Pisco Sour: Peru and Chile One of our favourite foodie discoveries from South America was the Pisco Sour. Pisco is a grape brandy made in both Peru and Chile. In Peru, lemon, angostura bitters, sugar or syrup and egg whites are added to the brandy to make a Pisco Sour. Traditionally in Chile, the egg white and the bitters are not added. First Pisco Sour! It is the national drink of both countries and both lay claim to have invented…
The courtyard at Hostal Iquisa San Pedro de Atacama – The small family run Hostal Iquisa is a quiet and relaxing hostel, 10 minutes out of town. Several reviews on hostelworld complain about the distance into town. While it definitely is a 10 minute walk, it really isn’t a big deal, and is quite a pleasant walk! However, it is a little dark getting back at night and so maybe not one for solo travellers. When the weather is warm…
Cochiguaz Valley Fresh (?) off the bus from our adventures in San Pedro deAtacama, on arrival in La Serena, we decided to head straight into the Elqui Valley – where grapes are grown to make Pisco (mmm … Pisco Sours). Small villages are dotted around the pretty valley and it is a common weekend getaway for locals and foreigners alike. We made straight for the town of Pisco from La Serena bus station. The town changed its name from La Union…
Lima: Most visitors to Lima stay in either upmarket Miraflores or slightly bohemian Barranco. The old town is reportedly not very safe for tourists at night, although there are hostels and hotels there too. The Bridge of Sighs in Barranco near Barranco Backpackers We decided to stay in Barranco and loved the colourful buildings and relaxed atmosphere of the area. Miraflores was nice, but walking around the area you feel like you could be anywhere in the world, whereas Barranco felt…
Sunset from Valle de Luna with the Licanbur volcano San Pedro de Atacama is really cute and chilled out little town in the middle of the driest desert in the world. It is now largely centred on tourism, but this hasn’t ruined its small town outpost feel. San Pedro’s main drag – Caracoles It is very wild west and you could easily imagine cowboys riding into town to challenge each other to a duel. Happily, this doesn’t actually happen ……
On the coast south of Lima, there are a number of sights and activities, which collectively have become known as the Gringo trail. I hadn’t actually realized this when I was planning our trip. However, looking at what there was to see and do between Lima and Cusco (from where we are booked on an Inca Trail tour, starting on 23rd March), I unknowingly managed to map out a perfect Gringo Trail route. So much for trying to get off…