Taking in Arequipa

After sleeping for 12 hours straight I was feeling a bit better the following morning and decided to take in the sites of Arequipa. And check in with the tour agency about the trip to Colca Canyon. But first I needed a bit of nourishment. I walked to the local market and bought a big bottle of some yogurt drink. Then bought a banana and some small peaches from the women selling fruit near the plaza. For the next hour I chilled in the plaza, ate my breakfast, and watched the city go by.

Feeling well-nourished, it was time to see what Arequipa had to offer. First stop: Juantia, the Ice Princess. Over 500 years ago an Inca maiden was sacificed on the summit of Ampato mountian, most likely to appease the gods rocking the local volcanoes. The Incas did this with many children to appease gods who might kill them with volcanic eruptions, avalanches or earthquakes. Juanita was discovered by trekkers climbing the mountain, two weeks after she was shaken loose from her grave by a volcanic eruption. Almost perfectly mummified becaue of the ice, she is now housed in a frozen glass casing, along with many of the items she was burried with, in the Museo Santury in Arequipa. Although pictures were prohibited, the tour was vey interesting and gave a lot of insight to the practice of sacrifice and the reverence involved. The sacrificed children were raised to be offerings to the gods and were honored to do so. Though the journey to the top of the mountain and the bitter cold of it all probably didn´t reduce any of the anxiety the children felt, the blow to the head before the burrial probably did help reduce the anxiety...

Before seeing any more on the city I wanted to check in with the tour agency. They still had no other interests for the hike and suggested I come back at 3pm. I said I needed to leave by the next day and that if no one had signed up by then, I would need to check elsewhere. There was a recommened agency next door (but it was closed the previous day) and I was hoping no one came within that time so I could check there. But I told the agency I would check back at three.

Next I decided to visit Arequipa`s biggest tourist draw: the Monastario de Santa Catalina, a convent founded in 1579 by a wealthy widow for nuns chosen from the wealthiest Spanish families in Peru. It was opened to the public in 1970 in order to raise money. The place is huge - it takes up an entire city block and is like a city within a city. One could spend hours walking around the complex. I will leave all the details to be explained along with the pictures in the link below. Needless to say, it was a pretty amazing place and with relatively few tourists that day, a meditatively quiet way to spend an afternoon. I paid a bit extra for a private guide who filled me in on all the details.

It was getting late when I finally finished the tour and so I rushed over to the agency to see what news they had for me. Still no one. I told them thanks for trying and went next door. Within 10 minutes I was signed up for a 3 day tour of Colca Canyon leaving at 5:30 the next morning with three dutch backpackers. I needed to be in Puno in three days to sort out my visa requirements for Bolivia, and the agency said they could accommodate that. Basically by dropping me off at a police check point and making sure the police on duty flagged down a bus for me going the opposite direction (tours generally return to the city they depart from). I had no other choice and agreed to go along with that plan.

Tour booked, it was time find some food. I found an entire street of Chinese restaurants (Arequipa`s very own Chinatown) and went with my favorite, chicken and rice, for about a buck twenty. Always full after a chinese dish in South America, I went in search of snacks for the trip and then back to the main plaza to walk around. I noticed that Arequipa had a huge homeless population. It was the first time this made such an impression on me. People and children were begging every where. There were even some gringos walking around with a few homeless children selling small calendars to raise money to support shelter programs. I felt so moved by the number of homeless I couldn´t bring myself to tell them I had already bought a calendar and finished the day with three of them (office mates should expect gifts when I return).

Around 8pm I went back to the hostal to pack for the next day. I needed to get to bed early; my ride to Colca Canyon was picking me up bright and early.

For pictures of Arequipa and details of the Monastary, follow this link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/15233918@N00/sets/72157603596236171/