from mountains to desert

Well, I made it across the border and am in Peru now! It was quite a transition to wake up to sandy dunes rather tham snow capped mountains! The border crossing was a bit odd, thank goodness for my peruvian friend, whom I met on the bus. He helped to ensure my bag got onto the bus for safety, helped me cross the border and get all the right stamps, and help me get to the bus in Piura! I made it to Chiclayo after spending about 15 hours on the bus....Chiclayo has this very neat witchcraft market where you can buy potions, good luck charms, plants, candles, shells, etc. I also visited the nearby ruin sites on a tour. I than spent 3 nights in Trujillo, one day on the beach and other day seeing all the ruins. They were amazing and only a portion has been excavated. I spent the next day on a very long bus ride through the Corderilla Blanca canyons, driving on what should be described as a path, not a road. The cliffs were high and very close to the bus. The tunnels seemed as though someone had just thrown a stick of dynamite on the mountain and created a hole. The `path` was only the width of one vehicle, however, of course traffic goes both ways. The ride was actually amazing, despite the very hung over man next me, because of the veiws. Sorry no pictures...will send in the next update.
Hope all is well at home.