Into the Colca Canyon

At the start of the trek

Arequipa is a ‘jumping off’ point for lots of hiking and adventure activities, including trekking into the Colca Canyon, which was thought to be the deepest canyon in the world at 3,400 metres, until its neighbour the Cotahusi Canyon was found to be 135 metres deeper.

There are lots of companies in Arequipa offering tours into the Colca Canyon, but having read up on it, I could see that there was a very doable round trip into the Canyon (with a night at the bottom at the ‘Oasis’) that we could do on our own. And generally we like to try and do things by ourselves where we can, particularly where the route looked as straight forward as this one did. 

A visit to the White City (and the search for El Misti!)

Arriving from the desert of Nazca to Arequipa was a breath of fresh air. The high altitude means that although its warm in the day, it never gets too hot and in the evening we started to remember what cold felt like (but only just). So it was perfect for wandering around and soaking in the sights. 

The city’s colonial buildings are built of sillar, a white volcanic material, which has led to Arequipa being nick-named ‘The White City’.

The cathedral and the main square

Our Top 5 - Lima

1. Enjoy a sundowner in Barranco near the Bridge of Sighs

It may have been that we particularly enjoyed this beer as it came at the end of a very long day. We’d arrived into Lima at 7am, got to the hostal and then pretty much went straight back out again. So this relaxing beer at the end of a long and hot day was very welcome and this was a beautiful backdrop.

On the Gringo Trail

On the coast south of Lima, there are a number of sights and activities, which collectively have become known as the Gringo trail.

I hadn’t actually realized this when I was planning our trip. However, looking at what there was to see and do between Lima and Cusco (from where we are booked on an Inca Trail tour, starting on 23^rd March), I unknowingly managed to map out a perfect Gringo Trail route. So much for trying to get off the beaten track!

Lima - Part 2

On our second day in Lima, we headed to the Centro Historico to take in the sights of the old town. We started in the main square, with its very impressive Cathedral and Government buildings. In the square and surrounding streets there are also a range of other imposing buildings from the Spanish colonial era, many sporting a typical Lima-style balconies.

In recent years, the mayor of Lima has established an ‘adopt a balcony’ scheme, encouraging businesses and individuals to invest in saving these balconies. This has helped restore over 100 of these historic balconies.

In the beginning: Lima part 1

After promising James that as we were going away for a long time, we would not need to rush round to make sure we had seen everything; our first few days away have been pretty hectic.

Lima was quite hot and is quite spread out and so getting about took longer than I had thought. This combined with the heat made getting around quite tiring. We only nearly fell out once though, which is pretty good going.

We stayed in an area called Barranco, a suburb in the south of the city, which was the capital’s seaside resort in the 19^th century, before falling into disrepair. It’s now almost certainly back on the up and the guide books describe it as a place where artists and intellectuals are moving in – James and I fitted in perfectly.

Its the final countdown!

Its just three sleeps to go before we fly to Peru! 

We've said lots of goodbyes and drank copious amounts of fizz... 

Fizz...!!

We've been packing everything up in the house and even managed to find a new home for the fish! Thanks Andrew! They look very happy in their new home.