Afredo Rodríguez Ballón International Airport is the airport for Arequipa city, standing at the base of Misti, the volcano that dominates the horizon.

According to the Peruvian government’s records nearly 600,000 passengers pass through this airport each year.

Bienvenidos a Mi Tierra - Welcome to my Land! A statue welcome visitors as they step off their plane in Arequipa's ariport.

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Arriving at Arequipa Airport with Misti in the background

It is only a short drive by taxi to the city centre.

Volcano Misti, seen from Arequipa Airport runway.

Tourists arriving for the first time can’t resist taking a photo of Misti, the volcano that can be seen from almost everywhere in Arequipa, seen here from the runway of the airport.

Rocoto para relleno - Rocotos for stuffing! For sale in 'El Super', Arequipa

Rocoto chilis are something of a favourite in the  kitchens of Arequipa in Peru.  These fat bulbous peppers look a little like sweet bell peppers but they are firey hot.

Rocotos Grande and Rocotos Enteros

Although Rocotos come in many colours, red ones do look great! In the photo above above you can see two types, the large Rocotos are used for a popular traditional dish called Rocoto Relleno (Stuffed Rocoto), and the smaller variety is just used as an ingredient. If you slice a small rocoto you can just rub it on your food, meat, vegetables and they will be spicy. You don’t have to eat the chili itself.

Here you can see the distinctive black seeds of the Rocoto

If you go to Peru and buy some rocotos, you can slice and dry them. The air in Arequipa is usually quite dry and warm, and if you leave them in the sun after a couple of days they will be dried out.  Cut them horizontally into rings as this allows the water to escape faster.

You could try taking some seeds home (which is illegal in some countries so check first!) but you are probably wasting your time because Rocoto chilis are very hard to grow in other climates. They need to grow in hot places like Arequipa where the climate is quite stable. If you can get some seeds to grow in places like England, they will grow slowly and can easily die in the winter.

LAN Peru jet at Lima Airport

If you want to get around Peru quickly, the best option is to take internal flights. In Peru there are several companies that can get you to and from the major cities.

Peruvian Airlines
LAN Peru
TACA Peru

Peruvian Airlines jet at Lima Aiport

TACA airlines Jet taxiing in Lima airport.

La Iglesia de la Compañía, just off the Plaza de Armas in Arequipa.

Arequipa is the second largest city in Peru. It is often called ‘The White City’ because many of it’s building are made using a local volcanic rock know as Sillar.

If you look at a satellite image of Arequipa or even while you are walking around the city, one thing you will notice is that it is surrounded by large volcanos. One volcano, called Chachani produced all ths white rock during eruptions in the past. No-one is sure exactly when it last erupted but it is thought it was during the ‘Pleistocene’ era, but that is between 2.5 million to 12,000 years ago!

Sillar has historically been used in almost every type of construction in Arequipa, from simple walls around fields to houses and the city’s cathedral. You can see it everywhere and it gives Arequipa a distinct character, a bit like how Bath in England has a special character from its local stone.

Because it can be carved easily, many building have elaborate decorations all over them. You can see some excellent examples of this in the churches in Arequipa.

Banco International del Peru, with traditional Sillar carvings.

It is not just the traditional buildings that have this white stone. Many newer building have kept with the tradition and use Sillar which helps to keep the special character of Arequipa.

Train to Machu Picchu. Railway from Cusco to Aguas Calientes

As a tourist you are most likely to see a train in Peru if you decide to visit Machu Picchu, where a PeruRail train takes you from the station at Cusco, down through the Sacred Valley to the village of Aguas Calientes, where you can then taken up Machi Picchu by bus.PeruRail offers tourist services with Orient Express Hotels, so passengers can travel to the popular destinations of Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca.

They have luxurious trains with panoramic windows that allow you to enjoy the scenery as you travel, with food on board.

There is also a ‘backpacker’ class of train that goes to Machu Picchu, which is not quite as comfortable but you can still enjoy the views and stick your head out of the window!

Rail travel in Peru: A PeruRail engine in the Majes valley near Arequipa.

Apart from passenger services PeruRail also run freight trains, carrying goods such as food, cement and coal.

