Arequipa Weekend

by

Wednesday 7th May

I am very sorry for not posting as much recently. It isn’t because I don’t have anything interesting to share, but on the contrary because I have been so busy that I haven’t had time post anything. School has been going well and I am in the middle of my last week, so I will be posting very soon about what we’ve been doing.

Anyways, today I wanted to talk about my last long weekend, as I went to Arequipa (a city in the South of Peru). It was my first time there and I really loved it. On Thursday, it was ‘Dia del Trabajo’ (Labour Day), so we didn’t have school. Therefore, I took a night bus Wednesday night from Cusco and stayed in Arequipa for two days.

I had heard a lot about this city as it is known as the ‘White City’, because of its white buildings and churches. It is also known for having one of the most monasteries in the world: ‘Monasterio de Santa Catalina’. I didn’t have anything I wanted to visit in specific (except for the monastery), so I spent two days just walking around and exploring this beautiful city.

One of my favourite monuments in the city is the Cathedral on the Main Plaza. It is made out of beautiful white stones, like a lot of monuments around Arequipa. I went inside and on top as well where you can see the plaza very well. Unfortunately, the plaza seems to always be covered in pigeons, so I didn’t spend too much time there (since I absolutely hate pigeons), but it was lovely to see from the top.

Cathedral
Cathedral detail
Plaza de Armas from the top of the cathedral

I wander around the city and really love the architecture, which was different from any other city I have visited in Peru so far. All the churches are made of this white stone that I personally love and have very beautiful intricate decorations on the outside. I think I like the outsides of the churches more than the insides, which are a bit too heave in decorations for me. I also noticed a lot of colourful buildings around the city that really brighten up the streets. As you can see from the photos, my hostel had a rooftop terrace that had an amazing view of the Yanuhara district (north of Arequipa). The sunsets were so nice from up there, and they made me quite nostalgic about leaving Peru so soon…

Church in Yanhuara district
Casa del Moral
Casa del Moral
Blue house
Colorful houses 
Iglesia San Francisco

La Compania

Sunset from my hostel

Sunset over Yanuahra district
Additionally, the most popular touristic attraction in Arequipa and one of the things I was looking forward the most to visit is the ‘Monasterio de Santa Catalina’. It is a beautiful a huge and beautiful monastery from when the Spanish colonies invaded Peru. I spent a whole afternoon there, appreciating the calmness and taking way too many photos. I visited all of it and saw where all the nuns used to live. It takes a whole block in the city, and is completely closed, so you really feel like you’re in a little world of your own when you’re in there. The coloured walls really brightened up the whole place and contrasted beautifully with the stone paved streets. Overall, a beautiful place, different from anything I have ever seen before. Definitely worth a visit!
Monastery entrance
Hallway
Blue courtyard
My favorite street

:)
Calle Sevilla
View of the city

Red courtyard
Fountain
Of course, since I love markets, I couldn’t miss the market here. It reminded me of San Pedro’s market in Cusco, as it sold a huge variety of products and was very busy the morning I went there.

Meat aisle
Fruit aisle (my favorite) 
Overall, I think that Arequipa is my favourite city that I have been to in Peru so far, and I was so glad that I went. My adventures continued during the weekend as I hiked Colca Canyon. More about it in my next post :)
Happy times at sunset