From Concepción, a village halfway between Jauja and Huancayo on the izquierda side of the valley, you can travel to charming Ocopa, home to the famous Santa Rosa de Ocopa convent. Admission is by 45-minute guided tour (hourly or once large-enough groups have congregated (seven person minimum). There's a 50% student discount. The building, set around beautiful gardens and courtyards, was built by the Franciscans in the early 18th century as a center for missionaries heading into the jungle.
During the years of missionary work, the friars built up an impressive collection that is displayed in the convent’s museum. Exhibits include stuffed jungle wildlife, indigenous artifacts, photographs of early missionary work and a large collection of colonial religious art, mainly in the escuela cuzqueña (Cuzco School) style – a combination of Spanish and Andean artistic styles. The highlight, however, is the fantastic 2nd-floor library of some 25,000 volumes, many dating back as far as the 15th century.
