Inca Kola

There are no words to describe Inca Kola, the soft drink of choice of most Peruvians. It tastes like bubble gum, which reminds me of the fluoride treatments I used to get at the dentist's office when I was younger. One taste of the stuff two years ago was all I needed to leave a lasting impression, but Peruvians love the stuff! The color is not necessarily the most appetizing either- somewhat close to the color of Mountain Dew...

Family and friends, prepare yourself for bottles in your stockings this Christmas!

Colca Valley and Condor Crossing

Colca Canyon is located in southern Peru, about 100 miles outside of Arequipa. While different sources share different information, it appears that Colca Canyon is twice the depth of the Grand Canyon at 11,150 feet, though the walls of the canyon aren't as vertical as those of the Grand Canyon. Some say that the Colca Valley is one of the most scenic areas in all of Peru. One Peruvian novelist named it the "Valley of Wonders." We decided to take a two-day tour to see for ourselves.

We boarded our tour bus at around 8:00 am, and then picked up about 10 other people before we began our 4 hour drive up to the Colca Valley. The roads were dusty and bumpy as we began the climb, but I had a Skype call to some kids at Ivy Hill to look forward to early in the journey. Although my Internet connection wasn't as strong as I would have liked, it was wonderful to see so many familiar faces in the garden at Ivy that morning. It's amazing to think that we were able to video-conference across two different continents while I traveled by bus through the Andes!

As we took the long route through the National Park Reserva Nacional Salinas y Aguada Blanca, we passed some of the gorgeous snow-capped volcanoes that the area is known for, though I believe most of them are now dormant. They are quite a sight!

We got out of the bus along the route when we saw vicuñas grazing on the short dry grasses alongside the road. They are pretty little animals, known to graze around the area, and illegal to kill due to their decreasing numbers. The fur of the vicuña is said to make the softest and best wool in the world- a scarf made of vicuña wool costs approximately $1,500!

Shortly after, we stopped to use restrooms and I grabbed a cup of mate de coca to try to combat altitude sickness. (It appears I have an allergic reaction to the altitude sickness medication I got in the US, as it was causing my hands and feet to tingle.) The coca leaf acts as a mild sedative that one can chew on or drink before and while in high altitudes. I'm not convinced it works for me, but thought I would be better off to try!

Unfortunately, the mate de coca didn't help me soon enough, and altitude sickness got a hold of me while continuing our journey. With a raging headache, horrible nausea, and a good bout of hot and cold sweats, I was able to fall asleep for a bit. Besides headaches that lasted for the rest of the trip, I felt much better after my nap, but I know I missed a lot of incredible scenery along the way.

Feeling pretty sick, but didn't want to miss an alpaca picture!

We passed through several small towns on the way to and from Colca Canyon. They are apparently 14 of these remote traditional colonial-era villages- quaint dusty towns (several without electricity), that are only distinguished by their beautiful white stone churches. Many women and men wear traditional dress in town, and several are now making a living selling handicrafts to the tourists coming through the area.

The views along the route were incredible! There are terraced agricultural slopes that predate the Incas,  desert landscapes and vegetation, and then the mountains. And lucky for me, I had my new camera from the Ivy Hill community to capture some of the views!

We spent the night in the village of Chivay, which is the main town in the valley. It sits at an altitude of nearly 3,600 m (11,800 ft.). It's a sleepy little town, but had its own beauty nestled in the mountains.

Prepared for the cold evening in Chivay

Pozo del Cielo, a great little hotel in Chivay

In Chivay, we walked around town enjoying the views and the people and animals that were out and about. I decided to hike up to the top of a foothill to see the views from this watchtower. 

Cindy and the Running of the Sheep!

We spent the evening at a great little restaurant that served mostly Peruvian fare. Cindy tried alpaca (which I tried two years ago) and I had spaghetti! (I do attempt to try traditional and local foods, but as a former vegetarian, I still have a few quirky food habits that don't make all the menu items very appealing to me!)

Cindy preparing to try the alpaca. No thank you!

I couldn't eat the alpaca, but I did enjoy a nice

hot local beverage with coca in it, preparing for

the next day's journey to the Condor Cross.

We enjoyed some traditional Peruvian music...

... and Peruvian dancing!

We visited another few villages on the way up to Condor Cross the next morning and made a few new friends along the way!

And on to the grand finale! Cruz del Condor (aka Condor Cross) lookout point is 3,937 feet above the Colca River. We gathered with others at around 9:00 am to look for the Andean Condors that take flight from their cliff perches in the canyon. The Andean Condor is a national symbol of Peru. It is an enormous bird with a wingspan of up to 10.5 feet and it can live for up to 100 years. Incredible! We watched the canyon and ended up seeing condors taking flight about 5 times. They were just beautiful. Here are a few of my favorite pictures!

We hiked around for awhile, exploring the immense canyon, enjoying the views, and breathing in the fresh air.

And to finish off the day, I tried my first cactus fruit- tuna!  I was expecting something bitter, but it didn't have as much flavor as I thought it would have. 

I can't wait to go back and spend some more time hiking through the Colca Valley. Other than the small bit of altitude sickness, it was a great trip!