Sunday, 20th December, Arequipa: tourists for the day
No interviews today! Bliss. So Fernando and Aurora take the opportunity to introduce us to the magical city of Arequipa. It’s colonial in style, with cobbled streets and beautiful buildings. Fernando Gygax is one of the city’s most reknowned photographers (he recently had an exhibition in Switzerland http://www.danielagygax.com.ar/fernando_gygax/), and as well as running his own publishing house, he proudly contributes to the magazine Pachamama which is filled with his exquisite pictures of Peru and the Andes.
He takes us first to a mirador so that we can see the city from above. We then journey down into the heart of its cobbled streets, and to lunch at newly opened restaurant Chi Cha (a celebration of Arequipan culinary tradition established by Peru’s darling of cuisine, Gaston – who we tried to interview countless times with his equally famous wife, Astrid). The food is delicious, the laughter contagious and we marvel at how much we are loving Peru.
It’s worth mentioning briefly that Aurora and Fernando have various wonderful pets. The first is Lola, a little white dog who is utterly captivating. Aurora introduced her as her baby, now that her two children have left the nest. In the garden, they have 2 birdcages: one houses 3 budgies, the other, a 22 year old, hostile male parrot from the Peruvian rainforest. From the very first moment that Piwuiche makes his first attempt to chomp a chunk out of my meaty palm, I’m smitten. He squawks with hostility as I approach, is always ready to bite, and glares at me with his beady eyes when I try to say hello. All of which render me helpless with adoration. I can confirm with pride that by the time we left Arequipa, he no longer bit me when I offered my palm, and he was quite content in my presence, so no more squawking. When Fernando takes him out of the cage, he’s good as gold, so I still have some way to go. Don’t think you’ve seen the last of me, Piwuiche!
