Bonkers britains and big brown birds

Crazy local entertainment
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So, having arrived off the all night bus from Ica to Arequipa, where amazingly I slept the whole night (and Emily, she slept ´not so well´ as she woke up rather than slept through – what I call sleeping the whole night!) we rolled into the bus station. Today we really wantd to go to the Colca canyon to see condors fly, but this was 6 hours away so is a 2 day thing. Had planned to get a bus, but this tour was leaving at 8am (ten minutes away!) so we though why not?

Mad. We got on the tour, having dashed across city to get on it, and met many sour faces as we arrived 20 mins late for everyone else. Oops. Knew it was not our sort of thing when five minutes in the tour guide made us all introduce ourselves by name and country! Some Spanish, Germans (who got sick so we didn´t see them), 3 mad American girls who I thought were 20 but apparently were 26 and teachers!  English people who I thought were 40 but had children of 26 so I guess not. They never spoke a word of Spanish, even when buying things off poor country people, who embarrassingly (for us anyway!) knew more English than they did Spanish! A French girl who spoke neither English nor Spanish so the bilingual guide was not much use for her! Etc etc.

They were very nice people, just with a little less, I dont know, drive? Education?

Beautiful girl. Beautifultour
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It was odd to be on a tour. Completely different people to those we had met so far, and you never really have to think for yourself. We arrived at Chivay the first day after many photos stops (we just wanted to sleep!) and got shepherded into ‘restaurante touristico’ :-( ! Had the buffet where alpaca meat (apparently good for lowering cholesterol!) and guinea pig where on offer. We sampled the former but I didn´t love it. Em thinks it tastes like liver. Went to our hostel which was nice enough, and then set about finding ourselves a collectivio to get up to the hot springs (the others went on a walk, but we declined, as the altitude had set in again, we went over a pass of 4000m having come from the coast and my head!) and the town was amazing. Wandered round all over the place asking people and got pointed in every different direction, Em got water thrown over her in the market (we hope it was water!), and ended up getting a ´cheap´taxi in desperation, where we obviously drove right past the cheap collectivios!

Andean Condor 1
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The hot springs were ok, but not a patch on the ones in Ecuador. Interestingly, in E, many people were large and no one cared. Here, they were all skinny and the men incredibly lecherous. We went through all 5 pools till we found one with mostly tourists, so no more leching!

Tacked back onto the tour to go to the restaurant for the night. Here the had ´folk´ dancing, the usual tourist tour stuff, where I got dragged up 3 times (and dragged Em up too) to perform so odd hopping on the spot routine. We declined the discoteque offer and went rapidly to bed!

Andean Condor 2
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5am start. Man knocking on the door. Have discovered  morning in not Emily´s best time! (She is just as bad EH). Had same nice bread, tea and jam for breakfast then headed off for the purpose of this painful tour, the Andean Condors!

I do exaggerate. They were very nice people, just with a little less, I don´t know, drive? Education? I am not sure. I think it is easy to come here, stay in a nice hotel, speak English and have everything arranged for you, but I didn´t realize this until today.

Andean Condor 3
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Anyway, stopped in a few places on the way to condors – villages, terraces on mountains etc, then went to the condor spying place. I am not really a bird fan, and, embarrassingly, am not sure I knew what a condor was before I came here. Now, I know everything there is. They are the heaviest bird to fly, 14 kg for a woman, 17 for a man. Wing span up to 3m, 1m high, can live up to 65 years! We walked for a while, but the highlight was when we were on this rock at the top, and it was a condor fly by! These huge birds flew within 3m of our faces (I was lying on my back. Em was obv taking the ace photos!). It was amazing. I am not sure the shots will justify but let´s hope. I am very excited about going to the rainforest for more wildlife! (I did however get this large bug, large, land on me, with a stick like nose positioned to punch over my leg! I didn´t know what to do, but this lady said íf you try and knock it off it will sting you´ (or stick that horrible thing in me) then prepared to take a photos of it on my thigh! I gave her short shrift and brushed the thing off! I think I attract them. In the bus station, in Trujillio, a locust-cockroach thing appeared down my neck! Freaked em out more than me though, she kept checking hers!).

ANYway, after much condor spotting, and we were very lucky there, we got back on the bus to see more sights, more photos stops, and another restaurante turistico. Miserably failed the guides´ quiz (the Americans were just too good, or keen!), we tipped as she was LOVELY and very enthusiastic. Really nice lady, and actually one of the best tours (of the few) we have been on. Got the bus back to Arequipa, where we are now.

It is known as the white city because it is made of white stone that sparkles in the sunlight (or apparently as it was mostly white Spanish people not Incas). Our hostel is like, palatial. We are paying the same as we have so far, but it is just amazing. It has this cool roof terrace which is metal stairs up to this round platform above the city. Tomorrow is my birthday so am hoping for cake up there. We are not sure where we are going to find candles…..! Also, it has heat, closer etc so Em is very excited! (Just to clarify, and make me sound less ínteresting´, those are celebrity gossip magazines she´s refering to EH). Plan on doing some riding tomorrow afternoon, and some shopping and general city stuff. This is the nicest city by so far we have been in so far, and we stay right by the central plaza. The following day we hope to climb El Misti, the volcano, for 3 days, before jetting off to Cuzco (on a bus :( 16 hours I think!) to meet Petter :) :) :)