30th May - 2nd June - Arequipa, Colca Canyon

Woke this morning to another street parade. Had breakfast before going out to watch. We headed to the airport at 11am for our 2pm flight. The flight was in 2 stages and I am sure you will know how happy David was about that. The first one was from Cusco to Juliaca and lasted around 30 minutes, it was a little bumpy. The second flight to Araquipa lasted around 30 minutes as well, but was a much better flight. Dropped our bags off at the hotel and headed out for dinner at a chinese/peruvian resteraunt. David and I both ate a huge meal and a jug of the local drink for 10 Soles.


31st - Departed Arequipa for our 2 day excursion to the Colca Canyon. Headed out on the main road north passing 2 volcanoes Misti and Chachani. We headed out into the National Reserve of Salinas & Aguada blanca and quickly ascended to 4,000m. We stopped off for some coca tea to help with the altitude. We also stopped along the way to take photos of Vicuña, alpaca and llama, a nearly frozen lagoon with a few ducks and geese. We also stopped to try to find the native rabit sunning itself on rocks.
This we managed to do before it noticed us and bounded away. They have quite a long tail, unlike ordinary rabits. We stopped for a buffet lunch in Chivay, had a walk around the square and visited the church where there was a large pipe organ with wooden pipes. Finally arrived at our hotel for the next 2 nights, had a rest and then set off for a walk into the surrounding hillside to view pre inca grave sites. The bones were clearly visible and you could see the deformities that wrapping the childrens heads to make them look like the gods had created. (See the skulls in the new Indiana Jones movie).
After dinner David went back to the room as he was not feeling well and Catriona stayed up to play a couple of games of backgammon with Gui, which she wone 2 out of 3 games.

1st - 5.30am wake up today to get to the Colca Canyon to see the Andean condors. The Colca Canyon is the deepest in the world, we viewed it from the top. We made it to the condor cross which is the best place to view the condors, we were not dissapointed. We had an hour there watching first one then six of them soaring around overhead looking for food. We both managed to get many good photos of the condors. We then had a walk along the cliff edge to another viewpoint where we had a group photo. Headed back to Chivay for lunch, stopping off in Maca where we visited a colonial church that had been rebuilt after 1998 earthquake. In the evening we headed off to the thermal pools for a dip and a drink of Colca sour, similar to pisco sour but the sour part made from a local cactus fruit instead of lemmon.
On the way we had a slow trip as all the farmers were on their way home with heards of sheep, donkeys and cows. Very nice. Lastly off to dinner at a resteraunt in Chivay where they put on a show of local dancing and music. We left just as they were starting to get audience participation going.

2nd Back to Arequipa where we arrived at around midday. We had some lunch before heading off to the Monasterio de Santa Catalina of the Santa Catalina Convent. It was started in 1579 as a convent for cloistered nuns. We spent the afternoon there wandering in and out all the little rooms, it was very interesting.
Went to the pictures in the afternoon to see the latest Indiana Jones movie then dinner and then off to the night bus to Nasca.