Peru
Peru is home to Machu Picchu, the extraordinary lost city of the Incas, rainbow mountains, beautiful beaches, cobblestone-lined towns, Amazonian wildlife and of course, pisco sours. Visiting is very much an experience of a lifetime.
I visited Peru with my husband and my parents for 2 weeks in October 2022. We started in Lima, then headed to Arequipa, then on to Cuzco and of course to the Inca Trail, finishing at Machu Picchu.
Quick Links:
Cuzco
Rainbow Mountain
Inca Trail & Machu Picchu
Lima
Arequipa
This was actually my third attempt at visiting Peru. After not managing to book in time to secure an Inca Trail permit back in 2016, our second attempt was planned for May 2020, as a three-week trip at the start of a 3month trip around South America. Like many people’s plans, our trip was cancelled due to the covid pandemic. We weren’t sure when we would be able to visit, and for a long time we thought it might be years away as we passed in and out of seemingly never-ending lockdowns.
By August 2022, the world seemed to be returning to its pre-covid state and I realised we only had 6 months until our Inca Trail Tour deposit would expire! After a couple of phone calls trying to see if we could all squeeze it in, we re-booked our tour and booked flights for the October. I was so excited!
We could only manage 2 weeks however, so had to cut one place from our itinerary. We had originally planned to visit Puno as well, but ended up dropping it in favour of Arequipa. As long as we made it to Machu Picchu, we would all be content.
Cuzco
Cuzco was actually our last stop of the trip, but let’s face it, as the gateway to the undisputed highlight of the country, and the main reason we came to Peru, it takes pride of place at the start of the story.
Cuzco
We landed in Cuzco from Arequipa and headed straight to our hotel, Rumi Punku. We had planned to stay a few days in the city before heading on the Inca Trail in order to acclimatise to the high altitude. Luckily there is a wealth of things to do in Cuzco. This was my first time visiting a high-altitude area, and I wasn’t too sure what to expect. I had bought acetazolamide (Diamox) with me and had been taking this for a few days before arriving and this seemed to do the job, and apart from some breathlessness walking up hills, I felt fine. Dad had been to Nepal which is also at a high altitude and had success with gingko extract, and so he stuck with that. There was also free coca tea EVERYWHERE – every shop, every hotel, bar, and we sipped it each morning with breakfast. You can also buy coca sweets too to chew on, but just make sure you don’t bring any home with you!
Cuzco is the starting place for most people visiting the Sacred Valley, but there are lots of Incan ruins within the immediate city area too to explore first.
1. Saqsaywaman
This enormous Incan ruin is perched on the very top of a high hill overlooking the city. As it was our first day, and some of us (cough.. aged parents) were already feeling a little breathless, we opted to take a taxi to the top, and walk back down.
There are actually multiple Incan ruins to visit around Cuzco, and the tickets include entrance into most or all of these. We had the option of buying a full ticket (with entrance to 16 sights) or half ticket (with entrance to 4 sights) – and so ours included entrance to Sacsaywaman, Quengo, Puca Pucara and Tambomachay.
We paid for a guided tour on arrival which was useful as there wasn’t a whole lot of information about what we were looking at. The site used to be an immense fortress, however the majority of it was destroyed during the Spanish conquest and so sadly there isn’t a lot left. After looking at the ruin and trying to see how close we could get to the alpacas, we headed over to see the huge cross which looks over Cuzco.
From here we slowly made our way back down to the main square, walking through the most picturesque cobbled streets along the way.
2. Walking Tour
We had booked a walking tour to orientate ourselves in the city and we walked through most of the historic sights, learning about the various buildings and squares and trying to grasp a few words in the Quechuan language.
3. Main Square
The main square is really beautiful. After the walking tour we headed over; it was packed, and there was a huge parade underway. We weren’t sure what was going on but assumed it must be an important event in Cuzco. After asking around it turned out it was a celebration for the anniversary of one of the private schools in the area – not what we were expecting!
Dotted around the square are shops and restaurants, “Chocolate Museums”, and many premium walking shops.
5. San Cristobal
The entrance ticket to the Cathedral also includes entrance to the Temple of San Blas, the Temple of San Cristóbal. Whilst San Cristobal was a bit tough on mum and dad (it’s located at the top of an extremely steep hill), it’s well worth the trip as the views from the belltower are stunning.
