The North Coast

This weekend, I headed north to Trujillo for La Festival Internacional de la Primavera (The International Spring Festival) and to check out some archaeological ruins with my friend Imad. Also, hearing that Trujillo is perpetually sunny, we booked ourselves a hostal on the beach and were really looking forward to laying around and soaking up some rays. No such luck, it was cloudy chilly the entire time, so we had to change our plans slightly. We met an Italian traveler who was sharing our room in the hostel, so we checked out the ruins and spend the day at the festival with him. It's always fun meeting people on the road.

We spent the first day visiting archaeological sites around Trujillo in chronological sequence. First we went to Huacas de la luna and del sol (Huacas of the moon and the sun), which were Moche temples. The art on the walls of Huaca de la luna was spectacularly preserved and very impressive. Furthermore, the Moche were awesome because they documented a lot of their rituals and daily life in ceramics and paintings adding loads of credibility to archaeological interpretations. Periodically, the Moche would fill Huaca de la luna with bricks and build another temple on top of it. Every family had to produce a certain amount of bricks and to keep track of that, each family also had a symbol that served as a signature. I really liked seeing those. So often we forget how human people of the past actually were, but a signature is something that we can all relate to.

From there, we went to Chan Chan, which was an enormous political structure from the Chimu culture who over through the Moche. The Inka followed the Chimu and then the Spanish came along. Anyways, Chan Chan was spectacular. I loved all the maritime symbolism in the architecture, such as walls that look like fish nets and tiles of pelicans, fish, and waves throughout the structure. Also, the engineering was really impressive. The walls were built to be earthquake proof by leaving light spaces between the bricks and building the walls on an angle. The walls of the main plaza were designed for sound to reflect off of them and the acoustics really were incredible. Finally, the aisles go from wider to narrower making them appear longer than they actually are and also keeping people in line, literally, as they enter hallowed land.

When it was cloudy and cold on Saturday, the day planned to spend at the beach vegging out, we decided to head up to Chiclayo and Lambayeque to check out an archaeological museum about the Lord of Sipan. The museum was incredible and set up so that you see things in the order that archaeologists found them, which was fun. Chiclayo is called "La Ciudad de Amistad" The City of Friendship, and it was very true. Everyone we encountered in Chiclayo was incredibly friendly. We went to an enormous market there. Markets are always fun for me. I love seeing all the food and wares and sampling a bit. This market was also fun because it had a section called "Mercado de los Brujos" The witch market full of potions and amulets for any sort of ailment or need you may have.

Sunday was the parade for the spring festival, which featured dance groups, bands, and beauty queens from all over Peru and other countries as well (USA!). Twice, I got pulled into the parade by dance groups and made to dance in a circle, which was really fun and kind of funny. Our bus left at 11:15pm, so after the parade, we had a nice dinner, hung out a little bar for a bit, and then sat around in the Plaza de Armas for a bit before starting the 9 hour trip back to Lima.

Worldwide: Twenty-somethings can't measure up to Mom's cooking

Last night, we had a potluck at my friend Corinna's house. There were people from France, Germany, The Netherlands, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru. I was one of two people reppin' the USA. We were all supposed to bring a dish from our countries. I figured what's more American than hamburgers and pie? Hamburger pie! It was an amazing feast and we all thought we were going to burst after eating so much food. I also learned that in France, quiche is a dinner eaten with salad, not a breakfast like we eat it in the States. Jules was actually quite appalled when I told him that we love eating quiche for breakfast!

While we were all eating and complimenting everyone's dish, everyone would say "gracias, pero no es como la de mi mama" "Thank you, but it's not like my mom's" All around the world, moms have set a standard in the kitchen that is impossible for us to achieve. I added 'love' to my ingredients when we were writing out the recipes of all the dishes with a little side note that said "siempre cocina con amor" "always cook with love"... just like you taught me, Mom.

Dangerously Addicted to Peruvian Chinese Food

Lima is full of chifas, or Chinese restaurants. They are great because, not only are they everywhere, but they are also easily the cheapest meal you can get in town! They are pretty similar to Chinese restaurants in the States, expect without Moo Goo Gai Pan and General Tso's Chicken, which kind of breaks my heart. Besides that though, they are slightly dirty, shaky costumer service, and my favorite on even has a neglected fish tank. The average meal at a chifa is about 7 soles, which amounts to about $2.50 and includes an enormous bowl of soup, fried rice, and a stir fry (or whatever you ask for). You can get cheaper meals though. Today, I was craving fried rice, so I went to my favorite chifa, just around the corner, and got some soup and a huge plate of fried rice for 5.50 soles, so about 1.75 USD. I haven't found a place that serves egg rolls yet, but there are still many chifas that I'm yet to try...

Feria de los Flores

This weekend, in Parque Kennedy, there's a flower fair. Tessa and I did some strolling through it were loving all the colors and good smells. I bought a little bonsai garden to bring some life into my room.

Old School: A Peruvian Beatles Tribute Band

Last night the Anthropology department at La Catolica was hosting a party complete with a Beatles tribute band! I went with three of the girls from my Urban Popular Culture class. They were no 1964: The Tribute, but still very very fun. It was fun for me to be in a crowded Peruvian night club listening to Beatles music and having everyone around me singing a long as well. It made me realize really how influential The Beatles were -- even younger generations in Peru still listen to them! It was also funny to to have the band introducing songs in Spanish and then singing them in English. They played a really wide range of songs and opened the set with All My Loving, which made me so happy being that it's my favorite Beatles tune. :)

Chavin, Huaraz, and the Cordillera Blanca

This weekend, I went to the Huaraz area with a couple of my friends to do some hiking and check out some archaeological ruins. It was breathtaking up there, though I'm not sure if it was because of the scenery or the altitude. We took a bus in that left Lima at 9pm and arrived in Huaraz at around 6am. From there, we slept for a couple of hours and then started sight seeing.

