Arequipa, the beautiful white city

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After boarding the bus for Arequipa, I settled down on the coach hoping that the seat next to me would be free, when a man sat down beside me. It was funny because I recognised him as I had already bumped into him earlier at the station. He´d got a bit upset with me because I was in a hurry and asked him to watch over my bags while I dashed to the counter to pay my tax (in Peru, before you board a bus anywhere, you always have to pay a tax at the terminal and get your ticket stamped). This is very difficult to do when you´re short of time and on your own, so I trusted my instincts and left them with him! Anyway, it wasn´t long before we got talking and I apologised for leaving him to guard my huge rucksack and bag of toiletries, and we laughed about it. His name was Juan Angel, and we ended up chatting most of the night, about each others´ lives. He told me about how he worked for a humanitarian organisation which involved travelling around the world dealing with crises. We chatted for most of the journey and arrived in Arequipa quite late. He was very kind and a complete gentleman. He helped carry my bags to the taxi and took down all the details of the taxi I was taking, just to ensure I got to my hostel safely (some buses are a bit dodgy in Peru). He really was an angel (and lived up to his name!) and I will never forget his kindness. You really do meet some wonderfully generous people whilst travelling and you never forget them.

I arrived at my hostel safely and went straight to bed. Although I got some sleep on the bus its never the best quality sleep. This particular hostel was the most wonderful hostel I have stayed in so far on my travels. It was clean, the shared bathrooms were clean and stocked with ample toilet paper and the staff were friendly and helpful. I also had my own room with a double bed and 2 bedside tables with 2 lamps. There was a table and a mirror in the room and the hostel provided free coca tea. That wasn´t all. The breakfast was served up on the roof terrace every morning, and the weather here was absolutely glorious. But it gets better. From up on the roof terrace, you have views of the active volcano of Arequipa, 'El Misti'. And alongside this volcano, another 2 volcanoes tower over the city, called 'Chachani´ and ´Pichu Pichu'. Such amazing views! Arequipa is called the white city because many of the city´s buildings are made of Sillar, a white volcanic stone and it´s the second largest city in Peru. I was pretty astounded when I came here. Its just such a magical, beautiful place, maybe its all the whiteness that surrounds you. I was here for a week, and the sun shone everyday and it was just fantastic, the place is just so illuminating. So I was pretty happy when I went up to the terrace for my first breakfast at the hostel, with the sun shining on me and in front of me these stunning views of volcanoes.

After breakfast, I was excited about this stunning place and headed off to explore the city. I spent several hours walking around the main Plaza which is the most beautiful I have seen on my travels. Facing the Plaza is also the most stunning Cathedral I have seen in Peru, and its the only one that spans the entire length of the Plaza. I decided to have lunch in this cafe I came across, but I hadn´t made a good choice. Usually, I make the right choice on where to eat, but for some reason, not on this occasion. I tried a strange meal that consisted of bits of chopped sausage (cheap cut) with slices of melted cheese on top, and a couple of slices of tomato on the side, how strange! I also tried an Arequipeno empanada (like a pasty) which was quite spicy, but better than the sausage dish. My aim was to try something different and local, but it went a bit pear-shaped!! So it wasn´t surprising that I didn´t finish my lunch, but I promised to make up for it at my next meal! I pretty much spent the rest of the day catching up on my blog and in the evening, I grabbed a takeaway Chicken kebab with salad and ate it in the Plaza. I went to bed about 11pm that night, but spent the eve looking at my photos so far, I just felt like reminiscing on where I´d been so far.

The next day I had my usual amazing breakfast of cofffe, bread and marmalade on the roof terrace. That morning, I had my first foray into speaking French, which I haven´t done for a while. It always amazes me how useful french is. I once used it in Bosnia to communicate with someone, and now I was here in Peru, able to converse with people using my rusty knowledge of French. It just goes to show how useful languages are and how you end up using them in the least expected places. I wish I´d studied Spanish now!! You miss out on so much by not being able to communicate with people here. Anyway, I chatted to this couple and found out they were on their way to Puno, so I told them about my experience of Puno and recommended a hostel to them. I´d had a late breakfast that morning and I decided to sit up on the roof terrace and just enjoy the views and the sunshine. I noticed a guy sitting on his own on another table and he looked like a tourist but I couldn´t guess where he was from. He had long fair blond hair and I was too curious to leave it. I asked him a question and it transpired that his name was Robert and he was from California but had been living in South America for about 2 years and working as a guide here. I realised at that moment that he would be a very valuable person to talk to and pick his brains about my onward travels in Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. We had a great chat and he advised me where to go to the jungle in Bolivia. I never had the chance to experience the jungle in Peru, but it was probably a good thing, because Bolivia is so much cheaper than Peru, and his description of the jungle sounded amazing. He also suggested a route I could take from Bolivia to Argentina and also recommended a nice crossing over the Andes from Chile to Argentina. Without a doubt it had been a productive day so far!!