I particularly liked the interior where Jesus was sporting a fetching Peruvian knitted hat.
6. Museums
There are lots of museums in Cuzco – museum of pre-Columbian art, Inka museum, the natural history museum and many others.
We visited ‘Museo Machu Picchu’ set in a beautiful mansion it is full of information about the rediscovery of Machu Picchu exhibits from the excavation.
7. San Blas Neighbourhood
San Blas is a really quaint neighbourhood in Cuzco – to get there you’ll need to walk uphill, but don’t worry there are lots of artisanal shops along the way to stop and catch your breath in.
San Blas is where we found many vegetarian and vegan restaurants – one of the most well-known is Pachapapa, and another is Green Point. Both delicious.
Cuzco Market Stalls
8. Shopping
Cuzco is a great place for shopping. Along the cobbled alleyways are small stalls and hidden undercover markets selling all the typical Peruvian souvenirs – Peruvian jumpers, hats, scarves, rugs. You can find something for every budget – from cheap finds to the most luxurious 100% Vicuña sweaters (which cost thousands of pounds). Of course wherever you go everyone will tell you ‘This is 100% baby alpaca”, and 99% of the time it is definitely regular wool. If you’re set on buying an alpaca jumper, expect to pay more – none of the cheap jumpers are actually alpaca, and there are lots of articles online telling you how to tell if something Is alpaca or sheep’s wool.
We bought quite a lot – namely hats, jumpers and t-shirts for nephews and nieces, but also a beautiful throw for our sofa, several jumpers, scarves and alpaca keyrings.
Paul’s sister had set us a mission – to return home with a replica of her favourite scarf from Cuzco which she had sadly lost. After a lot of hunting around, we managed to find the exact shop she had bought it from and a suitably similar replacement.
That shop was actually one of my favourites, set around a grassy courtyard, complete with grazing alpacas, just off ‘Pampa de Castillo’ road.
9. Rainbow Mountain
The next day, we had planned to do a day trip – there were a few options to choose from including Humantay Lagoon, a Rainbow Mountain, Waqrapukara, Maras-Moray and many, many others.
We only really had one day to play with, and so we decided to go for the rainbow mountain. There are two main mountains to choose from – Vinicunca and Palccoya. Vinicuna is the most famous of the two, and therefore the most frequently visited. It involves a longer trek but with a more gradual incline. Palccoya is a shorter, steeper trek but the main benefit is that it’s significantly less touristy. We opted for Palccoya.
Mum and Dad were feeling quite tired so decided to stay behind for a relaxing day in town to try to find a baby alpaca jumper for Dad instead.
We booked a day tour with Inca Highlands, and booked the evening before via WhatsApp (+51982073843)
We were picked up bright and early (4.30am – eek) and drove through picturesque countryside to a small village, Cusipata for breakfast. From here we started our hair-raising but beautiful drive up and up along constant switch-backs until we reached the trailhead.
At 5000m high, the air felt distinctively thin. It was an odd feeling. I felt ok at rest, but as soon as I took 4 or 5 steps (even on the flat) I became instantly breathless and has to stop for a minute, but it wasn’t like the breathlessness you get after exercising, my heart wasn’t racing and I didn’t feel tired, just breathless. Needless to say it was a slow walk up to the top, by which time my exercise tolerance was about 1 metre.
The scenery was stunning though with bewitching reds, pinks, yellows, blue hues that dazzled in the sun. I didn’t mind stopping so often as it meant I could snap away to my heart’s content. About halfway up there was a very cute alpaca, which we took turns taking photos with (for a small fee, of course)
On our way back we stopped by Checacupe Three Bridges, a cute village with three very different three bridges from different times in Peruvian history; the Incan bridge, the Colonial bridge and the Republican bridge.
We then made our way back to Cuzco.
The Sacred Valley
This is the starting point for trips to Machu Picchu Most people stay a night or so in Pisac or Ollantaytambo before heading on to Aguas Calientes, otherwise known as ‘Machu Picchu Town”.
Machu Picchu
This awe-inspiring city, surrounded by soaring mountain peaks and gliding clouds and secret to much of the world for centuries is THE reason to come to Peru. There are a few different ways to visit from long arduous treks to shorter trails, or you can visit simply by train and bus.
