La Ciudad Blanca The city of Arequipa, with a population of around 1 million, is Peru’s second largest. Most of the buildings in the city’s historical centre are made from the white volcanic stone silla, giving the city its nickname “La Ciudad Blanca” (the White City). The Plaza de Armas has the magnificent backdrop of two of Peru’s snow-capped volcanoes behind its Northern aspect which, combined with the Plaza’s almost exclusively white buildings, makes it one of Peru’s most photogenic plazas. We arrived in Arequipa at 6AM on Monday morning. We agreed to the s/6 fare to our hostel (we later discovered it was only s/4) and checked in to La Reyna, two blocks from the Plaza de Armas. A twin ensuite with the best shower I’ve had in South America and fast, reliable internet, the
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