The world´s second deepest canyon (the deepest canyon is right next to it, but this one is prettier and only 80 metres shallower) is the major tourist attraction for people visiting Arequipa. And rightly so! Aside from the dramatic scenery and beautiful oasis at the base of the canyon, it´s also a breeding groud for the majestic condors (which supposedly carried the souls of the dead to the next life in Inca beliefs). Three days of trekking in the heat made this a challenging, but extremely rewarding journey. [img= http://photos-h.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v252/145/67/223401787/n22340178 [View Full Entry]

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"The White City of Peru" - so-called because of the volcanic stone that the city is largely built out of - easily had the most beautiful Plaza de Armas out of all the places that we had been to so far. Lined by rows of colonial buildings (now converted into restaurants) and with a huge fountain in the centre, time could very easily slip away whilst having a coffee and a slice of cake (which seemed to be all that the Arequipans seemed to eat - living the dream I guess). The city is also called "The City of the Eternal [View Full Entry]

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Fit and fully acclimatised from from our Inca Trail, we set out to enjoy the old Inca Capital by ... doing absolutely nothing. Even the thought of going down some more steps was too much. No, no; much better to enjoy modern comforts like showers and proper beds. [img= http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v252/145/67/223401787/n223401787_6227232_9586.jpg center] Pisac - a market town built on Inca foundations After about a day of aching muscles, we felt brave enough to venture back out into Cusco and took a city tour, which was a mixture of colonial (i.e. Sp [View Full Entry]

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An early start (we were getting picked up at 6am) and then a two hour bus journey got us to the beginning of the Inca Trail for about half 8 in the morning. A solid breakfast, some hasty purchases of coca leaves, ponchos and walking sticks and by 9 o´clock we were ready to start our 4 day hike through the Sacred Valley of the Incas to Machu Picchu. The first day was relatively easy and we got to enjoy the beautiful scenery and some of the ruins on the way. Our first lunch was a bit of a shock - [View Full Entry]

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After a 22 hour bus journey from Lima, we eventually arrived in Cusco (the worst part of the trip was having to watch a Jennifer Lopez movie)! After checking into a nice hostal in the middle of the city, we set out to explore the ultimate "gringo hangout". The central square (Plaza de Armas), has a much more interesting name in Quechuan; The Place of Tears (interesting, since the name pre-dates the arrival on the Spanish). Despite its name, the square was a great place to have lunch and watch the world go by. [img= http://photos-e.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v252/145/67/223401787/n223401 [View Full Entry]

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Unfortunately since we had to be in Cusco for the 3rd March, we only got to spend one night in Lima. Having listened to everyone saying how horrible Lima was, we weren’t expecting much and weren’t too worried about spending long here. However, Lima turned out to be quite a cool city. Yes, it was busy, noisy, and a bit dangerous but so are most big cities. The colonial centre was beautiful, and the food was great (much better than Ecuador!). Another day or two here would have been nice. [img= http://photos-857.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v191/89/64/193107857/n193107857_35249665 [View Full Entry]

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After a long bus journey (Mid-Southern Ecuador to Mid-Northern Peru), we planned to have an overnight pit-stop in the city of Trujillo. However, we found so much to do here that we extended our stay. [img= http://photos-857.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v191/89/64/193107857/n193107857_35249661_2727.jpg center] Remains of an ancient Moche city made of mud that was washed away by flood. A story about a wiseman building his house out of stone comes to mind... So, how to make mud ruins and hairless dogs sound exciting. The ancient city of Chan Chan (on the outskirts of [View Full Entry]

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Another one of Ecuador´s World Heritage sites, Cuenca is filled with beautiful buildings. It is also a lot warmer than Quito so no jumpers needed! [img= http://photos-857.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v191/89/64/193107857/n193107857_35249659_2043.jpg center] Lots of colonial buldings - a good place to relax. Not that we´d been having too hard a time of it before hand We enjoyed a nice relaxing pit stop before taking our hellish journey across the border to Peru. [img= http://photos-857.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v191/89/64/193107857/n193107857_35249660_2379.jp [View Full Entry]

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We figured that the town that the Ecuadorians went to themselves to party would be worth a visit. Even if it is shadowed by an active volcano. Although the imminent danger of being burnt alive by pyroclastic flow seemed to make people just want to have more fun. [img= http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v191/89/64/193107857/n193107857_35249375_8697.jpg center] Baños - tranquil The name of the town comes from the geothermal heated springs that surround the town - a very relaxing way to forget about the volcano! [img= http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos- [View Full Entry]

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After umming and ahing about whether we could afford the plane fare out to the islands, we decided that we really should go and enjoy one of the natural wonders of the world. Thank god we saw sense in the end, these last nine days have been incredible. It’s amazing how quickly you get used to seeing a giant marine iguana walking across your path or seeing a sea-lion sleeping on the back of a boat. [img= http://photos-a.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v191/89/64/193107857/n193107857_35249372_7727.jpg center] Sea Lion - clearly posing! Our flight got into Baltra a [View Full Entry]

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