We were travelling with my parents and so had to think about the best option for all of us. We opted for the ‘2 days 1 night hike’. This involved a days trek passing Wiñay Wayna, and joining onto the classic Inca Trail through the Sun Gate descending into Machu Picchu for sunset. We stayed overnight in and the next day headed back to Machu Picchu for sunrise and a tour of the site.
To hike the Inca Trail, you have to go on a tour as you need a special permit that can only be obtained through licensed Inca Trail tour operators. It’s possible to do other trails without a tour (or with!); The Salkantay Trail, which is a longer and higher hike than the Inca Trail, and for the more advanced trekker are The Lares Trail and The Choquequirao Trail.
We chose to go with ‘Alpaca Expeditions’ as they had good reviews and were a locally-owned company who had won multiple awards. They were excellent. Our guides David and Wilbur were so helpful, encouraging and well informed, and the food was some of the best we had on our entire trip.
Day 1
We were picked up bright and early from our hotel (actually, dark and early – at 4am, it was well before sunset). We drove through what I assume was beautiful countryside (I was snoozing away), all the way Ollantaytambo where we hopped on the Machu Picchu train.
The train has two options – normal carriages or the Vistadome carriages which have glass ceilings and huge windows for a panoramic view through the dramatic countryside. We opted for the vistadome.
It was a relatively short ride to our stop, which was simply called ‘Km 104’. It wasn’t so much a train station as a grass verge, and it felt as if we had been dropped off in the middle of nowhere, but we headed along to the starting base with one our guides and met the rest of the 10 strong group.
We started the hike walking along the edge of the mountain, heading up and up past Incan ruins. The views were just spectacular across the valley with scenic views of huge towering mountain peaks down to the flowing Urubamba River, and in the distance the chug chug-chug of the Perurail train getting smaller and smaller as we climbed.
We climbed and climbed, and after about 3 hours, reached Wiñay Wayna, at 2600m. This is a beautiful Incan site with terrace upon terrace on a dramatic cliff edge facing breathtaking scenery. We spent time exploring the area and taking photos before heading to our lunch spot, which is where most campers stay on their final night of the Inca Trail.
The lunch, prepared from scratch on site by the local team, was delicious – generous plates of the freshest avocado, mango, and ceviche.
Bellies filled, we continued our hike to Intipunku (The Sun Gate) where we had our first glimpse of Machu Picchu. We stopped here for some time to take in the scenery, and to take more photos. If anyone was tired at this point, seeing this was enough to give an energy boost to last the descent into Machu Picchu.
We headed down, the incredible lost city of the Incas, Machu Picchu, getting closer with every step. Most of the Inca trail trekkers had left (as they usually start the day hike at 3am to see Machu Picchu at sunset) and so it was fairly empty, which was perfect.
It’s hard to describe and photos just don’t do it justice at all. Wayna Picchu (the mountain behind the city) is enormous, and I feel in photos it looks so small, but the whole area is magnificent.
We spent time taking photos and celebrating completing our hike before heading down to the bus station to make sure we made the last bus! (I don’t think any of us fancied the walk down!)
We spent the night in Aguas Calientes town, which is very picturesque but a bit of an odd town, very touristy and feels very much as if it was built purely as a town for people visiting Machu Picchu (which I guess it is). As the name suggests, there are hot springs in the town to visit, but we didn’t end up going there.
We headed for some food before retiring to bed early, I was exhausted.
Day Two
We woke up again, bright and early to take the first bus up to Machu Picchu for sunrise. This time we entered through a different entrance and had our ‘close-up’ encounter with city. We had a guided tour through the ruins, hearing more about the excavation and what is believed the different rooms were used for. We passed the ceremonial baths, the royal tomb, temple of the sun, and the temple of the condor.
One thing of note is you have to follow a very specific route around the complex depending on what ticket you have – in previous years you could wander around at your own volition, but in an attempt to curb numbers and keep the area well-preserved, you have to stick to your area. So take photos as you go, there is no going back!
There were lots of alpacas wandering about, and they were very friendly. They were definitely not following the designated route!
After exploring the area, we had the option of hiking Wayna Picchu (tickets needed to be purchased in advance) or heading back to Aguas Calientes. We opted for the latter.
In Aguas Calientes there are lots of shops, cafes, restaurants and a huge (!) covered market where we bought some goodies.
