Trujillo, Peru: Casa de Ciclistas
From Cajamarca, I turned left to avoid the dangerous coastal town of Paijan, and headed over to Cajabamba, and Huamanchuco. The fields were a little softer and busy with people hand hoeing, entire fields, or if they were more fortunate using an oxen team. There was a stint above 4000m where of course it rained. Nearly hypothermic every house was (smartly, I didn´t want to be there either) padlocked shut.
Camping in a barn. I was attacked by the rooster in the morning. Beyond my laundry hangs a half eaten sheep.
When I found one, they took me in, I bundled up in everything I owned, and some of what they owned. After 2h I had defrosted. Their 12 year old son happened to know 5 words of English, and despite my only speaking Spanish slightly better, could not believe that I could converse fluently in English. To test his theory every 15-20 minutes he would hold up an apple, or point to a duck (conveniently walking around the floor of the kitchen) and ask me what they were in English, hoping to stump me. I offered to teach him some more words, but he declined.
the dirt floor of a restaurant kitchen. Hidden in the dark are her herd of ginuea pigs.
From that high point it was mostly downhill 140km to Trujillo and the most famous of Casa de Ciclistas. 
The not mostly part included 15km of climbing and 70 km of very dusty, very rough pavement. I did some across one asphalt paving crew. They were interestingly somehow creating pavement in a portable cement mixer and smoothing it with a 2x4inch board, as you would with concrete.
the uniform of the mountains
Once I did finally reach pavement I had the smoothest and best descent thus far of my trip. 40km of swooping corners (one bridge has a nasty lip, I would recommend breaking before that). And there I was, at the Casa, to a smiling French Guy who clicked a photo of my dust covered face. The Casa has been operating for 25 years, over 1300 cyclists have stayed here, but for the fist longer period of time, host Lucho is out touring himself. It is a bit of a shell house.
2 Comments
Vacanze Italia on March 5th, 2011
It seems as if you really have enjoyed your journey and it really felt good after reading. The photographs are quite obvious ones but still good.
Ferienhaus Toskana on March 5th, 2011
Thank you for sharing your experience and sounds quite good.