Oct 2, Sunday

Oct 2, Sunday

Had breakfast at the hotel and was out by 9:45 to walk around until I need to be at the tour agency at 10:15 for a 10:30 departure.   Went into a nearby church La Merced to check it out; they were getting ready for mass so I just did a quick walk through.   Ended up having to wait past 10:30 because another couple was late arriving.  Did not seem to matter since they just walked us to another pick-up point and we did not take off until 11 am.   Short tour because it is scheduled to end at 1:45.   The “MOCHE” tour was supposed to consist of a stop at a “Campina de Moche” to see the cultivation of rice, which we did not do.   Went directly to the Huaca de la Luna & Huaca del Sol area.  Visited the Museo Huacas de Moche first (again no photos allowed) but it was a limited collection in a vast space.  Back on the bus for a quick sprint to the archaeological site.    The Moches considered the mountain beside this site as a God.

This archaeological site has to be the best one I’ve ever seen.  Drawings on the stone wall are intact on the older pyramids.   As with Aztec pyramids, Moches built one pyramid, then at some point built another on top of it, and another, and another, etc.   Huaca de la Luna had five of these, and the third or fourth one is the one where they found the best preserved drawings.   But the “pièce de résistance” has to be the North entrance with its six levels of drawings still intact.  A M A Z I N G !

Moche Calendar

We were supposed to stop at a ceramic factory on the way back, but that did not happen either.  So much for a ‘planned’ tour.   Had to switch hotels anyway, so no big deal.   The new place is actually called a hostel, although I don’t quite see the difference.  It’s a hotel room with a full bathroom and this time I’ve got hot water !    It has an art deco décor which is kind of different, with very LOUD lime green walls.    

I dropped off my bags and went back out to walk to the historical district.  Along the route I came across a Parade to end their Spring Festival.  There were huge crowds and streets closed to cars.  

Found a restaurant and had a great salad for dinner.   Made my way back to the new hotel without any problems.  No street names posted again, and when there are, they are the old ones from colonial days and don’t match the names on the map !   Good thing I’ve got a great sense of direction.

I was lying down after my shower, watching TV and every once in a while would hear a noise that sounded a bit like a window rattling.  Since the windows in my room are actually floor to ceiling and can slide open, I figured I might have to add some toilet paper somewhere to stop the rattle.   I got up at least 3 times to figure out where the rattling was coming from.  There are huge roman blinds instead of curtains, so you can’t really open them up, but there are two panels, so I could peak in between.   Anyway, at some point I realized that there was a bird sitting on a railing just outside the window, and he/she was pecking at its reflection in the window !    I figured that as soon as it was dark enough the bird would fly away and sure enough, that’s what happened.  Slept soundly despite the traffic noise.