|
Experience the best way of
traveling in this
Peru Tour Companies
ADDRESSES These are
frequently written with just the
street name and number: for
example, Pizarro 135. Officially,
though, they're usually prefixed
by Calle, Jirón (street) or
Avenida. The first digit of any
street number (or sometimes the
first two digits) represents the
block number within the street
as a whole. Note too that many
of the major streets in Lima and
also in Cusco have two names -
in Lima this is a relic of the
military governments of the
1970s, in Cusco it's more to do
with a revival of the Inca past.
ADVENTURE ACTIVITIES
Peru has many adventure
activites to offer, and we've
listed them throughout the guide
where relevant. For general
information of mountaineering
and winter sports contact:
Federacion Peruana de Andinismo
y Desportes de Invierno, block 3
of Jose Diaz, Lima Centro (tel
01/424-0063); Casa de Guias,
Parque Ginebra 28-G; Club de
Montañismo Américo Tordoya,
Tarapacá 384, Lima (tel
01/460-6101 or 431-1305); Club
de Andinismo de la Univeridad de
Lima, Avenida Javier Prado este,
Lima 33 (tel 01/437-6767,
extension 30775); Club Andino
Peruano, Avenida Dos de Mayo
1545, Oficina 216, Lima 27.
ARTESANIA Traditional
craft goods from most regions of
Peru can be found in markets and
shops in Lima. Woollen and
alpaca products, though, are
usually cheaper and often better
quality in the sierra -
particularly in Cusco, Juliaca
and Puno; carved gourds are
imported from around Huancayo,
while the best places to buy
ceramic replicas are Trujillo,
Huaraz, Ica and Nasca. Jungle
crafts are best from Pucallpa
and Iquitos.
| Package Tour |
Duration |
Hotels |
Highlights |
|
MAGIC PERU |
10 Days and 9 Nights |
Basic, Tourist, First or Luxury Class |
Nasca Lines, Cusco, Machu Picchu, indian markets, Titicaca
lake, Uros and Taquile islands |
|
ACTIVE PERU |
10 Days and 9 Nights |
Basic, Tourist, First or Luxury Class |
Cusco,biking in the Valley,Inca Trail hike up to Machu
Picchu |
|
PERU ADVENTURE |
11 Days and 10 Nights |
Basic, Tourist, First or Luxury Class |
Rainforest, Inca Trail hike up to Machu Picchu |
|
JAUNT ROYAL PERU |
12 Days and 11 Nights |
Basic, Tourist, First or Luxury Class |
Lima city tour, Chiclayo: Lord of Sipan, Trujillo, Puerto
Maldonado, Cusco, Machu Picchu. |
|
TRIP AROUND MACHU PICCHU & GALAPAGOS ISLAND |
13 Days and 12 Nights |
Tourist, First or Luxury Class |
Cusco, Machu Picchu, Indian markets, Galapagos Islands |
|
FROM THE
HEIGHTS OF MACHU PICCHU TO THE CHILEAN PATAGONIA |
14 Days and 13 Nights |
Tourist, First or Luxury Class |
Santiago, Vina del mar, Cusco, Machu Picchu, inca trail hike |
|
TRIP TO
ENCHANTED GALAPAGOS ISLANDS & CHALLENGING INCA TRAIL |
14 Days and 13 Nights |
Tourist, First or Luxury Class |
Galapagos cruise tour, Cusco, Inca Trail hike up to Machu
Picchu |
BARGAINING In markets
and with taxi drivers (before
getting in), you are generally
expected to bargain. It's also
sometimes possible to haggle
over the price of hotel rooms,
especially if you're travelling
in a group. Food and shop prices,
however, tend to be fixed.
CUSTOMS Regulations
stipulate that no items of
archeological or historical
value or interest may be removed
from the country. Many of the
jungle craft goods which
incorporate feathers, skins or
shells of rare Amazonian animals
are also banned for export -
it's best not to buy these if
you are in any doubt about their
scarcity. If you do try to
export anything of archeological
or biological value, and get
caught, you'll have the goods
confiscated at the very least,
and may find yourself in a
Peruvian court.
DIVING AND FISHING For
information on diving and
fishing, contact the Federacion
Peruana de Caza Submarina y
Actividades Acuaticas, Estadio
Nacional, Lima Centro (tel
01/433-6626, didimar@
mail.cosapidata.com.pe).
ELECTRIC CURRENT 220
volt/60 cycles AC is the
standard all over Peru, except
in Arequipa where it is 220 volt/50
cycles. In some of Lima's better
hotels you may also find 110
volt sockets to use with
standard electric shavers. Don't
count on any Peruvian supply
being one hundred percent
reliable and, particularly in
cheap hostals and hotels be very
wary of the wiring, especially
in electric shower fittings.
