Flying Condor, originally uploaded by Andrew & Yvette's world travel.
Arequipa was a bit of a disappointment. Our guidebook labeled the city as “irresistibly sexy for the grand colonial buildings made of an off white volcanic rock called sillar that dazzles in the sun”. Those buildings however have either been demolished and/or graffitied. Still cool though was the Museo Santuary where Juanita the Frozen Ice Princess is housed. Juanita is the name given to the frozen body of an Inca maiden sacrificed on the summit of Mt. Ampato 500 years ago.
While here, we also took a 2 day tour to see the Canon del Colca (Colca Canyon) which is the site of the world’s 2nd deepest canyon at 3191m. The deepest canyon in the world though is not at Grand Canyon, it’s at Canon del Cotahuasi which was 3 bumpy hours away (didn’t get to see). These 2 canyons are more than twice as deep as the ones in Grand Canyon so we were definitely encouraged to stay away from the edge.
Another cool thing hiking through the Canon was the Cruz del Condor viewpoint where Andean Condors aplenty swept low over our heads. It was a mesmerizing scene, heightened by the 1200m drop to the river below and the sight of Volcan Mismi reaching over 3000m above the canyon floor on the other side of the ravine.
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