We then headed to the train station to board our train back to Ollantayambo.
This time, our train came with some interesting entertainment; an alpaca fashion show and traditional dance and music!
We had our final night in Cuzco before flying back to Lima!
Lima
After landing in Lima, we grabbed our bags and hopped into a taxi. The taxi ride was long but there was lots to see along the way; varying neighbourhoods, business centres and then suddenly we were driving along the coast! It’s easy to forget that Lima is a coastal city because it’s so built up with skyscrapers that it’s only when you get to the very edge of the that you see the dramatic coastline. It really takes you by surprise.
We settled into our Airbnb for the night ready to face the city with a fresh face the next morning.
Lima Historical Centre
A lot of the main sights are in the Historical Centre – we started our day on a walking tour.
1. Walking tour
We headed on a walking tour, which was a great way to orientate ourselves and learnt a little Peruvian history.
2. La Merced Church
This was where our walking tour started. The church has an incredibly detailed engraved stone façade which is well worth seeing.
3. Plaza Mayor
This impressive main square was decorated in purple for the celebration of the ‘Lord of the Miracles”, which is a big deal in Lima.
4. Basilica Cathedral of Lima
Situated in the main square is Lima’s grand cathedral with is a cathedral-come museum. There are multiple chapels all the way around and at the back there is a huge exhibition filled with religious art.
After the walking tour we headed out for lunch, looking for a vegetarian restaurant to make things easier for my parents. Within the historical centre the only vegetarian option in most restaurants was tortilla, and apparently having this for every meal was unacceptable to Dad. We kept being recommended a vegetarian restaurant in the centre “The best vegetarian restaurant in Lima!” and so we headed there.
It was filled with locals so we thought, this must be good. Spoiler alert, it wasn’t good, and I think it was less of the BEST vegetarian restaurant in Lima, and was more accurately “the only vegetarian restaurant in Lima”. The food was pretty disappointing and oddly a lot of the options did actually contain meat.
We had an odd concoction of vegetables and chips, followed by a desert of tasteless purple gloop.
In hindsight, perhaps tortilla for every meal wasn’t such a bad option, and so we veered away from vegetarian-specific restaurants from then on (at least in Lima and Arequipa, Cuzco had FANTASTIC vegetarian restaurants).
What makes up for a bad lunch? Pisco sours, of course.
We headed to Hotel Maury which claims to be in the inventor of the pisco sour (although so do quite a lot of other places)
The room was interestingly decorated with wooden panelling and scattered portraits around the walls.
We ordered 3 pisco sours, and asked what other options there were for Mum – it turned out it was pisco sour or water.
The pisco sours were delicious!
It was definitely time for desert by this point. Both our guide book and our walking tour guide had recommended trying Lima’s famous turron de dona Pepa at Pasteleria San Martin.
And so we headed there – the café was lined with mirrored windows and silver décor and we could see a huge tray filled with multicoloured pieces of what we assumed was turron.
We ordered and sat down – it was interesting, a sort of thick crumbly stickly slab covered in sparkly hundreds & thousands. It tasted sort of like a biscuit covered in aniseed and toffee sauce.
We then bundled into an uber and headed to see the magic fountains.
5. Magic Fountains (El Circuito Magico del Agua)
At night this park comes alive with brightly illuminated fountains and a huge laser light show.
Miraflores
We spent a day wandering around Miraflores, there is plenty to see and do here.
1. Parque Kennedy (i.e. the cat park!)
A beautiful green space with flowers in full bloom, and, you’ve guessed it – cats!
Over 150 cats in fact. The cats here are taken care of by volunteers, keeping them neutered, fed and healthy and are heavily reliant on donations, particularly as more and more cats are abandoned here. There are frequent adoption campaigns set up and there were lots of posters around.
2. Markets
There are quite a few markets around Miraflores, selling pretty similar items – we looked through, trying to decide whether to buy items here or later in our trip. We bought a few things – a jumper, some hats and some cute baby outfits.
After filling Dad’s rucksack with our shopping haul (the benefit of taking your parents with you on holiday) we headed towards Huaca Pucliana, passing through suburban streets along the way.
The buildings in the area were pretty grand – beautiful mansions but surrounded by huge steel gates and darkened windows. This felt so contrasted to houses in the UK – where the grandest of houses would be on full display with huge windows and meticulous gardens. Here everything was behind steel gates, private.
