Despite the late night sleep, we woke relatively early with the sun streaming in through the thin curtains. We had breakfast at the hostel before heading out around 1000 for a brief exploration, dropping off laundry and changing money.
We spent a bit of time around Plaza de Armas before taking a tour of the Cathedral. A guide was compulsory and we were shown some of the treasures, jewels and tapestries before being taken to the roof top for a good view of the square and the mountains.
We had lunch at one of the many restaurants located on the verandah surrounding the square, overlooking the cathedral. Most offer set meals for 15 soles which we find good value (but one can get set meals for 6 soles in the back streets).
Arequipa at 2350 m (7710 ft) is a good introduction to the higher altitudes to come. We were slightly breathless at times but otherwise fine. We both felt lie a siesta and did that before taking a free walking tour of the city (for a tip).
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- The old centre of Arequipa.
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- Plaza de Armas.
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- Cathedral facade.
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- Arequipa Cathedral in the city’s main square, Plaza de Armas.
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- Inside the Cathedral.
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- Inside the Cathedral; Black Jesus.
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- On the Cathedral roof top.
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- Plaza de Armas from the Cathedral rooftop.
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- View from the Cathedral roof top.
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- View from the Cathedral roof top.
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- Inside the Cathedral.
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- Commemorative note on the Municipal Theatre.
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- Around the old city of Arequipa.
The excellent tour started at Santa Catalina monastery. We were taken the Jesuit church and few historic museums as an introduction rather than a proper walk-through. It was a really good orienteering in terms of what sights to see later, and we also learnt a bit about local beliefs.
What we enjoyed most was the market. We were shown various fruits and learnt various things, eg. the cherimoya is smaller and sweeter than the soursop (or whatever they call it here). People love boiled frog soup mixed into their fruit juices.
Locals practice their traditional believes alongside Catholicism. Hence, people may buy little symbols of their wishes and take it to church to put beneath a saint. Also, dried alpaca foetuses and various models (cars, houses, money, statues of bride and groom) are used as part of their rituals to get what they deisre.
We finished up near a bridge where the local equivalent of caravanserais were located. These are protected by UNESCO world heritage and cannot be modified. Hence they are let out as windowless low-cost studio apartments where people live, cook and sleep.
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- Arequipa market.
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- Arequipa market; dried bird for traditional rituals.
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- Arequipa market; alpaca foetus for traditional rituals.
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- Fruits at the market.
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- Wide range of potatoes.
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- Local love frog soup mixed into a drink.
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- Juice section of market.
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- Bread with faces; part of traditional rituals.
We grabbed dinner at another of the verandah restaurants but it wasn’t as good. It had been a good day exploring such a lovely city; we were glad we had allocated plenty of time here.
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- Plaza de Armas by night.
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- Cathedral by night.
