Gone Fishing

Sunday I went down to the peir, to see if I could go fishing on one of the boats that ply the coast. The previous day the owner of the local hotel had said I could likely go out with one of the fisherman for 10 soles or so.

I was standing out there, just watching the sea, when a man wearing a red shirt, on a boat full of people, called up to me. "Tu quieres pescada?" (Do you want to go fishing?) I said yes, so down the stairs to the launch I went.

It seems the guy´s job was a water taxi. All the fisherman moor their boats in the harbour, and this guy circles around and picks them up and takes them back to the peir. They all give him a sole, I think. He was so proud of how much money he is making. A grin on his face, he showed me a giant handful of coins.

He asked me if I would like to go out to see the oil rig, or around the point to see the hotel, Fishing Club, now closed, that Hemmingway stayed at 50 years ago. Away we went, skimming across the sea. I love the ocean. There wasn´t a cloud in the sky, and everything was blue, so much sky and so much water... only a strip of sandstone desert with a tiny little town. The waves were gentle and the motor steady, and I just lay back and relaxed. What a life!

The oil rig, off the coast, was fantastic. Taller than you would imagine, and built of solid steel. The bottom 20 feet was covered in rust, seaweeds and random red crabs that scuttled when you got close.

"Mira, Mira!" He was telling me to look at the base of the platform, near the stairs. A sudden splash and I saw. There were a whole group of sea lions on the stairs! Some sleeping, some just sitting. With their cute noses and whiskers, they looked like really fat cats. The live on the platform, he told me. I was glad to hear some wildlife was actually benefitting from the petroleum industry.

to be continued... i need dinner!