Later on, I went for a stroll around central Arequipa and passed some very well-dressed people in the street. Out of curiousity I had to ask what was going on, it was just a wedding. They looked so glamorous in the sun amongst all these white buildings! Religion is very important in Peru, and particularly so in Arequipa, where there are many beautiful churches, the stunning Cathedral on the Plaza and also a monastery. I took a picture of the Iglesia de San Francisco and then walked through a small square which was filled with little boutiques selling traditional Peruvian bric-a-brac, gifts and ornaments. After having a quiet day yesterday, I was kind of hoping I would meet someone as I really wanted to go out dancing that eve and do something, but not particularly with other tourists, I was looking for a bit of adventure. I then stopped for a juice at a cafe along a passageway behind the Cathedral. It was the perfect spot to sit outside to have a drink or something to eat and watch people go by. I then got my first taste of Peruvian Machismo in Arequipa, a young guy called Caeser approached me and started chatting me up, he was so obviously the local Cassanova. He worked as a guide for tourist excursions and was a dance teacher and apparently did massage as well. He wasn´t particularly good-looking, but he could speak good English, was quite charming and had all the typical chat-up lines. I can only imagine how many foreign conquests he´s had (quite apt for a guy called Caesar eh!!). After politely giving him the brush-off I was suddenly surrounded by a group of young local men. They came out of nowhere and a few sat at my table and one was standing opposite making something out of wire. There were also another 3 guys sitting in front of the cafe beside me. Anyway, although I was completely surrounded by all these guys, I didn´t feel in any danger, I was actually quite amused. The guy opposite me presented me with a wire thing that he had twisted into the letters of my name and the shape of a heart. He handed me the gift and I gave him a few soles for his creative gift. I then got talking with 2 guys who were sitting in front of the cafe, one of which I really liked and clicked with straight away, his name was Froz. He was an Arequipeno but now lived in France working as a chef and was here on holiday for a few weeks. I also met a friend of his called Moses, also from Arequipa. We were all hungry and I hinted that I really wanted to eat Ceviche and Froz knew this great place just outside of town, so we all hopped in cab and headed there. We sat outside and all had a nice cold bottle of beer and the Ceviche we ate there was the best Ceviche I ever ate in Peru (and probably one of the best meals I´ve eaten in South America). We had a lot of fun, took some pictures and followed up the meal with a black beer (a bit like Guinness but sweeter) which worked quite well as a dessert. Afterwards, we headed in a cab to the viewing point where you can see amazing views of Arequipa and also to watch the sunset behind the stunning volcanoes. We took a few silly pictures with this strange statue that was up there, and then headed back to town. I was really in need of a good boogie, soI hinted strongly that I wanted to go out that eve and it was Saturday night, so it couldn´t be more perfect. I met the guys later, along with some other guys from Europe (can´t remember where now!) and we went to a Nightclub and danced till 5am. I didn´t get to bed until 5.30am but it was just what I needed!!!!

The next day I woke up early, about 8.30am as I was planning to see a local football game. I had previously met a guy in Cusco in my hostel who worked for Cusquena, the beer company, and his team from Cusco were playing a team from Arequipa in the semi-final here in Arequipa. I was really curious about seeing a local game and so I made a promise to go (despite the lack of sleep!). I had an address but the taxi driver had trouble finding it, but we managed to get there in the end. When we finally arrived, although I was late the game had not yet started and so I followed the Cusco supporters around with my camera and soaked up the atmosphere, it was another gorgeous hot day. They were chanting and making a lot of noise, and I was really impressed with the level of support that was there. Come on Cusco!! The opposing Arequipa team were also equally strong on support. We all sat down and I briefly said hello to Arturo before he went on to play the game. The teams looked equally-matched at first, but as the game progressed, the Cusco team upped their game, looking much stronger, and it wasn´t long before they scored, hurrah! The other side then equalized shortly after, but the Cusco team were just too good for them, and they retaliated with another 2 goals to win 3.1 overall, Hurrah!! I was really pleased that they won the game and I joined the celebrations on the pitch with the supporters and the team. I took a few photos and videos of the celebrations afterwards, it was a great atmosphere. We all sat outside afterwards and ate hot dogs for lunch and congratulated the team. They would now have to play in the Grand final in November in Lima. The team were heading back to Cusco that eve, so I said goodbye to everyone and went back to town. I was so tired by this point, that I went back to my hostel and read my book. I feel asleep very early and slept for about 12 hours, but I really needed it!

