Arequipa - Convento Santa Catalina

Our brief visit to the Convent of Santa Catalina threw up a few suprises. Surrounded by imposing high walls,the convent had ´streets´,plazas, cloisters, an aquaduct laundry, the bedroom ´cells´, and modern day additions of a cafeteria, shop and gallery - a city within a city. We discovered that the seventeenth century nuns, mostly daughters of high ranking spanish families knew how to have fun and the convent was known as the House of Babel until a stiff dominican prioress was appointed by the Bishop and straightened those party girls out. From that point the vast majority of nuns that lived there never ventured outside those high walls and the convent was shrouded in mystery until it finally opened to the public in 1970. A tranquil sanctuary of fascinating architecture and lifestyle...but I don´t think I´m tempted!