25 kilometers north of the city of Arequipa is Yura, a quiet town with old houses, few people, whose inhabitants go to their farms early and where they carry out cultivation activities as a support for their home.

The Plaza De La Calera, is the main square and attraction of Yura, and the constructions of this town are made of pink sillar, which is a volcanic rock.

This village has not only become known for its pink ashlar buildings, but also for its hot springs. It is said that these were used since the time of the Incas. Also, over time it has been discovered that these thermal springs have medicinal properties that help with the cure of skin diseases, stomach, nerves, stress, among others diseases.

According to the studies carried out by the German expert Tadeo Haenke and the doctor Edmundo Escomel, the water containing sulfur, alkaline water, iron salts, among other minerals, help the healing of rheumatism, arthritis, poor blood circulation, skin diseases, obesity, stomach problems, nervous disorders and stress.

In Yura you can find three baths, of which, those recommended for all tourists are the following:

• Pozo El Tigre: It has the hottest water, it can reach up to 32 ° C and is for adults only. It has five pools that have sulfur and alkaline water, whose properties cure rheumatism, arthritis, poor blood circulation, skin diseases and obesity.
• Pozo Zamácola and Pozo Fierro Viejo: It reaches a temperature of up to 28 ° C and is recommended to cure nervous disorders, anemia and stress because its water contains iron. The entrance to this pozo is suitable for the entire public.
• Pozo Tadeo Haenke: It is the largest well with a water temperature of 28° C, very rich in iron. It was created in 2012.

If you decide to visit the Yura thermal baths, we recommend diving for a maximum of one hour, because if you stay longer than this time, the water temperature can cause dizziness and other symptoms.

It will always be recommended to include Yura in your next trip to Arequipa, the proximity to the city will allow you to enjoy a few hours during the morning and get to visit these medicinal thermal baths.

In 1968 the archeologist Máximo Neira Avendaño discovered an archaeological complex of nine impressive caves behind the Misti volcano and 88 kilometers away from Arequipa. Located within the limits of the The Salinas and Aguada Blanca National Reserve, the discovery of the Sumbay caves marked the prehistoric period of Arequipa.

Nowadays, the caves are shown as imposing stone soldiers who guard the art and history of Arequipa. Its magic is shown on its rocky walls that have valuable cave paintings from the Paleolithic era. Its pictograph represents human figures, camelids, pumas and foxes, painted in a creamy white tone with an antiquity between 6,000 and 8,000 BC.

The main cave has more than 500 drawings of South American camelids. In the drawings, most of these animals are not in motion, but in rest. This is because these paintings were created in the last stages of the hunters, when they already knew the domestication of these animals.

An eye-catching figure in this cave is an amazing shaman dressed as a camelid. Therefore, it is believed that these caves were also a religious center for the primitives.

The creamy white color used in Sumbay is a peculiarity of the ancient cave art of the place, which was obtained from the clay that remains from the eruption of the volcanoes that surround the reserve. To be able to seal the drawings on those walls for thousands of years they used animal fat. Therefore, today we can revive its beauty.

In addition to the paintings, spearheads made of stone, disc knives to cut the meat, scrapers made with bones to clean animal skins and utensils to sew have also been found.

If you take a walk around the White City (Arequipa), dare yourself to visit this archaeological complex where you will live a prehistoric experience and you will know how this magical rock art began. Welcome to the Sumbay Caves!

The Tristan del Pozo house is one of Arequipa’s most beautiful buildings, this house was built in 1738 by General Domingo Carlos Tristán del Pozo and his wife Ana Maria after acquiring the block and has been restored in many opportunities. For architecture students, the structure that characterizes it is one of the most emblematic and impressive that are in the city, specially for its courtyards, ambient and facade with artistic details perfectly carved.

The Tristan del Pozo house facade is what outstands the most, and what characterizes it all across Arequipa is its composition level. Besides of which have been the reasons that caused this decoration during this era, is in this old house where the elaborated Arequipenian carving in ashlar shape and that takes form in the shadow under the effects of light.