Got up early, about 7am for breakfast and that morning I met a nice guy from the Czech Republic who was currently living in Australia. He was on holiday for 3 weeks and had been doing quite a bit of trekking and climbing in Peru, and was now off to the Colca Canyon for another trek. The Colca Canyon is outside of Arequipa, is more than twice as deep as the Colca Canyon and is the 2nd deepest canyon in the world. (the deepest Canyon in the world, Cotahuasi is also in Peru outside of Arequipa). Anyway, we had a quick chat and then I headed off to explore the amazing Cathedral that sits on the main Plaza. I took a look around inside, which was stunning and then I headed to a popular tourist attraction here in Arequipa, the Museo Sanctuary. There I did an hour-long tour there where they exhibit 'Juanita, the Ice Princess´a frozen Inca maiden sacrificed on the summit of a mountain over 500 years ago. For the Incas, mountains were violent dieties who could kill by volcanic eruption, avalanche or climatic catastrophes, and could only be appeased by sacrifices, often young, pure girls. It was really fascinating to learn about her discovery and how many other bodies have been found across South America, sacrificed for the same reason. Afterwards, I went to my favourite passage behind the Cathedral and had a delicious dish called 'Chupe de Cammarones', a traditional dish here which is essentially a massive bowl of cooked langoustines served with a potoatoes and a variety of vegetables. Caeser passed by again and we had a quick chat, not surprisingly he was off to the gym to tone himself up some more. After lunch, I headed to the Monasterio Santa Catalina, another wonderful tourist attraction here. Its virtually a citadel within a city and was founded in 1580 by a wealthy widow who enrolled nuns to live there. It was a wonderful place to look around, very meditative and maze-like, containing lots of narrow streets, hidden staircases and tiny fruit-filled plazas. It was a wonderful place to take pictures so I snapped away as I wondered through one room after another.

I then decided to treat myself to a massage and I only found one place nearby where I could go, and it was advertised at my hostel so I thought it would be ok. With my basic Spanish I tried to explain that I wanted a full-body massage and negotiated a reasonable price. The massage was done by a man, which I´ve never experienced before, but unfortunately it wasn´t the best massage I´ve had. The guy didn´t seem that experienced and I didn´t get the impression that he was enjoying doing the massage. Anyway, it was fairly relaxing and afterwards I had a quick chat with the guy and he actually admitted that he wasn´t that keen on doing massage! I wasn´t at all surpised, but I can´t believe he actually admitted that to me!! After I left the so-called massage parlour, I bumped into Froz and we went for a coffee at a bar overlooking the Plaza. There I met Boris, a young french guy who was also travelling. We got talking and decided that we could trek down (and then back up) the Colca Canyon together. Froz had been there many times and my instincts told me that it would be fine going with him as he would essentially be our guide there. We all headed to the bus station and booked our tickets to a place called Cobanaconde, the nearest town to Colca Canyon. Our bus was due to leave at 3.30am, so after doing some food shopping for the trip and packing my bags, I only had about 4 hours sleep!

I slept through my alarm and jumped out of bed realising that I had only 5 mins to get ready and meet the guys outside my hostel for 2.45am. Luckily I´d done all my preparation the eve before, but still 5 mins is not long to get ready. I met the guys and then we jumped in a cab and headed for the bus station. The guys hadn´t had any sleep, so I felt fortunate to have had sleep, but still I was tired. The journey to Cobanaconde was pretty rough, and being at the back of the bus only made this worse. Our attempts to get any sleep on the bus were thwarted by the constant bumping motion of the bus, some of the roads were pretty rough. Our only saving grace were the beautiful views that revealed themselves as the sun began to rise. Once we arrived, we had a well-needed breakfast at a local cafe and then set off to the Colca canyon.

