Karys & Marian in South America

In the vicinity of Arequipa lies the Canyon de Colca which is considered the 4th deepest canyon in the world. We decided us to hike through the canyon eventhough this means descending and ascending over 1000 m. Several Tours offer Treks through the Canyon but once again we decided to go solo and the other direction to the Tours which was the best decision we could have made. On the last day of our hike for about half an hour we passed many of these organized groups. In the canyon one can find small villages every few kilometres that offer beds, groceries and restaurants. We decided to sleep in our tent on one of the many old Inka terraces. A truly amazing site to spent a night! In der Naehe von Arequipa liegt der Canyon de Colca welcher as der 4t tiefste der Erde gilt. We entschlossen uns durch den Canyon zu wandern, auch wenn das einen Abstieg und Aufstieg von gut 1000 m bedeutete. Viele Touren bieten Treks durch den Canyon an, aber wir entschieden uns einmal mehr ohne Tour

From Copacabana we went into Peru. Our first stop was Puno to go and visit the floating islands of Uros. The people here decided to live on islands built from reed to escape the reign of the Inka. For centuries they have been living on the islands now hunting and fishing. But the modern ages didn't spare them and about a decade ago the opened up to tourists and send their kids to school in Puno to learn spanish. Nevertheless the still refuse to leave the islands. Even though many tourists arrive here every day and tourism is their main source of income we had a pretty pleasent day on the islands. One women showed us her house and we chatted with her about the live on the islands for a while. Von Copacabana ging es nach Peru. Zuerst machten wir in Puno Halt um die Floating Islands von Uros zu besuchen. Die Menschen hier entschieden sich vor einigen Jahrhunderten auf aus Schilf gebauten Inseln zu leben um der Herrschaft der Inka zu entfliehen. Jahrhundertelang lebten sie von d

Cobacabana - the world famous city at the Bolivian shore of Lake Titicaca. As usual we arrived by Bus. To enter the Peninsula on which the city is located one needs to take ferry. So we left the Bus and watched it Board one ferry while we set over to the other site in a a small boat. Cobacabana itself is a beautiful place between to high mountains. One of them was of great importance to the Inka while the other houses is a place of pilgrimage for christians. Many people come here from all over Bolivia and Peru to bless their cars. All day long decorated cars and trucks get covered in Sparkling wine. The city and it's surroundings are very beautiful but a bit touristy and the amount of people trying to sell souvenirs or lure you into their restaurants can be a bit stressfull. Same goes for the Isla del Sol. Nevertheless the Islands is a stunning place. The Inka believed the Island to be the birthplace of the sun. Unfortunately a feud between the inhabitants of the northern and s

I decided to climb the Huayna Potosi. It is supposed to be one of the easiest mountains over 6000 m to ascend. Nevertheless the climb was strenous and not for the faint-hearted. Several guides offer the service from La Paz. I chose a guy called German and this turned out to be a very good decision., The climb is organised in 3 days. The first day you arrive at the base camp at 4800 m altitude and receive a little training in how to use the necessary gear like cramp-ons etc.. Thanks to German, we also got to climb a 12 m vertical icewall with ice peaks. Great fun! On the second day teams usually ascend to the high camp at 5300 m, take a little rest and start at midnight towards the top so that people get to see the sunrise at 6:30 on the summit. Our group, that comprised of German, Stephane from France, Liam from Australia and me, however, decided to ascend all the way to the summit on the second day. The advantage is you don't have to climb in the dark and the temperatures

We arrived in La Paz via bus from Cochabamba on a Saturday night. Unfortunately the welcome was anything but warm. Our bus got stuck in serious traffic, we moved about a block and a half in over an hour. Additionally a hailstorm set in. So we decided to hop off the bus before arriving at the terminal and found a cheap place for one night in El Alto, La Paz's twin city. The next morning the world looked alot more friendly fortunately and we descended into La Paz per micro in best weather. La Paz is a buzzing big city with a lot of food options and things to see. At the same time the city manages to remain relaxed and not overwhelm one with it's liveliness. Public transport throughout the city is mostly facilitated by micros and additionally a system of cable cars is under construction with 5 lines running already. A scenic, cheap and rapid way to move through the city. The surroundings of La Paz are equally interesting. High mountains and stunning landscape like the &qu