I arrived in Peru late on Monday and checked into the Holiday Inn near the entrance to the airport. I walked to Zoraya for an early lunch and ordered Seco de Cabrito con Tamal Verde/Goat Kid Stew with Green Tamale. They serve it with a bunch of beans, rice and a huge mess of onions with 3 types of salsa/chilis on the side. I also ordered the obligatory Inka Cola. (sp?)
Delicious but boney. The ligaments were a treat. I wish there had been more meat and that the “kid” had been a bit younger but the meat was tender enough, just very slightly gamey. The onions really complemented the dish well. I really enjoyed this dish.
I asked for a local seafood dish for dinner and ended up with a golden mixture of shrimp, clams, calamari over pappardalle noodles. Not sure if it was Peruvian but it was fairly good and very filling. I did enjoy the Pisco Sour a bit more, i think it may accompany my dinners going forward.
I am new here so i do not remember the name of the local tuk tuk. Crude and noisy but effective. I will also enclose Zoraya’s menu, wide ranging and worth more than one visit.
I arrived way late in Nazca and first thing in the morning I boarded a flight to see the Nazca Lines. What a thrill! I have always loved the exuberance of the monkey and i got to see it from the air in person! Bucket list event for me!
I also had a rather nice Peruvian meal right afterward. Avocado stuffed w chicken salad/ Palta Relleno de Pollo was delicious and completely unexpected, it sounded novel so i ordered it and was pleasantly surprised. The spiral on the decorative slice of avocado reminded me of the monkey’s tail.
The lomo saltado arrived next and was prepared very well. A nice dish that was not as heavy as many versions i have had in the States.
Had a nice light lunch at Mamashana in Nazca. Tilapia a la Meniere. Tilapia is not my favorite dish but it was grilled to perfection and the fried potatoes soaked up the best of the juice. Passionfruit shake was excellent.
Priciest meal in a while though. 53 Soles is around $13US. Not bad.
Not a meal, per se, but i am enjoying my Pisco Sours! Light, refreshing, a near perfect balance of sweet and tart. Outstanding.
Everything looks so fantastic. Thanks for taking us along. I would love that cabrito, I’m sure. Will have to check Peruvian places here for that. And the Lomo Saltado - presentation is awesome, so much better looking than any version I’ve had here.
No ceviche? People rave about Peru’s ceviche offerings but I’ve found them all too acidic for me.
I have only had ceviche once during my time in both Ecuador and Peru. My second full day in Quito i had trouble breathing while walking the hills of Quito, even though on day one i was walking with no breathing problems at all.
Then i got a fairly bad, but thankfully brief, case of travellers belly while at the Galapagos. It only cost me a day but between the two events i have toned back what i order and ceviche has been, “want to but it does not seem wise at this point.” I took an overnight bus from Nazca to Arequipa last night and only dozed fitfully so i am fairly tired again today. So i went to a nice little Italian joint for Osso Bucco Lasagna. What is that? I thought Osso bucco was a cut of boney meat?
Anyway, the lasagna was kind of bland and the Bonet postre/dessert was boring but it was fuel, not fun, in this case.
My favorite part of my visit so far was seeing a very well mannered stray dog sit, just out of the way of patrons, at the door of a pizza place. It got busy so i could not get a shot of him but i got one as he started to walk away. Then the owner came to the door with a plate of food, called out to the dog and put the food to one side for the dog and chatted with him while he ate. Very cool.
I like Arequipa. The people, the buildings, the weather. It is all good.
Another very good Pisco Sour! Then i had an oddly prepared Creole Soup. Kind of like instant soup w poached egg. Kind of good but slightly slapdash. Then a really nice Trout (?) With Fine Herbs at Chira Fusion in Arequipa! The trout looked like salmon but tasted like really nice, fresh trout. Great meal in a beautiful city! People here are outgoing and proud of their city. And deservedly so!
I am back in Cusco, on my way to Arica, Chile tomorrow. Getting my breath back, Machu Picchu was a whirlwind of walking, then there was a two day transit strike so i had to beat feet to get here. I am trying to get to Chile so i can fly to New Zealand early next week.
I am getting laundry done and hitting a barber to trim my beard, exciting stuff! I am traveling for 7 months carrying a 45 liter carry on back pack and a 15 liter tote, so laundry is a chore i have to get done every week.
More enjoyably, as i was walking home a cafe tout mentioned that they had cordera/ lamb so i stepped in and ordered it and a colada mochada, which was missing the usual blackberry flavor. They served a complimentary Pisco Sour with it which was nice.
The lamb was really good, though salty as all get out. Vegies and potatos were good sides. Other than the salt, the only real negative was the sheer number of buskers trying to sell me and the other diners prints, chiclets/gum, wooden knick knacks, etc… I do not like to ignore people working for a living but there were at least 15 or 16 of them and half refused to take " no thanks" for an answer. I am used to buskers but this was a bit worse than usual.
Good people watching and decent food.
Such an adventure you are on! The food keeps looking amazing!! Safe travels to Chile and beyond.
How did I miss posting about Machu Picchu? What an experience! And the food varied from pretty good to, should i eat more of this? I started out w pork chicharon and it was fatty as imaginable. Nice pub but it was so rich i could not eat most of it. They served it with potatoes and super-corn, both of which i like. The corn is firm and chewy, and the kernels are large, a cool side dish.
The next day i had el Seco Norte which was a delicious Osso Bucco with really nice beans and gravy, a rather tasty dish at Chullo’s! Nice IPA, too! And the view of the river was outstanding. The mountain just looms over the pub/cafe like it is planning on falling on you before you finish your beer!
I had a challenging travel week so i will be flying from Chile to Tokyo tomorrow and Monday. 6 airlines jerked me around as i tried to book a flight from Santiago to Auckland or Christchurch. It will cost me $1300 less to fly in via Tokyo and i love the food in Japan, so it is a win-win! Albeit w a very long series of flights from Arica, Chile to Santiago to Houston and on to Narita.
Arica is ok, but i won’t be back.
Geez, thus far you have experienced the dreaded travelers belly (B used to get a case every time we’d go to SE Asia), transit strike, overwhelming touts, and the flight issues. Ironically, these stories make me miss our faraway trips.
Good luck today/tomorrow. Can’t wait for your Tokyo dispatches.
Waiting for my taxi to the airport.
I am feeling lucky. I got to see the Galapagos Islands and swim with penguins. I was fortunate enough to fly over the Nazca Lines and see the monkey that seemed so exotic in my youth. And i walked among the structures of Machu Picchu with my jaw down around my knees.
That is an amazing series of events for me.
And for the past two days i have sat beach side in Arica.
Sweet.
Life is good.
So happy for you that you are having these wonderful experiences and so happy for the rest of us that you are sharing them!! Thank you!
Argh, I tried to add a “Thank you” to Digga, Gretchen and Bruce for their comments and deleted my own comment by mistake.
I enjoy sharing travel tales so you will see one from Japan soon!
On edit: My comment is back, thank you to the editor!
I’m really enjoying reading about your travels. Thanks so much for writing!