The cover of this house has rectangular shape and is flanked by pilasters united as niches. In its interior, large columns that support it can be found and in the middle you can view a bush of five branches where cantutas bloom holding big medallions.

One of the spaces that can be found inside this old house, looks to revalue the building from the historical and architectural aspects; In many of the doors there are particularities typical from Arequipenians, which belong to the schools of this recognized city. Over time this place has been rebuilt several times following the conservation criteria and on this way not losing the architecture that characterizes it since its origins.

This is one of the few buildings in Arequipa that allows visitors to have an idea of how the area constructions were. Part of this important success, lets people the historical process of Peruvian architecture as bit part of its measurements and design belong to the baroque style that has been alligned from Arequipa’s regional architectural school.

The Tristan del Pozo house has been property of diverse and recognized Arequipenian families. It is in 1974 that one of the most important banks in Peru compromises with the need to support the recovering of this monumental heritage and acquires the old house to transform it into one of its locations.

Today, you can get to know this relevant building and to learn more about its story. Enjoy a trip over the 200 square meters of Tristan house in Arequipa and do not miss the museum and art gallery built by its owners, where you can find numismatic collections with ancient coins of great value. You cannot miss the opportunity to know this historic house!

There are different types of ashlar: White ashlar, brownish white ashlar, bluish white, yellowish white, red and pink ashlar. The first is the most used and abundant. This is extracted from quarries, which can be found generally on hillsides where it was deposited and solidified after volcanic eruptions.

Ashlar extraction
The ashlar extraction process is one of the main cultural attractions of the “Ruta turística del Sillar” in the district of Cerro Colorado, Arequipa. You will be able to observe the traditional process of extraction and carving of ashlar in an artisan way, using ancestral techniques that master stonemasons have learned from generation to generation.

First, the sillar cutter master selects the primary block that he wants to extract from the quarry in order to detach it from it. Then, once the block of sillar is on the ground, the master calculates how many blocks can be divided. Then, they locate the cut points and fraction them. Finally, he outlines the block and eliminates any imperfections that it may have.

If you wish to visit the “Ruta Turística del Sillar”, we recommend you to take the following:

• Comfortable clothes for walks
• Mosquito repellent
• Sunglasses
• Sunblock
• Bottled water

The tour is a shared service, has an approximate price of USD17 per person, and lasts for 4 hours.

Constructions with ashlar
Ashlar can be cut into various shapes and sizes during construction, due to its flexibility to fine chisel carving. There are two types of ashlar, the fine grain and the more porous. The first one is used in openings, lintels and covers, while the second is used for foundations and walls.

Churches, convents and mansions were built with ashlar in the Hispanic Era. The ashlar allows a fine finish of facades, vaults, capitals, columns, domes and arches. Due to the flexibility of the carving, figures of saints and virgins were made together with themes of American flora and fauna united with heraldic symbols.

You can not miss the carved arches of the cloister of the Compañía de Jesús, in General Moran Street, the Church of Cayma and the cover of the Casa del Moral, they are really impressive!

Peruvian gastronomy delights anyone who tastes it. For this reason, there is no one able to resist the taste of the famous “ceviche” or savoring every bite of a juicy “lomo saltado”. El Chairo, on the other hand, is not far behind, this delicious soup from the Peruvian highlands has astonished more than one palate with a perfect blend of Andean ingredients.

Variety of potatoes in Cusco

This strong soup is traditional from the Andean region and has been part of the Peruvian history. Over the years, it has been the perfect companion of peasants, who worked hard until very late away from their homes. The Chairo provided them the necessary food to cope with the hard work and the certainty that their food would remain in good conditions until the end of their day, since the ingredients were kept in perfect condition for many hours.

The best soup, the Chairo

The delicious taste of this Andean soup can be found in different regions of Peru, mainly in Arequipa, Cusco and Puno, where we can taste different variants of this dish. These versions keep the original essence of the Chairo, but certain ingredients can change according to the place where it is prepared.

