Las Gradas (The Stairs)

Cochabambinos boast of having the tallest statue of Christ in all of South America by a few centimeters. The better known statue in Brazil is 33 meters (about 108 feet) high, one meter for every year of Christ’s life here in earth. The one in my dear city of Cochabamba, El Cristo de la Concordia, is 33 meters and a few centimeters; the residents reason that it is due to the fact that Christ lived 33 years and a bit more. It’s all the same to me.

What is most important is that Jesus is alive now! This special time of the celebration of his resurrection seemed like a momentous time to resurrect a practice I had before I became pregnant (Tyler turned 7 months old today).

That is on Saturday mornings to climb the 2,000 stairs on the side on San Pedro hill leading up to the statue. I like to be in the fresh air and see the city from way up high. It is inspirational and a great time to pray and think.

Here are the numbers and facts of the climb:

2,500 meters (about 8,200 feet) – altitude of the valley city of Cochabamba

2,650 meters (about 8,700 feet) – altitude of the statue “El Cristo” on the top of the hill

150 meters (about 500 feet) – elevation gain of climbing stairs

1,400 – number of stairs

45 minutes – total time up and back, keeping a steady walking pace

Red – the color of my face at the bottom of the hill :-)

(Click here for a nice picture of the statue)

Going up

Going down

Now I am off to the market.