the early morning hours. And it’s that kind of warm, soft rain that makes you want to sit up in bed and just listen....
Art / Culture / Off-the-beaten-path / South America / Tropics / Wandering
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 19, 2018 · Last modified February 12, 2018
While out wandering around Trujillo, Perú I stumbled across the campus of the Trujillo College of Medicine. Like many places here, the college is surrounded by walls. However these walls are covered in amazing mosaic artwork. Spanning several blocks, these giant and elaborate masterpieces stand as public showpieces.
Off-the-beaten-path / South America / Tropics
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 18, 2018 · Last modified February 12, 2018
Trujillo, about 9 hours’ drive north from Lima, is a beautiful colonial city right on the Pacific Ocean. Less than ¼ the distance to the equator as Miami, Trujillo is decidedly tropical. With mostly narrow streets, lovely town squares, and colonial architecture everywhere you look, Trujillo is an overlooked gem with...
Modes of Transport / South America
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 17, 2018 · Last modified February 12, 2018
Bus hijackings in remote areas of Perú is apparently a thing. As near as I can tell, it happens once every couple of years. A pretty standard M.O. is for a passenger, who is in league with the hijackers, to phone ahead to his partners when the bus nears a...
Nature / South America / Wandering
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 16, 2018 · Last modified February 12, 2018
No facilities, no services, no neighbors, no trees, no shade. But you can build right on the Pacific Ocean and your back yard is several thousand square miles of beach. The coastal areas of southern Perú are one of the naturally driest deserts in the world. That’s because they lie...
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 15, 2018 · Last modified February 12, 2018
It’s extraordinarily common all throughout Perú to see houses and other buildings that look as if they are still under construction. And yet they are open for business or people are living in them or they are otherwise in use. I’m told this is because of Peruvian tax laws. Once...
For the past three days I had been looking at this glass filled with limes submerged in water. I wondered often about them. This morning I finally asked. I had supposed that perhaps it was purely decorative. Or a clever way of preserving the limes. Or maybe even a way...
Dining / South America / Vegetarian/Vegan
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 14, 2018 · Last modified February 12, 2018
I first discovered these tasty little treats in Perú in January 2014. At the time, I had been told they were called Peruvian Ground Cherries. I have no idea why, since I’m pretty sure they are not botanically related to cherries. In Spanish, they are called aguaymanto. Either way, they...