Feliz Navidad!

 Our first Christmas in Peru was extra special since we had Brian's parents here for a visit.  They arrived on the 23rd and stayed until the 30th.  It was a jam packed week of adventures.

We kicked off Christmas Eve with the traditional baking of cookies for Santa Claus.  Santa was able to pick from Gluten Free or regular sugar cookies this year.

 We also had turkey and all the fixings for Christmas Eve lunch.  After 3 years in Singapore with a tiny oven, it was nice to be able to cook a real dinner in an "American" sized oven.

 The kids were super excited to open 1 present each on Christmas Eve.  They were looking forward to it all day.  Luckily they picked things that they were able to play that evening.

Grandma playing Sorry with the kids.

 In Peru, Christmas Eve is a big night for fireworks.  The fireworks went off well past midnight.  So we sat out on our balcony and watched for awhile.

Santa eventually made to our house!

 The morning of Christmas the kids awoke to Santa's surprises. They were very excited to see what was left and start ripping open presents.

 After all the presents and breakfast, we took Grandma and PaPa on a tour of Daddy's office and Miraflores.

Feliz Navidad from Lima, Peru.

The Grand Canyon of Peru: Colca Canyon

The rest of our Thanksgiving holiday we spent 2 hours away from Arequipa in the Colca Canyon area.  It was a very scenic route, we traveled as high as 4910 meters.  It is quite amazing as we travel to a high altitude yet the area is flat until you get to the canyon areas. 

Graham and his dad tossing the football at 4910 meters high.

Locals in the area selling their items at tourist stops.

A little boy just playing on the side of the mountain.  SCARY.

Here is view of Colca Lodge from the mountain.  It is a beautiful and relaxing place to stay.

Hot Springs at the lodge

Llama and Alpacas on the ranch at the lodge

Football anyone?

Headed to the hot springs

Relaxing in the hot springs

 The lodge had some makeshift swings on the ranch.  The kids absolutely loved them.  Who knew swings could be so entertaining!

and of course Graham tossing the football.

 The views at the actual canyon were magnificent.  The kids were determined to spot condors.  It is the nesting season for the condors so the chances were low but we got lucky and were able to see several condors gliding through the canyon.

 We finally ended our holiday with the kids first horseback riding experience.  It was quite the adventure but a great way to finish a lovely Thanksgiving break.