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Other entries in Arequipa

The White City

Waking up early morning, with the waves still crashing along the beach, I unzipped the tent door to find the most beautiful sun rise...... like a dream, surreal and lucid through my half open and sleepy eyes. Wrapped in my sleeping bag, I sat there with the tent door half open watching the light shine into the tent and appreciating the tranquility of that moment.

As we approached the city, we could see the three mountains loom over Arequipa. One is a recently active volcano called Misti, a Quechua approximation of the English "mister." A sign of respect, I assume, for the volcano that could wreck the city. To its side sits the 6,000-meter Chachi, meaning "dressed in white," though it appears global warming has reduced the snow to more of a white sombrero. Pichupichu stands in the distance.

We checked into Las Mercedes Hotel, the most beautiful and charming hotel so far. After a walk around this elegant city we had our evening meal at Zig Zag Restaurant. The restaurant building is amazing too, located in the historic centre of Arequipa opposite the beautiful Plaza San Francisco. Its interior decoration, within a former colonial house, has a very special artistic style, with its main attraction being the joining of the two floors by the legendary and fantastic iron staircase, designed by non other than the famous French architect Gustave Alexandre Eiffel. We enjoyed a very unusual meal of alpaca (which looks like a llama) and ostrich meat presented on a steaming hot plate by the most attentive waiters and waitresses in the world!

The next day was spent admiring the beauty of the colonial architecture. Santa Catalina is probably the city's top attraction. The former convent (a very small part of it is still used by nuns) was built by the nobility for their daughters, who prayed in luxury. A visit to Zig Zag Creperie was a real treat, a perfect retreat for breakfast or lunch. Arequipa is a city you could roam around for days; I didn't get to do nearly as much of this as I would have liked. The streets are busy, lively and safe. There are several interesting museums and churches (being a Catholic city there are so many churches), and one of the prettiest plazas. Walking around the back of the cathedral, there is a pedestrian street with bars and cafe that offer eye-level views of the cathedral towers.

With its somewhat European feel, it was a nice place to rest and read a book in a cafe for a few hours, or to catch up on my travel journaling. More so than any other city in Peru, I wish I had more time in Arequipa. It is known as the white city because most of the buildings are built with a concrete made from ash produced by the nearby volcano.

Tomorrow we travel to Chivay via condor watching at Calca Canyon.

Useful Information for Travelers:

Las Mercedes Hotel. Av. La Marina 1001, Vallecito, Arequipa, Peru. Tel: (054) 213 601. Web: www.arequipa-tourism.com/hostal/lasmercedes.html. Hostal Las Mercedes is the most charming little place! Nice gardens, well maintained, quiet rooms, and excellent staff. It is an old mansion with style and very nice antique furniture including an original Victrola gramophone. It is located an easy 10-minutes walk from the Plaza de Armas.

Zig Zag Restaurant. Zela 210, Cercado, Peru. Tel: 00 51 54 206020. Web: www.zigzagrestaurant.com. The culinary concept at Zig Zag has been specially created in order to enjoy different types of meat, such as beef, alpaca and ostrich. Open daily from 6pm - midnight.

Cusco Coffee Company. La Merced 135, Cerado, Arequipa, Peru.  Latin Americas answer to Starbucks, even though I prefer Pret a Manger coffee, they serve excellent coffee.  One block from the Plaza, it's a virtual Starbucks in the middle of Latin America. The menu listed cup sizes as "short, tall, grande" and the lounge area featured leather couches with glass tables.

As well as the many wonderful bacony and rooftop restaurants arounf Plaza Amas, Calle San Francisco has some amazing restarants and bars: Deja Vu, Zero, Istanbul, Colibri, Mistica and Pizza Piazza (with its wood fired clay oven) are just a few places that had interesting menu's and drinks.

Recomended by Wikitravel:

• The Plaza de Armas, the main square of Arequipa, surrounded by buildings made of sillar, a white volcanic stone.

• Visit some of the many markets in the centre of Arequipa.

• See Juanita Mummy. From May to November the main exhibit is the Dama de Ampato, also known as Juanita. Found close to the main square is the Museum of the Catholic University, with the interesting exhibition of frozen bodies of sacrificial victims found in the neighbouring volcanoes.

• Visit the Catholic colonial-era Convento de Santa Catalina. It is quite close to the Plaza de Armas.

• One of the newest attractions is the Convento de Santa Teresa, a little off the usual tourist areas in downtown Arequipa. Not as interesting architectonically as Santa Catalina, some of the paintings and artifacts are stunning.

• Nearby, in the old countryside, is the Molino de Sabandía (Sabandía Mill), a three centuries old water mill, set in the old Arequipa countryside.

The local booze is Anis Najar, or aniseed liquor. Chicha is normally a fermented, corn-based drink, that can be around 8 percent alcohol, but is normally weaker. The local beer is called Arequipeña. It's good compared to other South American beer. The local soft drink is Kola Escocesa, not as sweet as Inca Kola. There is abundance of diet and water drinks in the city and even in smaller towns around. Also try Pisco sour which is a Peruvian cocktail. As well as Inca Kola, which is a Peruvian soft drink.

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