Here is the technique to prepare one of the recipes and enjoy this delicious soup at home. The following ingredients are needed:

• ½ kg of meat
• 100 gr. of cecina
• 1 dried tongue of lamb
• 1 piece of pumpkin (large)
• 10 chuños (soaked)
• 6 potatoes
• 1 carrot
• 1 onion
• 1 piece of cabbage
• 2 green choclos
• 1 handful of beans
• 3 tbsp. ground yellow pepper
• 1 yellow pepper (toasted)
• 1 branch of amaranth
• Oil and salt to taste

Now, with everything in the kitchen, the magical preparation of this recipe begins. The first step will be to place in a pot the cecina, the meat and the tongue of lamb, add a lot of water to prepare a broth with these ingredients.

Ingredients from Cusco used for typical dishes

Put the ground yellow pepper and half of the onion cut into squares in a different pot, pour a little water and let it cook; when it’s ready, add a trickle of oil until they turn golden brown. Then, strain the broth and add it to the pot containing the aforementioned preparation.

Get ready, it’s time to take out the knives and chop the missing ingredients. Cut into medium pieces the meats with which you prepared the broth and in small pieces the chuño, the pumpkin and the carrot. Chop the cabbage and cook the corn. Potatoes, yellow pepper, amaranth and beans must be finely filleted.

Finally place all the ingredients in the pot with the stock, the yellow pepper and the onion, until everything is well cooked. When finishing this exquisite preparation, serve a very good portion and enjoy this wonderful Andean dish.

The zip-line or flying fox is a sport that consists of holding and sliding through air by wires that are tied from end to end to the branches of trees. The tension of this stainless steel wire is very important for the speed of the person so he or she won’t stop halfway, for this reason as a safety measure, the person will be held with harnesses and wearing helmets and gloves; it is very important to control our body to reach the desired speed.

Equipment for zip-lining:

• Helmets: The usage of this instrument is very important and mandatory. Its purpose is to protect the head of the person from any event, stroke and even protect the hair from tangling with the pulleys.
• Gloves: Protects hands from strokes or cuts that may occur in carrying out this activity.
• Pulleys: It is a mechanical device that is used for balancing the needed strength, so mobilization of the weight will be easier and faster.
• Harnesses: Essential personal equipment that holds and attaches to our body. This serves as an anchor for the connection point (at the rear side of the harness) and pulleys.
• Lifelines: Very necessary tool in the security chain. Its purpose is to link the harness connection point to pulley system. For zip-lining, two lifelines must be necesarily used as a security matter. The two lines will have different sizes; one will be fixed and the other will be adjustable according to the size of the traveler so he or she may slide without any trouble.
• Carabiners: Metal non-locking loops which serves as a connector to lifelines. There are stainless steel or aluminum carabiners.
• Windbreaker jacket: It is recommended to wear them in windy seasons. It is very comfortable, light and breathable. By wearing the windbreaker jacket, your body will not be exposed to the external environment and avoid being wet if sweating due to its impermeable material.

The zip-line is one of the experiences that you shouldn’t miss while visiting Cusco. Sliding down from trees, crossing rivers or canyons and behold the landscape in its fullest will be one of the best adventures on your journey in the city of the Incas.

Places for zip-lining

• Valle Sagrado (Sacred Valley): A magical place for zip-lining, from the heights you will see the archaeological site of Moray, a building made in circular shape with round stones that served as an amphitheater; it also was the agricultural center of the Incas. You will also see the Sacred Valley and Racchi Ayllu community.
• Santa Teresa: Located approximately 4 hours from the city of Cusco, the town of Santa Teresa has natural vegetation from jungle. From here you can zip-line on wires at 250 mtrs high, and also behold the Inca Citadel in its fullest, cross the Saqsara River and climb the walls of a railway.

If you wish to fill your body with pure adrenaline and learn more about the ancient history of Cusco, do not think over and practice zip-line, a sport not suitable for the faint hearted. Come, enjoy and fill your lungs of the pure air of Cusco and take the opportunity to travel aboard the PeruRail Vistadome!