After a day in Arequipa we got on a tour to Colca Canyon, the second deepest canyon in the world with another Peruvian canyon on first place and Grand Canyon on third. Colca canyon is mostly visited for the possibility to see condors, but it is also filled with small towns, pre-Inca terraces and beautiful views.
On the way to the canyon we made short stops to watch vicuñas, a llama-like animal, stock up on coca tea and coca candies (good against altitude sickness and perfectly legal since in its natural form the coca leaf doesn't give you "highs" or is addictive).
We arrived in Chivay, a small town in the northeast end of the valley, in time for lunch and then checked in at our hostel. To get a room with a double bed in this country is very easy - you ask for a "matrimonial", then you say you are married and that you in fact are on your honeymoon (luna de miel) - works like a charm every time, hostelowners have even switched beds from one room to another. Also at this hostel it worked, we were given the "married room" according to our guide...
In the afternoon we went to the hot springs, just outside the town, where we soaked our tired bodies in out- and indoor pools for a couple of hours. In the evening we went to a restaurant to see a local dance show in classical turistic style. Of course, both Yarden and I were dragged on to the dancefloor to dance. Wonderful...
Yarden shows his moves on the dance floor
The following day we were up before sunrise in order to get to the Condor Cross early in the morning when the condors are most visible. But we also managed to squeeze in a couple of stops in villages on the way to look at inka terraces, churches, tombs and maybe some shopping... A bit after eight we got out of the bus to take a walk for about 30 mins to the Condor Cross. On the way we saw one condor close by and felt quite happy that we at least had gotten to see one. But when we reached the cross there were condors everywhere. For two hours we stood, together with hundreds of more tourists, with our heads lifted to the sky, our cameras snapping picture after picture and just enjoyed the performance.
Majestic condor
Going in for landing....
The condors are impressive creatures, they can be over 3 meter from one tip of the wing to the other with a weight of 10-15 kg. The young condor is brown and it's only when they are around 7 years old that they change to the characteristic black and white plumes. Since it's so big it has difficulties to take of for flying which is why they stay high up on the mountains so they can use the wind.
Condor couple
Young condor
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