The Ferrovías Central railway is operated by Ferrocarril Central Andino (FCCA) and has 27 stations, starting in Callao, Peru’s major port near Lima , through Lima and on into the Andes to major cities like Huancayo.

Like Peru rail, FCCA also carry cargo including food, cements and minerals from the mining companies in the Andes.  They no longer have a regular passenger service but there are special tourist trains that still take the spectacular route through the mountains. The trip from LIma to Huancayo takes about 7 hours and costs about S/. 324, which is about US$114 .

links:
http://www.perurail.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PeruRail
http://www.ferrocarrilcentral.com.pe/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrocarril_Central_Andino

Ticos are everywhere in Arequipa - but for how long?

There are officially more that 10,000 Ticos in Arequipa city, but according to one driver I spoke to there are maybe 16,000.

It sounds like an incredible number, but Arequipa is a large city and many people use the cheap taxis instead of having their own car. Everywhere you go you can see and hear the Ticos.

Ticos are small cars made by Daewoo in Korea. They were particularly popular in Peru as they were cheap to buy and run, as well as small and efficient, which is great for a city like Arequipa with many old, narrow streets.

Ticos with their company names on top!

Most of the Ticos you can see in Arequipa are working as taxis and are often painted yellow to identify that they are taxis. As you can see in these photos, they usually have big signs on top with their company name and lots of red and white tape!

Many Ticos have been customised by their drivers with stickers, slogans or even modifications to the bodywork to make them more cool!

But times are changing in Peru, more people have their own car and people expect better and safer cars. Many of these Ticos are quite old, and driving up and down the streets of Arequipa has shaken them to bits! So these old Ticos are gradually being replaced with other models like the Daewoo Matiz and other larger saloon cars.

Newer cars are replacing the Ticos.

Although newer and more comfortable models are replacing the Ticos, the Taxis will still have lots of character with the drivers customising them with stickers, sirens and installing shrines with the ‘Taxi drivers prayer’ on the dashboards!

Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daewoo_Tico

Cochineal farming in Peru

On our latest visit to Peru we travelled to the Majes Valley, an hour or two drive from Arequipa city. On the way we had the chance to have a close look at some cochineal farming and learn about how they do it.If you don’t know already, cochineal is a dye that comes from a type of insect. It is not actually a beetle as many people think, it is a type of plant sucking insect. The dye is made from the adult females which are 5 mm (0.2 in) long.

It takes 155,000 dried female Cochineal beetles to make 1 kilo of Cochineal dye. In food you will see it listed as Carmine or E120.

It is used in many foods as a ‘natural’ food colouring and is also used in traditional textiles for dying fabric. Even the famous British army ‘Redcoats’ were coloured with cochineal, as were the robes of Cardinals after Pope Paul II took a liking to it in 1464!

Cochineal may have been used for more than 1500 years in Peru where it has always been prized for its strong red colour. It was traded by the Huari (a civilisation before the Incas) as far away as Mexico with the Toltec and Aztec civilisations where it was considered as valuable as gold.

Peru still produces 85-90% of the world’s cochineal although people are attempting to farm it in similar climates in Spain and Australia.

Cochineal is still very valuable and so some people concentrate on just farming the beetles and the cacti that they live on. So if you are travelling through Peru and you see a field full of Cacti you are most likely looking at Cochineal farming.

Cochineal farming in Peru - Infestation on a cactus

The insects are introduced to the cactus that they will feed on in small envelopes that are clipped to the catcus. This also offers the insects some shade from the strong desert sun, the cold desert night and somewhere to hide. Gradually the insects get larger and start to infest the cactus and breed – even though the female attaches herself permanently in one place.

In the photo above you can see the white waxy fuzz that they produce to protect themselves from other parasites and the sun. You can see someone has squashed a beetle and left a strong red dot on the left.

As they gradually cover the cactus the farmers will cover them  to shade them from the sun so they can keep on breeding and feeding.

Eventually they can even kill the cactus. When the cacti are covered in fat female insects, about 90 days later, they are cut down and the insects are scraped off. They are killed by various methods, including putting them in hot water, steaming them, baking in a special oven or just leaving them out in the sun.