We took a painfully long bus tour to the Chavin ruins. Along the way, we also stopped at one of the lagoons, had lunch, and checked out the Chavin museum. The Chavin civilization is from about 2000 years BC and one of the most influential pre-Incan civilizations in terms of architecture and stone masonry. Like I said though, the tour was painfully long and we were very rushed at every site. Our tour guide also talked very strangely. He would pause as if he was expecting us to finish his sentences, but no one ever did. "Ahora vamaos a viajar a las ruinas de Chavin de? (LONG PAUSE) de Huantar. Cierto" "Ahora vamos a regresar a la ciudad de? (LONG PAUSE) de Huaraz. Cierto" After a while, it became hilarious and a continuing joke for the rest of the weekend.

On Friday we did at 16 kilometer trek to Lago 69. It's a stunning mountain lake with the bluest water I've ever seen with a snow covered mountain just above it. The altitude was 4,600 meters above sea level. The trek in was also gorgeous. We kept ourselves well stocked with coca leaves to help the altitude sickness, and it really did help. It was amazing how we could feel our bodies reacting to the altitude change going up and then coming back down as well.

Sunday, we took it easy and went to market in Huaraz. I got a new purse and textile as well as sampled some local cuisine. We took a 1pm bus back to Lima and got in around 8:30. It was nice to see the drive back since we missed it going in. We went from being in the sierras, to farm land, to desert, to huge city.

Oh and an FYI, just click on the pictures so see them full sized and then go back to get right back to my blog. Sorry this post is so picture heavy, but it was just so beautiful I couldn't control myself!

Adventures in Dining

Yesterday was the first day of a week-long Peruvian food festival being held in Lima. I had a light dinner on Monday night and skipped breakfast on Tuesday to make room for what was bound to be an overwhelming amount of food. There were about seven people in our group, a couple of French guys, some Germans, two from the States, and a Peruvian to make sure we ate all the right stuff. Each person bought one plate to share with the group. We started off with a crab soup (the name escapes me), Pachamanca, Ceviche, Cuy, Chorritos, an Amazonian dish that I forget the name of, and Tacu Tacu del Diego. It was all sooo good! Pachamanca is a meat, corn, potatoes, and bean dish cooked in the ground, Ceviche is raw fish in a highly acidic sauce that cooks it about half way, Cuy is guinea pig, Chorritos are a shell fish topped with onions and tomatoes, the Amazonian dish was a mix of plantain and rice with ham, and Tacu Tacu del Diego is a rice and bean paste that was topped with aji sauce and octopus. It was all delicious! Guinea pig wasn't my favorite, but it wasn't bad either. My favorite new things I tried were probably Tacu Tacu del Diego and Chorritos, and the Ceviche there was the best I've ever had! I've spent my entire life saying that I don't like seafood... I think I just haven't been eating the right seafood!

After we were done eating, we went to check out the chocolate are and endulged in many a free sample.

When were done eating, it was time to move on to sample all the different pisco puros (it's kind of like whiskey), pisco mixed drinks, rums, and wines.

I went to bed last night very full and very happy. :)

Fishing bay + Ceviche + Mud bath = Awesome day!

Today, Angelina and I took a little adventure just a couple hours south of Lima. Angelina is my new up-for-anything housemate. She came a few days ago and didn't like here previously living arrangements, so she moved in with us!

We went to a small fishing village, called Pucusana and it was really picturesque. The bay was full of fishing boats of all colors and pelicans. We ate some ceviche, took some pictures and then headed out to Chiclan. To get there, we had to take a combi and then a rickshaw, which I was excited about because I've never ridden in a rickshaw before. :)

Chiclan is famous for mucky springs that are believed to possess healing powers. Some believe that these healing powers are from space aliens who periodically come and "re-charge" the muck in the springs. Trust me, I wouldn't be able to make this up. The area looks quite spacey. It's surrounded by sand dunes and the water is extremely salty, thick, and a pretty bright green. It was empty except for one other couple (it's still winter here), but so much fun! Now our skin feels oh-so-good.

Walking back, we ran into a hodge-podge of a sale going on in Parque Kennedy... lots of jewelry, handicrafts, and antiques! It'll be going on every Saturday for the rest of month. :)

Next Stop: Mars!

Last night, Tessa and the people she volunteers with in Huaycan threw galaxy party! The people who dressed up looked great and it was really fun to get all our friends in one place that wasn't blasting music to hang out for a change.

A tomb?

After two long days of sifting dirt, I finally got to start excavating at Huaca Pucllana yesterday! It pretty fun to dig away at the soil and find ancient walls. I also found a piece of a textile, ceramics, seashells, and fish bones. Everyone though the area were working in was a tomb because the bricks were laid in a similar fashion to other tombs on the site and there a was floor just a little above it. Because of that, I went back after lunch to watch them open it up, and it wasn't a tomb. We didn't find anything... just more bricks of the pyramid's wall! Oh well, maybe next time :)