The walk down the Canyon was not easy, it was very steep, there was a lot of dust and loose stones, and the heat was very intense. The canyon doesn´t have clear steps so you have to be careful where you put your feet. As well as this, along the way down you occasionally get men with donkeys who pass by at an amazing speed. Its always important to stand inside when they pass as people have fallen into the canyon many times becuase they have been near the edge and a donkey knocks them off! I heard one story about a women going up the Canyon on the back of a donkey. Apparently she kept fidgeting and couldn´t keep still and I think she was a bit nervous and couldn´t relax. At some point, the donkey must´ve got fed up with her and it just jolted her up in the air and threw her off the side of the canyon, what a way to go eh!!

I slapped on lots of sunscreen for the journey and was drinking lots of water. We all went at about the same pace and I was determined to keep up the guys who were about 10 years younger than me. It was really hard work on the calf muscles and all of my legs, I never realised walking downhill could be so much hard work. We had a few breaks on the way down and met other tourists on our way. I´d only had about 4 hours sleep, the guys none at all, so when we arrived at the bottom we were exhausted. But, the reward for reaching the bottom was wonderful. We were greeted by a beautiful oasis, the place was filled with little huts made of bamboo, towering green palm trees and outdoor swimming pools. And of course you had the most stunning views of the Canyon´s face, it really was incredible. So we rested for a while and whilst I went for a swim, Froz found a nice site where we could stay. Froz had been very prepared and brought, along with Boris, beer supplies and food (food and beer were more expensive at the oasis). So, with my contribution of foodstuffs as well, we made a great team and produced a very nice onion pasta for dinner. That was followed by a Snickers bar for dessert washed down with a nice cup of tea. That eve we sat around a camp fire and and chatted and Boris played a few tunes on a borrowed guitar, one song in particular I enjoyed was called 'I lost my baby' which he sung in both English and French, it was wonderfully entertaining!

After a very good and well-needed sleep, Froz and I got up and had breakfast together (Boris was still asleep). The plan was to stay one more night here and then climb back up the Canyon early the following morning, to avoid the strong midday sun. Everyone who was here the day before had already left at this point, to climb back up the canyon early, so as we had breakfast, new tourists started arrving to the Oasis. I provided some prunes and orange juice and Froz brought 3 eggs and hard boiled them. Boris finally got up and I boiled some hot water for tea and coffee. After a delicious breakfast, we got dressed and headed for a walk along a precarious part of the canyon. I kept wanting to stop and head back, but the adventurous nature of the guys made me more determined to keep up with them and be brave! It was well worth it as we came across some fantastic views, waterfalls and lots of cacti! I vividly remember this walk as we were surrounded by cacti everywhere. At one point, whilst sitting down for a rest, I actually managed to sit on a cactus leaf and I spent the rest of the day pulling out small needles out of various parts of my body as they penetrated my jeans and got into my skin, ouch!! The guys then decided to do some climbing, at this point I decided that I´d had enough adventure for one day and went back to the oasis for a swim. I met the guys later for lunch and chatted with some of the newcomers. It was quite funny becuase my French is much better than my Spanish, so when I was with Boris and Froz, there would be moments when I would be speaking a mixture of English, French and Spanish! It got ridiculous at times and we had to keep agreeing to stick to speaking Spanish to avoid confusion, but it was so difficult! Amongst the newcomers to the oasis was an Israeli couple, an american guy and 2 entertaining Spanish brothers.

We then headed off for another adventure, this time we were going to walk down to the river which runs along the bottom of the canyon. There was no clear path down so we had to endure some difficult slopes and fight through lots of bamboo, but we finally made it down to the river. It was really good fun getting down there, but we had no idea how we were going to get back up! I found a suitable large stone to use as a ladies toilet/changing room whilst the guys got changed by the river. I´d told the guys how I love to swim in cold river and when we got in I was fine and enjoying it, but the guys were such whimps and couldn´t stay in long. I think all that swimming in Hampstead Pond has made my body immune to cold water! The stones by the river were huge and amazing. After our swim, we walked along the stones for a while and were lucky to find an easier route back up to the oasis. When we got back, we prepared a delicious dinner of rice, tuna and onion and we had a bottle of beer to share to wash it all down. This was probably one of the most beautiful evenings I have experienced on my trip so far. Sitting outside around a camp fire, we were joined by a young guy from Scotland, Eva and Ernesto, the Spanish couple who I had met in Puno turned up, and then the 2 Spanish brothers, one of them Raoul was particularly entertaining.

