The path that day was quite straight and didn’t include much of climbing or descends but still last many hours. Again we are largely rewarded by the beauty of the scenery. Our tourista seems to be gone . . . ouf!

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Regularly during our trek we meet these convoys of mules, which are, I remind you, the only mean of transportation for the merchandises in the valley. Under the blankets are probably the new beer stocks for the village we spend the night and empty the beer stock the night before!

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This is the village we will spend the night. If you followed the story carefully you should have realized that this picture couldn’t be taken on the second day since I said that we didn’t have any significant climbing or descends! The picture was taken the next day during the ascent of the canyon. But that’s ok if you didn’t see that detail ;-) Sorry for not having any picture of the village and our room but when we arrive at the village we were so tired that the only thing we are thinking about was to take a beer and to go swim in the pool they set and that is filled up every day with the water flowing in the river but first we go up to our room. A guide shows us the path and starts climbing a stone stair made out of the ground. Danielle looks at me “Why do we have to be the only ones who have to climb again to get to our room?” Me I prefer not to answer and focus on the pain in my feet and tights while we painfully climb each step. We arrive up there and open the sort of plank that plays the role of our door and enter the room, with no light needless to say, but this time the floor was not made of stone but directly from the soil and dirt that prevails in the area. Since we cannot put anything on the floor, not even our feet, I put my swimming suit standing on my flip flops trying not to touch the walls or the floor by fear of being stained permanently. Danielle, her, will pass on the swimming pool because she just entered that period of the month when women don’t swim! But she isn’t missing anything since the water is freezing.

The next morning the alarm clock goes off at 5:00am because we need to start climbing the canyon up to the village of Cabanaconde. I look at the mountain and I just want to cry! We have to climb a 1000m (3250fts) steep slope but since the path is in zigzag the distance we need to cross is much longer. This is where we separate the men from the kids and while looking at the cliff I just want to go run back to kitten garden. Danielle gives me a bag of peanuts and a bag of roasted almonds so I don’t run out of energy and then she kiss me good bye. You see, Danielle chose a different way of climbing back up . . .

Instead of paying herself three hours of endless stairways Danielle decided to rent a mule for the small price of s/60.00 ($20.00)! I personally am too proud to let my manly pride on the back of a mule, what do you think? I thus made myself suffer for two and half hours climbing the longest stairway ever made by men. At least this is what it feels like with 1Km high, the path in zigzag that makes the distance to cross closer to 5Km and all this with the thin air found in the mountains at an altitude of 3400m. I swear this is the most difficult physical activity I ever made in my life. The last half hour was just pure pain in my tights. At each step I think of Danielle on her mule and of my Tae-Kwon-Do master, master Ah Huen, who tells me that pain doesn’t exist, that I need to be a fighter and that I must keep going to the end without giving up. I must admit that if it hadn’t been of his teaching and the fact that Claudio was following me closely and reminding me every time I was taking a pause that this was making things worse, I think I would have jump off the cliff just to stop that hell. But we finally reached the top of the canyon and at this point I knew I could die; I did it!

Arriving at the top of the canyon was not the end of the trip and we still had to get to the village of Cabanaconde. But after the climbing this little walk of a few kilometers is like nothing. In front of the restaurant where we had lunch a few kids happen to come by. Phil, who had lollypops in his bags, gives each of them one but they are unable to open them so I open the candies for them.

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After eating well we get on the bus and get to the village of Chivay where pools are filled up with warm water coming from an underground thermal source. The water in the pool reaches 40°C (104°F) and almost burns when we get in it. But after the morning exercise this is wonderful blessing.

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During our trip back to Arequipa the bus stops at the highest point on the road, which is also the highest point Danielle and I ever went. The temperature at this height of 4910m (15,960 feet) is about 8°C (46°F) and we see snow here and there. Immediately after the picture Danielle ran directly inside the bus to get warm while I took one or two more minutes to look at this scenery coming directly out of NASA’s pictures of the Martian expeditions!