Arequipa & The Colca Canyon (Peru)

Our first stop in Peru was Arequipa, known as ´the white city´because of the white volcanic rock (called sillar) used in many of it´s buildings. It´s a gorgeous city surrounded by mountains and has a lovely central plaza where you can sit and take it all in.

We visited the Monasterio Santa Catalina (photos 3 - 7), a huge convent occupying a whole block of the town (over 20,000sqm!) and guarded by high walls. Although founded over 400 years ago (in 1580) it´s only been open to the public since 1970. We wandered the narrow cobblestone streets of this amazing complex, visiting the nun´s living quarters, passing vividly painted walls and walking through beautiful plazas with fruit trees.

From Arequipa we did a 2 day tour of the nearby Colca Canyon, one of the world´s deepest at 3191m. While visiting the canyon we stayed in a hotel in a tiny village called Yanque where we enjoyed amazing food (like Alpaca steak) cooked by an awesome French chef. Although our visit to the canyon was pretty short we got to see some of the huge condors gliding above it.

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