We all had such a great evening and didn´t feel like sleeping, so we grabbed blankets from our huts and layed them out on the grass and we all laid down next to each other and watched the stars, it really was a beautiful evening. We witnessed several shooting stars and it felt really magical being there under the stars and the night sky. We shared stories about ourselves all night and when we got peckish, we all went to our huts with our torches and returned with goodies for a nightime picnic, one guy had cheese, I provided chocolate, another had bread, another had peanuts; between us we have produced a veritable feast! We stayed up all night and at about 3.30 am from behind the canyon we witnessed the moon rising into the sky, and it was one of the most wonderful sights I have ever seen. It was massive and so bright and vivid, and it emanated so much light. I don´t think my eyes quite believed it! By now it was about 4.30am and everyone had gone to their huts to get a little sleep, but myself, Boris and Froz were still up. We had to leave early to climb back up the canyon so we decided to stay up and not sleep.

At about 5.30pm we started getting ourselves organised, putting blankets away, disposing of rubbish and getting all our gear together. The good thing was that, after consuming all the food and beer, we were going to be much lighter on the way up, but it wasn´t going to be easy without any sleep, it was a very steep and difficult climb. We had a hearty breakfast of tea, bread and jam for energy. At this point, I was dreading the climb up, I knew it would be really hard, but we had to go. After stocking up on some food for the way up, we finally headed off at 7am, much later than planned. We took bamboo sticks to help support us up the steep climb, and initially the climb was not too bad. We took our time, had regular breaks and drank lots of water. About 10.30am we stopped for a breakfast of boiled eggs and our rice meal leftovers from the night before. I really welcomed this snack after trekking up the canyon for 3 hours. Our bodies were starting to feel weary at this point, but we had to keep going. As we struggled up, men and their donkeys overtook us up the canyon, and others passed us coming down, bringing with them a cloud of dust everytime. When we got nearer the top we started meeting new tourists heading down. I really put all my energy into it towards the end and pushed myself to get to the top as quickly as possible. Finally we arrived at the top of the canyon at 12pm after 5 hours walking, we were so ecstatic!

We made a short walk into Cobanaconde and bought a ticket for our return bus journey to Arequipa. We had time for a quick lunch beforehand, of soup, meat and rice. It was very satisfying after all our hard work. I also brought a carton of mango juice which was so refreshing!! The ride back was much easier and more comfortable than the outbound journey. We all slept like babies and I witnessed a beautiful sunset on the way back. When we arrived back at Arequipa, we got a taxi to our hostels and arranged to meet the following eve for a concert that was taking place. Before bed I had a wonderful shower, (its so great to wash when you´ve not had a shower for a few days) and I treated myself to a takeaway pizza. Had such a lovely sleep.zzzz

I woke the next day at 7.30am and enjoyed another delicious breakfast and wrote my diary. I handed in my laundry and went for a stroll around town. I decided that it was time for me to move on and leave Arequipa, and Peru, so I booked my ticket for a 10.30pm which would take me to my next destination, Copacabana in Bolivia. I really wanted to meet the guys that eve and go out with them, but I just felt like I needed to move on. I had spent a whole week in Arequipa and had had an absolutely fabulous time.

I visited a few shops and bought a postcard and then I spent a few hours catching up with my travelblog. I bumped into Moses and said goodbye and I saw Caeser once more and said a final farewell. I fancied some new clothing so I bought a couple of new tops and a new pair of black jeans. Fortunately I bumped into Froz ahead of our scheduled meeting time, and I was really pleased as I could spend some time with him before I left. We went out for some food and I had alpaca steak and he had Chupe de Cammarones. In the end, we shared the two dishes all washed down with some beer, and this all took place at a lovely restuarant overlooking the Plaza, it was wonderful. Froz knew the owner of the restuarant and so he allowed us to walk up on the roof of the restuarant where you get even more amazing views of the Plaza and all of Arequipa. It was a wonderful way to spend my last evening in Arequipa, and in Peru for that matter. I then went with Froz to meet Boris. I was really sad to say goodbye. Although we´d only known each other for a few days, we´d had such a great time together and I will never forget our trip to Colca Canyon. We had so much fun but more importantly, we´d worked so well as a team and that truly was the key to the success of the whole trip.

I boarded my bus to Copacabana and felt mixed emotions about leaving Peru. I was sad, nervous, but also excited. I´d had the most wonderful and perfect time in Peru, it was like a dream come true! But now, I wasn´t just heading to another City in Peru, I was heading to another country, Bolivia. I had my fare share of fears about travelling to Bolivia as I knew it would be different to Peru; I´d also heard stories about it being unsafe for tourists to travel there and I had no idea what to expect.....

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