We’re back with our Jeep after spending the holidays in the United States, but we have a problem. Our temporary import permit, the vehicle “visa” that allows us to drive legally in a foreign country, is inactive. As soon as we get back to the Lima area, we request a reactivation. But it’s been a week…two weeks…and we’ve heard nothing back.
In the meantime, we’re stuck in the lot of a mechanic’s shop–the place that stored our Jeep while we were gone. The only amenities are a cold shower (that electrocuted another camper so badly she had to go to a clinic), a bathroom where the toilet sometimes flushes, and a concrete sink outside. On the other side of the high fence, traffic rages and horns blow 24 hours a day. Dust rises everywhere, obscuring the sky and getting on every object we leave out for even an hour.
DISCLOSURE: THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS, MEANING WE GET A COMMISSION IF YOU DECIDE TO MAKE A PURCHASE THROUGH OUR LINKS, AT NO COST TO YOU. PLEASE READ OUR DISCLOSURE FOR MORE INFO.
It isn’t a great scene, but we make the most of our waiting time. We have several Jeep projects to tackle, like installing REDARC solar panels and a replacement fuel transfer pump for our auxiliary fuel tank. We have several unexpected challenges come up, and we have no choice but to face them one at a time.
Watch now:
In the end, we make our escape! We waited three weeks and one day for our temporary import permit appointment. In retrospect, we probably should not have paused our Peru temporary import permit. If we had to do it again, we would’ve let it run while we were out of the country. But you don’t know what you don’t know.
Leaving Lima, we head to Paracas National Reserve, where we take a boat tour to Islas Las Ballestas and drive through the sand dunes at the reserve. It feels good to be on the road in South America again.
What’s new?
With this video, we are only two weeks behind on YouTube! So what you see here is nearly real-time. In our next video, we’ll share the oasis of Huacachina, which is surrounded by towering sand dunes. I take Caspian to the ridge of a dune at sunset. It is probably the hardest hike we’ve ever done because of the angle and deep sand. But he is a trouper, as always.
Then we continue south to Nazca, famous for the Nazca Lines. We fly over them in a Cessna! We also visit the sophisticated aqueducts that allowed the Nazca civiliation to survive in the desert. They were so well-built that they’re still in use today.
Thank you for being part of our drive around the world.
-B
Leave a Reply