Today is a long driving day. We are up early, pack up camp and head off shortly after 7:30 AM. We drive for much of the day, with a lunch stop in a fantastic spot over looking the ocean. We are there early, so we take half an hour to walk down to the beach and explore the area. There are wonderful rock formations that lead down to the flat, sandy beach. A couple of locals are fishing - they simply have a line that they twirl around their head and throw out as far as possible. Then they slowly drag the line back to shore - we did not see them catch anything.
As we drove along the shore in the afternoon, we passed by the village that was recently wiped out by a tsunami caused by an earthquake. Most of the buildings were destroyed, with only the foundations showing. We could still see the outlines of the streets and the empty blocks. We were told that only 16 people died - the rest had escaped into the hills when the tremors hit but before the tidal wave arrived. Late in the afternoon we turn inland and the road heads up into the Andes towards Arequipa. We arrive shortly before 5 PM.
One of our traveling companions and good friend had fallen ill, so right after we checked in, we took him to the hospital. The hospital was quite good - a bit a of a language barrier - but we were able to get him treated and purchase the medication. Once back at the hotel we headed out for dinner. First we wandered the streets a bit - the main square one again is the main attraction. It is buzzing - it is a Saturday night. This town also has many colonial buildings remaining and we enjoyed walking through the streets before stopping for dinner.