The temperature outside is 32 degrees, with a slight breeze! We have a light breakfast in the chilly dining room and are picked up by Fernando and Angel. We are the first, so we go to the other hotels to pick up the rest. The folks from Montreal are a little late - seems Jasmine is not feeling well from something she ate yesterday. This is Fernando.
The morning is busy with walkers, taxis, motorcycles, tourist buses so we assume the place where we hope to see condors will be busy.
After about an hour's drive, we stop at a viewpoint by the town of Maca, that was destroyed in 1991 by an earthquake. It has mostly been re-built. We are traveling up the left side of Colca Canyon, which was settled 1200 BC by two different groups. December through March is the rainy season here and lots of potatoes and corn are grown in the area. There are terraces all over the mountainsides. Beans, quinoa and squash are grown also and have always been used in trade. The early settlers cut holes into the huge rocks to store their crops and covered them with grass.
The pre-Inca people in this area worshiped nature, especially the mountains, and used boards to modify the shapes of their heads to resemble mountains. The Incas made many changes, teaching the natives about irrigation and introducing their own language. The Spanish arrived in 1537 along with the Jesuits. There are about 35,000 inhabitants in the area in 16 villages.
In 1821, Peru won independence from Spain. It wasn't until 1970 that the president of Peru visited this remote area and ordered the building of a highway. When another man became President, the building stopped, so there is a highway on one side of the canyon, but not on the other. There is an enclave of people from Poland that arrived in 1979. In 1991, an earthquake destroyed much of the area. It is a tough life.
Fernando discusses the economy of Peru, which is driven by mining, agriculture and tourism. He talks about a Japanese man who was elected President in 1995 - Mr. Fujimori - who really did a lot to improve the Peruvian economy. However, he was jailed in 1999 for corruption. Unfortunately the next few Presidents were also jailed because of corruption - and one escaped jail by fleeing to the US.
We see cattle and sheep in the area. There are periodic tourist checkpoints and there is a 70 sol/person fee for tourists to visit the area.
We arrive at the condor viewing area where a few other vans are parked. Our timing is terrific as we immediately see several birds soaring on the air currents and they continue a show for a good 30 minutes or so. Their wingspan is up to 9 feet and they are quite majestic! The Condors live about 50-55 years and mate for life. The young birds don't fly until they are two years old and are considered juveniles until they are 19 years old, when they change from a gray color to brown.
How graceful! They are similar to vultures in that they can't catch and fly with food, but have to scavenge. They have a symbiotic relationship with foxes. When the condors see food, they circle for a long time. The foxes watch them, and go to feast on the dead animals. The condors then come in to finish off their meal.
Colca Canyon is quite rugged and beautiful. At one point it is deeper than the Grand Canyon, but we would have to hike many miles to reach that area.
We see about a dozen condors all told, several of which are juveniles. By 8:15 we are ready to leave and the birds have mostly disappeared. But the tourists have arrived in busloads! As we are leaving, we spot a group of condors perched right above the road and stop to watch them.
Altitude continues to make itself felt - a little nausea and shortness of breath. But nothing very bad.
Jasmine, from Montreal, ate something that didn't agree with her and has been feeling bad for the past day or so....poor girl.
We stop in the town of Maca on the way back and again pay our sol to use the restrooms. The Church here was rebuilt after the earthquake, but built in the 1770 style.
We return to Chivay for lunch at Zacharia's, on the square. There is a parade and celebration of some sort going on in the square.
Buffet is similar to others, with soups, stews, salads, a few puddings and cakes for dessert. I enjoy another cup of coca leaf tea - can't hurt!
From here we have another 5 hours or so to Puno, so Fernando suggests a siesta. Siestas are common in many parts of the country, though in busy tourist areas stores seem to stay open for business.
The land is rugged and rocky, and we see many herds of llamas and alpacas, as well as cattle and sheep.
Stop for gas - prepay with an attendant. They seem to have several grades of gas as well as diesel. As near as we can tell, the gas is around $8-9/gallon.
As we near Puno the land is flatter and we see more lakes. See some long legged birds, which are flamingos, but they are white.
We see more pigs and donkeys in people's yards. Puno City, Fernando says, is a quiet, nice place. Again, no one finishes their homes because of the taxes, so it does not look very nice. We are on Lake Titicaca which is the highest freshwater lake in the world, and 2nd largest freshwater lake in America. The border between Peru and Bolivia runs through the lake.
We are dropped at the hotel Qelqatani which seems very nice. We are in room 302, on the 4th floor. Old iron radiator for heat. We are at a high elevation and nights are quite cold. The women here wear different style hats.
We started for a walk but too tired, so we go back and rest before dinner at the hotel. Creole soup for Beth and roast chicken with vegetables for Greg.
We will meet our new guide between 7:00 and 7:30 tomorrow morning.
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