Peru!
Photos : Arequipa
Day 182 Mon 28/2 Arica/ Tacna/ Arequipa
Took a taxi to Tacna from Arica after a good breakfast. Left Arica at 9 am and arrived at around 11 am in Tacna. Since Peru is about 2 hours behind Chile, it meant that I had plenty of time to get to Arequipa before night fall.
The trip from Arica to Tacna went smoothly. I had expected the border crossings to take some time, but the formalities were quite easy on both sides of the border. Plenty of buses run from Tacna to Arequipa and I hopped on one at 9:45. I managed to nod off and missed most of the scenery in the 7 hour ride. The bus ride wasnt comfortable as the A/C was broken and I couldnt open my window! It was a good 28 degrees C inside.
When I did wake up, I got talking to a couple of Americans sitting next to me. We headed to a hostel and enjoyed a stroll and a cheap, but tasty Chinese dinner together, after the formalities of checking in and a nice shower.
Day 183 Tue 1/3 Arequipa
Started the day with a great breakfast with some tasty fresh fruit juice. Spent most of the day wandering around, finding a tour to trek Colca Canyon, changing money and relaxing. Arequipa is the second largest city in Peru and the city centre is really pretty, with some beautiful colonial buildings. People seem friendly and the shop owners are ready to chat.
After a nice dinner, we headed to bed early since the van would pick us up at 3 am to head out to Cabanaconde, where we would start the trek.
Tags: Travel
Damu