My last day in Huaraz

¨Happy trails to you, until we meet again.
Some trails are happy ones,
Others are blue.
It's the way you ride the trail that counts,
Here's a happy one for you.¨
~Dale Evans

Monday, September 22nd 2008

I didn´t plan anything special for my last day. In fact I had in mind a quiet day of hanging around the town and working on this blog. But as I woke up I found a note on the door from Orit that she and some friends are going horse riding in the area and if I´m interested I should meet them downstairs at 9:00am. since it was already 9:30 I thought I missed them but as I went down I found the small cheerful group still in the hotel... I should have remembered that I´m in Peru - not Switzerland... I joined the group and we set out for the last time to the small collectivo station where we boarded a small van to the small town of Yungar. In Yungar we met the horse master and the horses, I got a beautiful white mare named Penelope and we set out westwards towards the Cordillera Negra.

It turned out that me and Penelope got along great. She liked to calmly walk at the head of our small convoy but at the same time hated when some other horse tried to pass her biting the horses who tried and kicked them if horse or rider were too persistent. I ignored the calls to control my horse explaining that this is the way I like as well and that everyone should remain where they are: behind me.. We rode up westwards and up the Cordillera Negra gaining an incredible view of the Cordillera Blanca Who I learned to love so much rising to meet the sky to the east. As the view got better and better I thought to myself that this is a very good way to say goodbye. After 2 hours we stopped at an observation point for Coca tea and local ice cream. We than mounted our horses again and rode back with the sun at our backs.

We said goodbye to the friendly horse master and went back to the main road to catch a collectivo to Huaraz. Unfortunately a group of 7 big gringos are not a very appealing clients to the full vans who passed us by and preferred to cram more locals than to take us. As we debated what will be the best course of action to split up or stop a taxi and watched worriedly as the sky got darker - a police pickup truck stopped next to us noticing that we are standing for a long time next to the road it was patrolling. With the help of the Police we boarded a semi empty van and got back to Huaraz. I had very little time left so I went to see the Plaza de Armes one last time and ate a Spaghetti Bolognese at my favorite restaurant leaving a big tip. I than returned to ¨Casa Haimes¨ checked out, shouldered my mochila and walked to the bus station. I boarded the night bus to Lima and as I watched through the window the lights of Huaraz fading behind me I silently said goodbye to this unforgettable town.