by Glenda Thompson

Created on: September 09, 2008   Last Updated: December 17, 2008

Peru is a country of vast and amazing contrasts! From the stunning rolling breakers of the South Pacific Ocean, to the rough, desolate but fascinating desert that hugs the coastline from North to South. In places, there's the verdant, fertile, lush patches of arable land with rice paddies, coconut palm plantations and luscious tropical fruit in abundance, and the Andes Mountains, - cold, aloof and mysterious and usually visible wherever one is in Peru! Finally, there's the mighty, magnificent Amazon River and the Peruvian jungle in all its glory. It is a country that is waiting to be explored, a little bit like going through a box of exquisite chocolates, taking one at a time, peeling off the paper, inhaling the magnificent choclaty scent and then slowly savouring it.

It is also a country steeped in history and culture, and a visit to Machu Picchu is a must for tourists. Over a period of time, it has been converted into a symbol of pre-Hispanic splendour and its geographical location and physical location make it one of the loveliest landscapes created by nature and enhanced by the hands of man. This is where the Inca, the rulers of Peru in the 15th and 16th century, had their headquarters and the architectural structures are an example of the classic Inca style, with their walls of finely carved stone, typical doors with a trapezoidal shape, rectangular plots or terraces for cultivation and the ever present Intihuantana or stone "that fastens the sun", that orients man in time and marks the seasons and the hours.

We are fortunate enough to be living in this amazingly diverse country for a short time, and want to try to experience every part of it! We live in Sullana in the North West of Peru and chose Mancora, which is only two hours from our home, as our first port of call. For us, it was perfect for a weekend break. During the months October through to April, it is a surfers paradise.

Mancora is situated about an hour from Tumbes on the border with Ecuacdor and a few hours from the airport in Piura in the South. We drove from Piura to Mancora, on a road that runs through the Sechura desert, which consists of mountains and mountains of sand with the tiniest bits of scrappy vegetation. The only other noticeable features (apart from the odd very brave little tak tak, (a three wheel taxi affair) were little oil derricks scattered around the desert as we got closer to the coast. In the 16th century, Spanish conquistadors sighted oil slicks on the water off the north

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