Blogs from Arequipa, Arequipa, Peru, South America - page 14

Rano jsme se vzbudili v 5, ale nakonec jsme z posteli vylezli az v 6, udelali si snidani na ohni a po 7 jsme vyrazili smerem k vesnici Llahuar. Cesta vedla hlavne dolu kopcem, takze se to dalo. Tady nam jeden mistni chlapik rekl o aute, ktere jede asi za hodinu kousek odsud a ze s nim muzeme jit. My po dvou dnech chozeni s nalozenymi bagly jsme se ho snazili drzet, pak jsme se na to vyprdli a radeji si uzivali okolni scenerie nez jako blazni skoro bezet za mistnim. Nakonec se nam uplne ztratil, nastesti se nam cestu najit podarilo a i ono "auto" coz byl v podstate stary nakladak, ktery dovazi mistnim horalum jidlo, piti. Krome toho dovezl treba i plech na strechu a rakev... Zbozi co se dovezlo se prelozilo na osly ... read more

Arequipa – die weisse Stadt, hat ihren Namen unter anderem von einem vulkanischen Gestein, das als Bausubstanz verwendet wurde. Das sympathische Städtchen wurde vom Tourismus noch nicht so vereinnahmt wie andere Orte in Peru. Im Hostal Flying Dog sahen wir wieder die beiden Polen Michal und Olja, mit denen wir abendessen gingen. An unserem letzten Tag in Cusco werden wir ihnen zufälligerweise wieder über den Weg laufen. Von Arequipa aus starteten wir unseren Ausflug ins Colca-Canyon.... read more

Next we travel a rough, dirt road which goes on for miles to the Colca Canyon—one of the deepest canyons in the world. We spend one night in the town of Chivay, a picturesque village near the canyon, where we enjoy the local hot thermal baths some well deserved relaxation after the Inca Trail. With a re-boost of energy and a belly stuffed full of lama steak, we then take a tour around the canyon, stopping in beautiful villages and at scenic lookouts, where we are lucky to see the flight of Andean Condors flying over the Andes. We then return to Arequipa for to get some food with the group at a local café and then rest up before the night bus to Nazca.... read more

After having to wait 8 days for our Argentinian visas (should have been 3 days!), we were really glad to get out of Santiago and Chile, even if this did mean getting a 33 hour bus back up north. We'd stayed again at Hostel Casa Roja in the capital, the staff really helped us to chase the frustrating Argentine Embassy and we became one of the family. We arrived in dusty Arica after our long and boring journey (extra boring because all the films were dubbed in Spanish). We only stayed one night near the bus station so didn't do this town justice and left early the next morning for Peru!! Took a 'collectivo' taxi with 2 locals over the Chile/Peru boarder and to a town called Tacna. Really easy boarder crossing and very helpful driver. ... read more

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 ... read more