Arequipa: A Week in the White City

On my walking tour of the city we visited an alpaca factory where they had demonstrations of traditional fiber work. I have seen old ladies sitting on the roadside in high mountain pass villages working these spindles with their brilliantly colored yarn, it was cool to see it up close!

         I had seen postings from friends who had passed through Peru's second largest city, situated in the high desert just below the Andes. A lot of them raved about the city. I spent about a week in and out of this town, staying for a day or so before I hopped out to explore the incredible array of nature adventure activities that are within easy reach from here. So to say the least I wasn't all that interested in the city itself, I was focused more on bagging my first 20,000ft peak and hiking the world's second deepest canyon. 

          I will say this however: Personally, I found the city to be a little lackluster. Its a great jumping point for all kinds of adventure, with two accessible peaks (Chachani at 6000m, and Misti at 5800m) and the world's second deepest canyon, Colca, a few hours away by bus. There are also tons of opportunities to go rafting, zip lining, etc, etc. (all posted in thousands of tour guide shops splattered across the downtown like a plague).

       The city itself is called the "White City" because its historic center is made from carved local volcanic rock. It is more of a grey color than white. The other Americans I met seemed to agree that the grey tint of the rocks, combined with (what is really quite standard) wrought iron grills over most of the windows, reminded us a bit too much of a prison. And most of the buildings looked like that. The city has few incredible architectural monuments, although the cathedral in the main square is quite well done. Apart from that, the majority of the buildings have a squat, grey look about them.

One highlight of the city is that the food is good, with close proximity to both the coast and mountain cultures, there is often a great fusion of the styles. I usually can't afford the types of places where you would notice this since I go more for the six sole special of the day so I can save my money for more interesting stuff. Like climbing snowcapped volcanoes or hiking super canyons. WAY more fun than spending that money on a rich meal in my opinion. I did however climb out of my slummy lunch places a couple of times to sample the finer portions, and I gotta say that I was pleasantly surprised!

            The day after I got down from Chachani, I  managed to crawl out of bed in time for a free walking tour (despite what I was pretty sure was developing frostbite from my mountain climbing). Unfortunately, the tour itself was pretty lackluster compared to other tours I've taken in the region. It avoided the main square, but it did take us to a pretty cool collective llama and alpaca wool factory. Here the guide walked us through the process of making all those pretty scarves and sweaters you can buy EVERYWHERE in Peru. From live exhibitions of the types of Alpacas (which, fun fact, are members of the camel family... so yeah, that explains why they look funny and spit a lot), to mountains of sheared wool in all of its natural 33 colors, to demonstrations of traditional herbal dyeing and weaving techniques, this part of the tour was really cool.

              During the tour, I managed to meet some really fun Aussies staying at another hostel. We met back up and I passed on a few tips for Cusco later that night over a fine 5 sole meal of tallarin saltado at a sketchy Chinese restaurant downtown. Still exhausted from Chachani, I declined an offer to go back to their place for drinks, and instead I went back to pack my bags for an early morning departure for Colca Canyon (about 6 hours by bus). I feel like I did Arequipa an injustice by my lack of enthusiasm for the city itself, but its hard to appreciate cramped concrete quarters when the magnificent wilderness of the Peruvian Andes is calling on every horizon. Perhaps another time I can return to romance the city as she deserves.                   But... not this time. Off to COLCA CANYON!

The bright peachy coloring here in the main cathedral felt... out of place to say the least.

The main cathedral in a bright clear morning!

Chachani Peak in all of its 6000m glory peaking out from behind some clouds, as seen from the courtyard of the San Franciscan Monestary.

[In Dark Knight Batman Voice] "Sometimes you have to be the hero Arequipa NEEDS, but not the hero Arequipa WANTS."     Dununununununaaaa Alpaca Man!

Plenty of graffiti here! Sadly no large murals.

The "European" white walled streets of Arequipa's oldest neighborhood.

A little baby alpaca. Baby alpaca wool actually comes from the first shear of an alpaca's life, around their second birthday. If you sheared it earlier the baby would die of exposure in the harsh weather of the Andes.

A type of Alpaca known as the "Bob Marley" alpaca for its dread-locked appearance.

Spindles and the natural sources of their coloring.

A line of Alpaca wool yarn, hung up to display its many colors derived from natural sources of dye.

My guide describes the importance of the geometric patterns found in Peruvian weavings.

A fanciful gargoyle sits perched above the streets, waiting for a rainy day.

The Arequipa Cathedral

A plaque on the wall of the Arequipa Cathedral.

Literally a mountain of Alpaca fur waiting to be sorted at the factory... women are used to sort it because they can better discern the quality of fibers by touch alone. There are also 33 natural colors.

Arequipa is located southwest of Cusco, where I was working for about a month. Its on the western edge of the Andes, situated in the high desert with easy access to the coast.