A few things we’ve been doing

Trekking the Colca Canyon with a fever

Attempting to trek the Colca Canyon in two days rather than three (post Inca Trail) was already a stretch. Add to that two fevers and Chris and I were in pieces! The last three and a half hours were probably amongst the worst in my life, and yet, despite this, I will remember the trek very fondly! Our first stop was to watch condors sore through the canyon and they were so impressive. HUGE wing span, incredibly graceful and ugly faces! The hike then takes you down into the canyon (one of the world’s deepest), through the tiny villages at the bottom and to an oasis to spend the night. The oasis was wonderful to reach. Each place has its own pool and lots of tropical plants. The next morning we were up at 4.30am to start the climb and it was SO hard and relentless! Reaching the top three and a half hours later we were done. The 30 minute walk to breakfast (despite being flat) was not appreciated!

Visiting a Monastery in Arequipa

Quoted as a ‘mustn’t miss’ we thought we’d pop along to the Santa Catalina Monastery and I’m so pleased we did. The place is stunning. A maze-like network of small rooms and alleyways leading to hidden gardens, terraces and courtyards. And all of the walls were beautifully painted, full of colour and surrounded by plants. It was one of the most relaxing experiences I have had in a big city. You can’t hear anything and it’s such a calming atmosphere. It’s also fun when you spot one of the surrounding snow covered mountains over one of the walls.

Sandbuggying and Sandboarding in Huacachina

I thought that oasis’s in the middle of the desert were a bit of a myth. More common as metaphor than reality. However, Huacachina is a real life honest to goodness oasis. A lake fringed by palm trees and surrounded by enormous sand dunes it was a picture postcard oasis. We spent a few very chilled days here mainly lounging in hammocks, and playing with the children (Jasmine and Rose) of the Cornwallian owner of our hostel. The dunes are also great for a spot of sandbuggying and boarding. Top tip; sandboarding is not as fun as snowboarding and much harder. However, lying on your stomach on a sandboard is much more fun!

Killing time in Lima

We hadn’t heard a single good thing said about Lima. In fact a travelling friend said ‘never have I visited such an uninspiring place, apart from Hull.’ We only stopped for one day in between two night buses but actually we quite liked it. Helped by the fact that we stayed in Miraflores which is the nicest neighbourhood and next to Barranco which is quite bohemian and good to look at, we really enjoyed our time there. Beautiful parks line the cliff tops and paragliders do their thing above your heads. And Lima is home to great food of which we enjoyed a lot thanks to remaining birthday money!

And now we’re in Huanchaco where we’re volunteering for a month. We have a beautiful home, a view of the sea and some amazing sunsets. More on it all soon.

McSmiths