FOOTBALL Peru's major
sport is football and you'll
find men and boys playing it in
the streets of every city, town
and settlement in the country
down to the remotest of jungle
outposts. The big teams are
Cristal, Alianza and El U (for
Universitario) in Lima and
Ciencianco from Cusco. The "Classic"
game is between Alianza, the
poor man's team from La Victoria
suburb of Lima, and El U,
generally supported by the
middle class. In recent years
the sport has taken a European
turn in the unruly and violent
nature of its fans. This is
particularly true of Lima where,
in late 1995, the "Classic" had
to be stopped because of stones
thrown at the players by
supporters. Known as
choligans (a mixture of the
English "hooligan" and the
Peruvian cholo, which
means dark-skinned Quechua-blooded
Peruvian), these unruly
supporters have taken to
painting their faces, attacking
the opposing fans and causing
major riots outside the football
grounds.
GAY LIFE Homosexuality
is pretty much kept underground
in what is still a very macho
society, though in recent years
Lima has seen a liberating
advance and transvestites can
walk the streets in relative
freedom from abuse. However,
there is little or no organized
gay life. The Peruvian
Homosexual and Lesbian Movement
can be contacted at Calle
Mariscal Miller 828, in Jesus
Maria (tel 433-5519).
INSULTS Travellers
sometimes suffer insults from
Peruvians who begrudge the
apparent relative wealth and
freedom of tourists. Remember,
however, that the terms "gringo"
or "mister" are not generally
meant in an offensive way in
Peru.
LANGUAGE LESSONS You
can learn Peruvian Spanish all
over Peru, but the best range of
schools are in Cusco, Arequipa
and Huancayo. Check the relevant
sections throughout the guide.
LAUNDRY Most basic
hotels have communal washrooms
where you can do your washing;
failing this, labour is so cheap
that it's no real expense to get
your clothes washed by the hotel
or in a lavandería
(laundry). Things tend to
disappear from public washing
lines so be careful where you
leave clothes drying.
NATURAL DISASTERS Peru
has more than its fair share of
avalanches, landslides and
earthquakes - and there's not a
lot you can do about any of them.
If you're naturally cautious you
might want to register on
arrival with your embassy; they
like this, and it does help them
in the event of a major quake (or
an escalation of terrorist
activity). Landslides -
huaycos - devastate the
roads and rail lines every rainy
season, though alternative
routes are usually found
surprisingly quickly.
PHOTOGRAPHY The light
in Peru is very bright, with a
strong contrast between shade
and sun. This can produce a nice
effect and generally speaking
it's easy to take good pictures.
One of the more complex problems
is how to take photos of people
without upsetting them. You
should always talk to a
prospective subject first, and
ask if s/he minds if you take a
quick photo ( una fotito, por
favor - "a little photo
please"); most people react
favourably to this approach even
if all the communication is in
sign language. Slide film is
expensive to buy, and not
readily available outside of the
main cities; colour Kodac and
Fuji films are widely available,
but black and white film is rare.
If you can bear the suspense
it's best to save getting films
developed until you're home -
you'll probably get better
results. Pre-paid slide films
can't be developed in Peru.
PUNCTUALITY Whilst
buses, trains or planes won't
wait a minute beyond their
scheduled departure time, people
almost expect friends to be an
hour or more late for an
appointment (don't arrange to
meet a Peruvian on the street -
make it a bar or café).
Peruvians stipulate that an
engagement is a la hora
inglesa ("by English time")
if they genuinely want people to
arrive on time, or, more
realistically, within half an
hour of the time they fix.
TIME Peru keeps the
same hours as Eastern Standard
Time, which is (generally) five
hours behind GMT.
WORK Your only real
chance of earning money in Peru
is teaching English in Lima, or
with luck in Arequipa or Cusco.
Given the state of the economy
there's little prospect in other
fields, though in the more
remote parts of the country it
may sometimes be possible to
find board and lodging in return
for a little building work or
general labouring. This is
simply a question of keeping
your eyes open and making
personal contacts. There is an
enormous amount of bureaucracy
involved if you want to work (or
live) officially in Peru. For
biology, geography or
environmental science graduates
there's a chance of free board
and lodging and maybe a small
salary if you're willing to work
very hard for at least three
months as a tour guide in a
jungle lodge, under the Resident
Naturalist schemes. Several
lodges along the Río Tambopata
offer such schemes and other
research opportunities. For more
details, write to the lodges
directly; for independent advice
contact the Tambopata Reserve
Society (TreeS), 64 Belsize Park,
London, NW3 4EH, UK.
Arrangements need to be made at
least six months in advance.
The best
Peru
Travel Agency information is all in one place
|
