All vessels have to lie at least half a mile from
the land on account of the constant heavy swell, and the landing is
always attended by a certain amount of danger, so much so that not
infrequently passengers have to be "slung" on to the landing stage in
baskets made for the purpose. Like most of the South American coast from
Valparaiso northwards there is little or no vegetation, and the scenery
is not of the kind generally associated with tropical climes, of which
one reads so much. Sand dunes and waste meet the eye on all sides, and
the traveller for the interior is generally glad when the railway
journey commences.
Of the country through which the railway takes one there is not much to
be said, but the attention of the traveller is at once called to the
marvellous ingenuity of the famous engineer Meiggs, who built the
railway. Gradually rising as the coast recedes, the train reaches
Arequipa, at an elevation of 7,500 feet, and distant from Mollendo about
200 miles. Arequipa has about 45,000 inhabitants, and, while rather
prettily situated in a small valley surrounded by high volcanoes, it
does not have anything of particular interest to attract one. Moreover,
it suffers frequently from earthquakes, which does not surprise one when
you look at the giant volcano "El Misti," towering up to 18,000 feet, at
no great distance off.
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