That'll be condors then

Condor in canyon
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And to Arequipa... After an overnight bus from Cusco, we were pretty tired. However after messing up our flight dates we had to start a tour that morning if we wanted to go to Colca Canyon.

So off we set. It was a two day, 1 night trip. mainly on a minibus (not quite the trekking we were intending to do if we had not messed up our dates but at least we still got to go).

The first day of the trip took us through a few small villages. We had lunch in Chivay, where we were staying that night. Then went to the hot springs. It had been pretty cold all day so very nice to submerge in the 37degree pools. Spent about an hour there then back to the hotel.

Canyon
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Up very early the next morning (5am) as the best time to see he condors is in the morning. The journey to the viewpoint took along the edge of the beautiful valley, through a few more small towns and along the edge of the very canyon. Amazing views all the way. We reached the Cruz Del Condor point around 8.30am.

It was a fairly clear morning when we arrived although there were already clouds building in the bottom of the canyon. We sat with lots of others waiting..... After about 30 minutes we caught a glimpse of two adult birds in the distance. they were heading our way. They glided past directly in front of us. Such big and impressive birds, it was breathtaking to see them so close. A few circles around our heads in the thermals and they were gone.

Colca Canyon
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As we got back in the bus we spotted some more, this time a juvenile bird (brown instead of black and white). This was shortly followed by another 3 adults circling overhead. Beautiful.

Time to head back. Drove back along the edge of the canyon, stopping at a few of the best viewpoints. After lunch in Chivay we headed back to Arequipa.

that night we decided to try out a few of the bars in Arequipa. We got quite into the pisco sours (made with egg white). I even got to make my own in one of the bars. Out for some traditional food - stuffed peppers and chiviche (raw fish in lemon juice). Very nice.

Tourist trap
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Arequipa seemed like a very pretty city with lots to see and do. Yet again another place we wish we could have spent longer in...