3. Huaca Pucliana
This is a must-see sight – an enormous pyramid-like structure which pre-dates the Incan period significantly, having being built in the year 400. Considering it’s made of clay it’s incredible that its lasted this long – apparently this is due to Lima’s dry climate. I wonder how many days it would have lasted in rainy Glasgow.
4. Miraflores Waterfront
It was time to walk to the waterfront. The waterfront area is pretty spectacular, with an enormous shopping centre built into the cliff-edge. Along the top there is a boardwalk lined with an abundance of greenery, flowers and sculptures. The walkway carried on for a fair length, marked by creperies every 50m or so. We crossed a bridge and headed over to the famous Sculpture Park, the main event being “The Kiss” sculpture.
We visited the waterfront area twice - the first on a windy and overcast day, which although didn’t show off the sea in its true glory, appeared to be the perfect environment for paragliding. We watched, mesmerised by the sheer number of paragliders twisting and turning over the crashing waves.
When we returned on our last day of the trip, the sun was shining and the view even more beautiful.
We finished off our day munching on fresh ceviche (both fish and vegetarian) and delicious ‘papa rellena’ – the famous Peruvian potato dish at Barra Maretazo.
Barranco
We spent a day wandering around Barranco neighbourhood, Miraflores’ much cooler rebellious cousin.
The area felt very different to both Miraflores and the centre with a blend of previous opulent colonial mansions now upmarket boutiques, concept stores, restaurants all sandwiched between more run-down buildings.
We walked around the area looking at street art, popping into shops.
1. Bridge of Sighs
Another bridge of Sighs, this time in Peru. This previously crossed a river but now covers a cute cobbled path which leads you down to the beach.
Lima is home to incredible restaurants, boasting some of the best in South America and many of these are in Barranco. After perusing the menu’s online, I booked a meal at Merito, which is a distinctively chic restaurant. They only had 2 fully vegetarian options and a couple of meat and fish options, but there was enough to satisfy all of us as they were all equally mouth-watering. My favourite dishes were the ‘Choclo a la brasa’ which was an amazing barbecued sweetcorn with chilli cream, and the ‘Roca’ which appeared to be a large rock at first glance, but after breaking with a small hammer, revealed a delicious chocolate pudding.
Favourite places to shop in Lima:
For markets, the Inca Market and Indian Market had a good selection of souvenirs.
In Barranco, Artesanias Las Pallas was a bit of a hidden gem – situated inside an old colonial house was this beautiful artisanal shop spilling through multiple rooms filled with all sorts of handmade items from art pieces to jewellery to clothing.
Other cool shops – PUNA and El Cacaotal.
Arequipa
Arequipa was our next stop, known as the “White City” as much has been constructed from the white-coloured volcanic stone.
We had originally planned to arrive in Arequipa from Puno via the Colca Canyon, but due to our itinerary change instead we flew from Lima directly here.
Our first day started with another walking tour, getting our bearings and learning more about the city.
The historical centre is very compact and is easy to navigate. We were also delighted to see blue skies and warm weather! It was quite a contrast to Lima!
1. Arequipa Main Square
The main square is very pretty, with a large green space in the centre, and shops and rooftop bars outline the area.
2. Santa Catalina Monastery
This is a beautiful monastery and WELL worth a visit. We initially thought we would only spend an hour or so here. How wrong we were – it looks small from the outside, but it is not – it’s basically a large village inside – you need a lot more time than you think!
4. Arequipa Cathedral
The cathedral dominates the plaza de armas and is well worth a visit. If you go after 5pm it’s free!
5. Church of the Company
This is another beautiful church, with another painting of the Last Supper featuring guinea pig!
6. Mercado San Camilo
This is by far the best market in Arequipa – here you can get anything from colourful fabric, souvenirs, fresh fruit and vegetables and delicious juices.
In fact, there is a whole aisle dedicated to juices – simply select a stall and pick a juice! It was here we discovered we had been victim of a mistranslation in previous restaurants. If an English menu was available, we would always make sure to check it in case there was hidden meat in the dishes. One thing we kept seeing mentioned in the English menu was ‘tuna’ but in dishes that didn’t really make sense to have tuna in. At the juice bar, we saw ‘Tuna’ written in the Spanish section, repeatedly. We used google translate which told us tuna meant tuna. A bit confused, we asked the server that tuna was, and she held up a prickly pear! Clearly it had been prickly pear in the dishes the whole time!
