Alpaca Maca Laca in Arequipa

I love to rhyme. I taught my 6 (almost 7) year-old granddaughter Ori a lot of new words by rhyming to her. She laughs and thinks I’m silly. Good. That’s what I like. Even the younger one, Yuval, is beginning to appreciate my rhyming, as she’s just turned 4. Gosh, I sure do miss those two when I travel.

Okay, so our final stop in Peru was at a smirk of a port town called Matarani. Sounds like Mata Hari might once have lived here, and tried to name the town for herself, but I doubt it. It’s pretty dismal and boring. However, if you can stand a two hour bus ride over a mountain full of twisty roads, then you’ll want to visit Arequipa. It’s the alpaca industry capital of the world. Most of the fleece that is shipped around the world comes from here.

Arequipa is also Peru’s second largest city. It’s a colonial city located in the south of Peru. It has a beautiful convent called Santa Catalina. I didn't tour it, but I heard from those that did and they very much enjoyed it. Only about 20 nuns still live there, the oldest 100, the youngest, 36. In addition to being the export center for alpaca, Arequipa is also a major retail dented for Andean knits and many shops sell alpaca as well as vicuña goods. If you’re a knitter or other type of needlecrafter, this is a great place to pick up yarn.

We got to feed the alpacas.

Samples of some of the yarn after processing.

I love to find doors and arches leading to hidden courtyards.

This baby was born the prior day.

This is the cathedral in the plaza. It was closed until very late in the afternoon, long after we departed.

A woman demonstrating weaving alpaca fibers.

How can you not love this face?

Plaza

Side view of cathedral

Arches abound in this plaza.

A shanty town. The road to Arequipa is strewn with these settlements. People buy little plots of land with promises from the city that electricity and water will be provided to them.....someday.