Today is a huge day, as we embark on the longest bus ride we will ever take in our travels.  These past two days have been a joy as we have met a lovely Chinese guy who lives in Europe. Yesterday we have bought our tickets, and so today we now await our bus in Guayaquil.

This ‘longest bus ride’ includes meals being served so we are told, and we find out this is a meal service that is common on Peruvian buses.

Bodyguards

©Exploramum and Explorason – getting set to go on the bus from Ecuador to Peru

We also meet a nice Malaysian guy who lives in New Zealand. It is great as they joke that they are Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee – our bodyguards.

When we go to check in our luggage, they tell us we can’t take that much, so one of the ‘bodyguards’ accepts some of our items from us.  We joke and check they are ‘clean’ and nothing he will encounter problems with when we get to the border.

As usual, we try to sit near the front of the bus to avoid Explorason becoming bus sick, and the ‘boys’ sit directly behind us. After all, the ‘boys’ are our bodyguards!

©Exploramum and Explorason – our cheery ‘bodyguards’

This is my first border crossing on a bus. So I am pleased the guys have company. In fact, they talk like long lost brothers! As we pass through towns, I love the change from city life to town life.

Changing Places

©Exploramum and Explorason – we pass lots of small towns with local transport

We start to see the little three-wheeled vehicles appear – the  ‘moto taxis’, “taxi cholo’ or ‘cholo taxi’ are everywhere as we pass through small towns.

Border Crossing

When we finally hit the border on our ‘longest bus ride’, I am very nervous.  I see the big circular ‘P’ for ‘Peru’ sign, but I am too nervous to take a photo at the border.  I have never done a land border crossing, and I have no idea what to expect.  Our ‘bodyguards’ stick close by and reassure me all is OK, and it was.  Thank you, guys!

Peruvian Coast

©Exploramum and Explorason – several tourists exit at the Peruvian coastline

The Peruvian coast looks fabulous. We pass some awesome looking hotels. I put that on my ‘must visit list’ for later.  The bus flies by so fast and we never seem to stop, so it is difficult to take photos, but I try.

Sunsets Over The Rivers And Rice Fields

As we motor along the sun drops in the sky. Rain seems to come and go and the long day sitting on this bus is coming to an end.  T

The sunset is over the rice fields and the scenery changes as we drive along. It quickly becomes dark.

Night Falls

As night falls, people nod off, including our new friends. My son takes over the seat. I find myself on the floor with a sleeping bag. But I can stretch out across the floor and aisle and I get a few hours sleep OK.

It is hard – as I have to make sure my passport and possessions are safe. It is not comfortable sleeping, but it is about 2 – 3 hours sleep all night.

The Longest Bus Ride

©Exploramum and Explorason – most of the bus is empty as our friends sleep

Early the next morning we are woken by a guy on the bus who decides to share his music with us all at 5:00 a.m. – much to everyone’s displeasure.

Passing By

So I sit and watch as my son sleeps as we pass some small towns. Corn dries, grapes grow and many other crops I fail to identify.

Just like the corn, the earth also seems to get drier and drier. Then, I notice the houses become inhabited by those much poorer, and the style becomes more basic and simplistic.  Soon there are just hundreds of miles of deserts.

This Is The Closest Place I Have Been To Hell

©Exploramum and Explorason – this is the road but you can hardly tell as it is covered in sand

I do not mean this in any derogatory form for those who live here, but as we pass tiny square boxes plopped on top of hot sand with no tree in site, this just feels like Hell.  I cannot even imagine living here. It seems to go on forever.

A one-lane road with only buses and semi-trailers slowly crawl along. Sand sweeps over the highway so it is hard to tell road from dunes as it Blends together.

We finally get to see the ocean!

©Exploramum and Explorason – little box houses are scattered on the sand

Popping up in the distance, we see some box-houses. They have no electrical power running to them and there is no sign of life. Yet there seem to be millions of these box houses that are placed over the miles. I ponder on how blessed I am not to have been born into such poverty, yet my heart feels pain for those here.

Rarely do we see any vegetation, sign of life, or a vehicle by a home as they avoid the heat of the day.

Thousands Of Tiny Box Homes

©Exploramum and Explorason – can you imagine living here?

There seemed to be thousands, if not millions of boxes in this town that are homes and it just seems so sad. I zoom in and they look like they are made from the wood from pallets, but I might be wrong.

It makes us talk about our lives with Explorason. It is good for my son to see poverty from a distance.  We have visited poor villages and helped them in Fiji, but those conditions were tropical where they could farm.  Here I fail to know what existence these people might have.  It is sad, and it is beyond my understanding.

Lima

©Exploramum and Explorason – we arrive in Lima

Thank goodness!  We finally reach Lima!

Our 26-hour longest bus ride becomes a 28-hour journey.

They had served breakfast at 9:00 a.m., but now it is about 3:00 p.m. and we are starving. We’ve all had enough and we want OFF of this bus!

We vow never to do this again. This ‘longest bus ride’ shall be our first and last. Never again!

Finding A Hotel

©Exploramum and Explorason – our quirky hotel

We are in bed asleep by 7:00 pm. We have successfully finished our longest bus ride  -ever!  Yes, that is the first and the last – we hope – or is it?

So glad that it is over!

Comments And Questions

• Have you ever taken a really long bus ride?
• Where was it from and to?
• Any tips for our readers on surviving such a ride?

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