7. Museo Sanctuarios Andinos
This museum was really interesting – the main draw for most visitors is to see Juanita, the “ice maiden”. Juanita was thought to have been a 12-14year old girl who had been sacrificed to the gods at the summit of Nevado Ampato 500 years ago. Her body had been preserved perfectly by the frozen temperatures at the peak and was found in 1995. Here you can see her mummy, along with other artefacts.
8. Mundo Alpaca
Alpaca world! This is a clothing store come alpaca farm – even if you don’t want to buy any jumpers (they are the more expensive end of the spectrum) you can still visit to say hello to the animals.
9. Cooking class
I love a cooking class, and so we booked one in Arequipa at Casa de Avila.
The class was fun – we learnt how to make causa, which is a famous Peruvian potato and tuna layered dish. After forming the causa, we had small cuttings of vegetables to use as decoration, mum’s was definitely the more professional-looking of the four, mine was the most fun.
Following this we made a classic Peruvian dish, lomo saltado which developed as a fusion dish from China and Peru.
It was a fun way to spend the afternoon.
What wasn’t fun however, was the food poisoning I developed that evening – violently throwing up about 3 days’ worth of food until I fell asleep.
It seemed I had poisoned myself in the cooking class.
Thankfully everyone else was well and I was back to normal the next day! Phew.
10. Rooftop Views
There are lots of rooftop bars and cafes and it’s the perfect way to watch the sun go down.
Where we ate:
There were lots of tasty restaurants in Arequipa, and vegetarian food was much much easier to come by.
El Buda Profano
Not just vegetarian, but vegan! We stumbled upon this Japanese-Peruvian fusion restaurant and it was delicious!
Crepisimo
This was one of the best meals – delicious sweet and savoury crepes with equally delicious pisco sours,
Museo del Pisco
This was an excellent cocktail bar serving hundreds of pisco concoctions.
There were also many, many rooftop bars.
Zig Zag
Here is where we accidentally ordered an enormous amount of food. Keen to try some Peruvian meats, we ordered alpaca – in steak form and in cured form. Even mum (the pescatarian) tried it. It was quite chewy, tasted like chicken. It was much better in steak form.
After Arequipa, we headed to Cuzco!
Top Tips for Peru:
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Inca Trail – If you want to hike the Inca Trail, it is ESSENTIAL to book this in advance. Pre-covid this was often >1 year in advance. The permits go on sale periodically throughout the year and the tour company you have booked through will organise this.
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Make sure you have all the gear you need for the Inca Trail before arriving into Cuzco, otherwise you’ll be paying hefty prices!
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Do not take coca leaves home (depending on where home is!). Cocaine is made from the same plant and as such coca tea, coca leaves, and coca-containing sweets are illegal to import into many countries.
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Don’t take plastic bottles into Machu Picchu, they are prohibited.
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Consider your fitness for the Inca Trail. There are lots of good articles to help you get an idea of how fit you need to be for each route. For me, a 30 year old who Is relatively active, does occasional mountain hiking, for the day hike I felt fine. If each day of the Inca Trail was like this it would be doable, but I would be much, much more tired (and would also have to carry a bigger backpack), and so I would have preferred to be slightly fitter to make the experience more comfortable. For Mum and Dad, who are in their early 60’s, and although walk often and are fairly active, neither of them do hill hiking often, running or higher intensity exercise. They found the hike tough, particularly during the morning where most of the route was a steady incline with very little flat parts. They made it, and in good time, but I suspect if they were to do it again they would like to have been a little fitter (or younger!). The trail is certainly not for the faint-hearted, and anyone wanting to do a hike whether it is the 1 day or 7 day, needs to train a little. It’s much tougher on the actual route due to the early starts and high altitudes.
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When picking a hotel in Cuzco its best to consider how you will be travelling on day trips. Many hotels are located off side streets and so the transport will pick you up often a 10-15 minute walk away. This doesn’t sound so bad until you realise this means walking for 15 minutes with your backpack at 4 in the morning. Our tour company (Alpaca Expeditions) had a list of hotels they were able to pick us up from directly outside, and so we chose one of those.
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A “chocolate museum” is always a chocolate shop.