You take the high road and I'll take the low road...

... well actually I took them both.  I thought I'd post some photos of walks we've been on around Abancay - one to Pachachaca (Quechua for "earth bridge") in the valley below Abancay (1600m), and one to Ampay, the mountain which towers above it (we went as far as a lake at 3200m).

Pachachaca

So here are some pictures of our trip to Pachachaca - I went with 3 girls from work and some of their family.  We walked several miles along the side of the river valley, from the old colonial bridge to some thermal springs, where the kids swam.  

 

  

And on the way back we discovered some Amancayes - the flower from which Abancay gets its name.

Ampay - Angascocha

Ampay is the mountain that towers above Abancay (even though it's just under 5000m it's too small to make it onto many lists of Peruvian peaks), and part of it is a nature reserve.

 There are lots of beautiful flowers...

...and here we are, 1 1/2 hours' walk later, at the lake, with water bubbling up from underground.

All very pleased with our trip

And then 2 surprises on the way home - one, a delicious fruit called capulí (small cherries) which we picked...

...the other, my first Peruvian tarantula. Fortunately he was nice and relaxed (and sufficiently far away) in a hedge.