Took another sleeper bus from Nazca to Arequipa … another 7hr journey. At least, the bus was comfortable and it had these lovely reclining seats … more comfy than what you get in cattle-class on the planes.
So, I booked on to a 1-day tour of the Colca Canyon … and boy, was I blown away!!! Get ready for it … this is going to be a long post lol
Colca Canyon is simply jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring beauty!!! The landscape is simultaneously lush, stark, gorgeous and intimidating. For me, all I could think was how much back-breaking work it must have taken to sculpt the terraces into the mountain sides.
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| Approaching Pinchollo |
The tour started out through an area called ‘Pinchollo’ (pronounced ‘Pinchoyo’). Pinchollo apparently translates to 'coward' or 'small penis' ... the surrounding tribes used this derogatory form in an attempt to demoralize the Pinchollo tribesmen...I am assuming that this was pure penis-envy ... any man who can work the land to make it this beautiful is no coward in my book lol
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| Lush terraces! |
The graceful terraced farmlands were bursting with brilliant shades of green. These terraces were constructed so that the inclination of each level facilitates the flow of water through the levels. Also, the stone arrangements at the top of each terrace filters the water as it passes through.
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| Stunning vista |
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| Snow-capped mountain in the background |
Next we head to Cruz del Condor, where we are told that if we are lucky, we might glimpse an Andean Condor soaring on the currents rising off the canyon.
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| Sipping coca tea at Cruz del Condor |
We were extremely lucky … we saw not one, but THREE condors that day.
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| Everytime I remembered to reach for the camera, they were already a speck in the distance lol |
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| My travel buddies, David (Austria) and Laura (Brazil) |
We then had a pit-stop at a village called ‘Maca’, which is apparently located on a geological fault line. The village has been destroyed twice by earthquakes, but the hardy villagers just rebuild it and carry on with life as usual.
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| Inside the church at Maca village |
Here, we got to taste the local ‘cocktail’ … a brew made from the juice of the Sancayo cactus. It tasted like kiwi-juice to me lol
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| Making the local cocktail - Colca Sour |
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| Pancho, the llama, and his agent |
Random Fact: Although they breed cattle livestock, the Peruvians on the Colca Canyon do not eat beef, only alpaca and llama. Their main purpose for having cattle is the production of milk and bulls. The bulls are used to plow the fields and they also star in the local bull-running festivals. However, unlike in the Spanish bull-running festivals, these bulls are not injured or killed ... sweet!!
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| En-route to Yanque |
After Maca village, we headed to Yanque. On the way there, our guide pointed out the Colca Lodge, nestled in the valley. It’s a high-end hotel in the middle of nowhere where a suite will set you back $2,800 per night … nice one!!! Who are these people who book into a place like this??? I want to be like them when I grow up lol
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| Colca Lodge |
Main highlight at Yanque was a stop at the hot springs. Again, the landscape was fantastic, this time there was a beautiful crystalline stream cutting through the rocks.
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| Beautiful (and cold) crystalline stream. |
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| Hot Spring and Spa at Yanque |
There was a suspension bridge at our stop point. Our guide told us a story about how there used to be human sacrifices (back in the day) during the construction of bridges.
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| Suspension bridge at Yanque |
They used children in these sacrifices, as it was believed that the pure souls of these offerings would intertwine in death and provide strong and solid support for the bridges. Thankfully, nowadays, they simply rely on good engineering skills to serve the same purpose.
After Yanque, we head to the ‘Mirador de Los Andes Tramo de la Cordillera Volcanica en los Andes Centrales’ … basically, it’s an observation spot where you can see the ice-topped tips of several of the volcanic mountains in the Central Andes section … a real mouthful lol
The Mirador is 4910m above sea level. The air up here is thin, the wind fierce and icy … breathing here is not a fun experience…brrrrrrr!
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| Mirador de Los Andes Tramo de la Cordillera Volcanica en los Andes Centrales |
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| En-route to the Mirador |
From the Mirador, we could see: Volcan Misti (5825m) / Volcan Chanchani (6075m) / Volcan Ampato (6288m) / Volcan Sabancayo (5956m) / Volcan Hualca Hualca (6025m)
‘Juanita – The Ice Princess’, the frozen body of a sacrificed Inca maiden, was discovered on Nevado Ampato in 1995.
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| Yummy, yummy lunch ... can't recall the individual items but it was delish :) |
We then head back to Chivay for a delicious buffet lunch of local fare.
Once faces were all stuffed, bladders relieved and hands washed, it was back on the bus for a lovely post-lunch snooze and the drive back to Arequipa.
Totally fab day :)
