Sacred Valley to the Amazon

Next Day Next N

Tuesday, 9 April 2024 - Arrived in Arequipa from Lima, visited Plaza de Yanahuara with views of Misti volcano, toured the Parish of St. John the Baptist of Yanahuara, explored Santa Catalina Monastery with its colorful courtyards and chapel, saw Iglesia de la Compañía, and enjoyed dinner at Tanta including trying Cuy, ending the day with a walk through the main square and Basilica Cathedral lit up at night.

peru2024 — We arrived in Lima on 8 April and took a plane the next morning to Arequipa, the second largest city in Peru at 1.2 million.

On the way to the hotel we stopped at the Plaza de Yanahuara to view the city and the Misti volcano towering over the city. The volcano is huge, rising 19,101 feet.

peru2024 — In the same plaza, tucked into a corner is the Parish of St. John the Baptist of Yanahuara. This small Catholic Church is notable for its exclusive use of sillar stone (volcanic rock), the hallmark material of Arequipa.

The facade adorned with intricate foliage ornamentation, is characteristic of the eighteenth century.

peru2024 — The church is an example of Spanish colonial architecture, built in the 18th century by the Augustinian Recollects.

peru2024 — Baroque style bell-tower.

peru2024 — Cal and Virginia Ann pausing in the courtyard for a photo op. Our first real tourist stop in Peru.

peru2024 — After settling into our hotel, we headed out on a walking tour of Arequipa. Very close to the hotel was the Santa Catalina Monastery.

The Santa Catalina Monastery founded in 1579, is a small city occupying about five acres. It is a monastery for nuns - completely isolated from the city surrounding it by a 14-foot wall.

peru2024 — There is a small, beautiful chapel near the entrance.

peru2024 — Beautiful open plazas perfect for meditation.

peru2024 — The various buildings and rooms are all painted in very bright colors.

peru2024 — The young women who entered the monastery as nuns were women of full Spanish descent and of mixed race who belonged to wealthy families. The story tells that many families chose their second-oldest daughter for service and considered it a gift to God.

peru2024 — The interior and exterior walls are covered in paintings - there is not much rain in Arequipa.

peru2024 — Dorm rooms are connected by small "streets" and beautiful courtyards.

peru2024 — Flowers in one of the courtyards.

peru2024 — Window covering with the cross.

Nuns still live in a secluded portion of the monastery, which was opened in 1970 as a museum.

peru2024 — A display in one of the rooms used for baking.

peru2024 — One of the streets leading to dorm rooms.

As the monastery grew with more young women entering, rooms designed for a single woman were added and custom built by their families.

peru2024 — Due to the building of small rooms over the centuries the architecture is not very consistent - some of the rooms being very crude while others were well finished.

peru2024 — The "laundry" where old storage jars (over 4 feet tall, used in the past to store grains, corn or wine) were cut and used as containers.

Built in 1770, using 20 of the large clay containers, the water ran through a central channel which is diverted to each jar by placing a stone in the central channel. At the bottom of the container is a plug, which when removed allowed the water to run in an underground channel to the river.

peru2024 — Pretty red street.

peru2024 — Water Hyacinth in a garden pond.

peru2024 — Interesting plant, pot and stand.

peru2024 — Cal and Virginia Ann in the small garden.

peru2024 — Fountain in a courtyard.

peru2024 — Courtyard del Silencio was the place where the nuns gathered to pray the Holy Rosary and read the Bible in complete silence.

peru2024 — Artwork in the monastery church.

peru2024 — We walked to the Iglesia de la Compania or Church in the Company of Jesus.

The church was begun in 1590 and completed 100 years later in 1698. It is built, as many buildings are in Arequipa, from the volcanic stone quarried just outside the city. The stone is easy to carve and so the front of the building is covered in art.

peru2024 — Detail of the carving above the entrance to the church.

peru2024 — The date of completion.

peru2024 — Beautiful artwork inside the church.

peru2024 — The high altar in baroque style is monumental, all in gold leaf.

peru2024 — Date of one of the two cloisters attached to the church.

peru2024 — Drains in the cloister.

peru2024 — Artwork on the facade of a building.

peru2024 — We had a delightful dinner al fresco at Tanta which was across from the convent and close to our hotel.

Cal tried Cuy (Guinea Pig) as an appetizer. The Guinea Pig is still eaten in Peru and is considered a special dish. Many restaurants serve the little critters. This was our only venture into Cuy for the trip.

peru2024 — After dinner, we walked the streets of Arequipa to the main square.

peru2024 — The Basilica Cathedral of Arequipa lit up for the evening.

Our first day in Peru was very successful - looking forward to the rest of the trip.

Next Day Next N

Top

Top

Cal and VA | Adventures | Peru

© Cal and Virginia Ann Holman
All Rights Reserved 2000-2025 Do not use without permission.
Privacy Policy - Terms

Modified last on 2025-12-26