In the same areas you will find shops of traders who buy Cochineal – ‘fresh or dry’. The insects have to be dried out in the sun so they do not decompose, and then they are ready for export.

First you need to build a ‘House’. It doesn’t need to be a palace!

If you travel around Peru, especially by bus, you will see many little huts in the deserts. It is easy to see that no-one really lives in them, so what are they for? Well the answer is simple – you are looking at a land invasion.

In Peru much of the land between the big cities is empty and belongs to the state.  When you look at it you wouldn’t think that anyone would want to live there because most of it is just desert.

In Peru, the laws allow someone to start living on empty land, to try and farm it for example. When they have been on that land for 10 years they can demand the government begins to supply them with services, like electricity and water.

But Peruvians can build a wall around some land and build a small house just to claim the land, knowing that if they wait they can eventually get water and electricity and start to build a new village and irrigate the land. Once this process starts the land starts to become valuable.

Land invasions - how to get your own piece of Peru!

Some of these land invasions are very well organised, with the houses laid out in a grid patter, with streets and some even have signs telling you the name of the new town!

So now you know when you see them, that these little boxes in the dessert will one day be farms and villages.

Mancora beach resort in Peru

Mancora is a small town on the Northern coast of Peru, which is becoming popular as a destination for surfing and  those who want to escape to a relaxing beach bungalow.

Mancora is still a relatively undeveloped resort with a population of around 9,000 the main businesses are fishing and tourism. Estimates are that in 2005 there were 340,000 tourists. Although there are hotels with tv and air-conitioning if you want them, there are also small and intimate bungalows with just the basics to let you really relax.

Getting to Mancora involves a long bus trip from Lima along the coastal Pan-American Highway, which takes about 18 hours, so you will have to travel overnight. I would really recommend getting a 1st class reclining seat with either Cruz del Sur or Oltursa.

A faster way to get there is to fly to Tumbes with Lan Peru (about 1 hour 45 minutes) and then get a taxi or a bus to Mancora (approx 1 hour 30 minutes by road) although the flights are quite late so you might have to stay one night in Tumbes.

Las Balsas, Mancora. Pool or the beach...?

There are many different beaches in the Mancora area. Some are better for surfing, some are full of rocks and have many interesting rock pools full of life.

The Pan American Highway running through Mancora

Some people predict that in the future Mancora will be a very busy beach resort, similar to the Costas in Spain but at the moment it’s a quiet place to enjoy a relaxing holiday.

Links:

Statue of bulls fighting in Cayma district of Arequipa in Peru

Being an ex Spanish colony means that Peru has many traditions that come from Spanish culture. Bullfighting is one of them, but in Arequipa it is with a difference.

In Arequipa the tradition of bullfighting has been adapted so that two bulls fight each other, so it is more like bull wrestling.

Arequipa is surrounded by rich farmland and this became a popular event for country people and those from the town too.

The fight has many people placing bets on the outcome and cheering their favourite. It is popular enough to be broadcast on local TV channels.

The rules are simple the bull that runs away loses. The bulls lock horns, snort and push as hard as they can, twisting and trying to push the other aside. Eventually one will either become tired or give up and the other will chase him away.

The bulls are treated with care because they are not killed like in Spanish bullfights – instead they win trophies and become champions and are treated well by their owners. If the fight becomes too aggressive the bulls are separated before they really hurt each other. If the bull that wins keeps trying to attack the bull that is running away they have to lasso him and pull him away to end the fight.

The bulls can be very aggressive animals, a fighting bull with many trophies decided one day to attack a horse on my uncle’s farm. When he tried to stop the bull it attacked him too! The horse sadly did not survive. This is normal behaviour for bulls, it is in their nature to fight…  you can see sometimes in a field they will just decide they don’t like the look of another bull and start a fight – these bulls can be selected for fights because they are naturally aggressive.

But also sometimes, the bulls when they come together just decide not to fight – and nothing that the farmers can do will make them fight! I have sometimes seen this on television.

In Arequipa, there are sometimes fights with matadors, but the bulls are not killed.

Here is a bullfight in Arequipa:

And another – no so good quality:

Here is a fight from Urabamba, Peru: