Can you say starch and carbohydrates? Peru is the home of over 8,000 types of potatoes and over 80 spieces of corn. I had many a meal with a potato dish, corn, and rice. I loved all of the traditional dishes that I tried. I have to admit that I did not try the guinea pig or alpaca (sp?). I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I was not as adventurous as most of the people touring with me. Yes, guinea pig. It is a delicacy here in Peru and is usually served during special occasions like birthdays and weddings. Families raise them for consumption and they don't name them. We visited a family in the countryside who had about 25-30 of them just running around in the kitchen with a cat sleeping on the stove.
We had to be careful not to eat any raw vegetables, even when they were washed because of the water. I ate steam, baked and boiled veggies. They were very tasty. I did get hives once from eating the ceviche, but I loved it. Thanks goodness for benedryl.
For breakfast we had fresh fruit. The mangos, cantelope and papaya were so sweet. They also had several types of bread with strawberry jam. They also served papas (potatoes) and scrambled eggs.
One of the things I looked forward to was the different salsas/chilis. They are really spicy and flavorful, but I think that in some restaurants they made it much milder for the tourists.
They have sauces with almost every dish, just like in the Philippines. It was like having comfort food. I ate mainly chicken and beef. The dishes are filled with spices. Yum!!!!!
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Inca Ruins in Cusco, Brick homes, and land
I will be blogging about particular subjects during my trip since it is too hard to give a blow-by-blow account of my days. Everyday has been jammed-packed with activities. I'm beginning to forget what came first.
I have visited several ruins while in Cusco. By-the-way, you may find two spelling for Cusco this is why. When the Spaniards came they spelled it Cuzco. Because of the damage the Spanish caused to the Andean people (this is what they call themselves), the Andeans didn't want to use their spelling.
We hiked around for hours. The weather was terrific. There was blue skies and moderate temperature. I wore long sleeves, capris, a big floppy hat, and hiking boots.
My guide, Freddy, had a vast knowledge of the Inca's history. It is simply incredible how precise they were in the building of the temples and surrounding buildings. In many of the Incan buildings, the trapezoid was a prominent figure used to assure structural integrity. Like California, it is earthquake country. In fact, when we were in Machupicchu, they said that we there was one. I didn't feel it as I don't feel them unless they are over 4.0 .
The boulders that were used to make the buildings are huge. I can only imagine how many people were killed while working on them. The people had to transport them many miles for the mountains to the cites. Most were rolled on some kind of logs or slid them most of the way. They were boulders that weighed tons. It took at least 100 years to build on of the ruins that I explored. I am sorry that I do not have the exact names of the ruins since I am in the Lima airport and all of my paperwork is in my suitcases. We are leaving for Quito, Ecuador.
In Cusco (the pronounciation is like Costco), the elevation is 11,000+. Yes, I was sucking air for the first several days. I was like the tortoise in The Tortoise and the Hare. Slow and steady wins the race. I'm so glad that I had walking sticks. This saved my knees. The paths were not paved, but very rocky, dusty, and the steps were very uneven. I really had to concentrate on every step I was taking.
I have never seen so many land with so many stones, rocks, and boulders. The land has a lot of clay. The people use this to their advantage. If you are familiar with the adobe brick buildings, you will understand how the Andean people make their bricks. We were fortunate to get to see how a family on the side of the road was making bricks for their home. They take the clay from the land, break it up, add water, and then place it by hand into a wooden rectangular mold. They continually add water, stomp on it with their feet, and add straw. Afterwards, they remove the mold and let dry in the sun for several days. In the countryside, almost all of the buildings are made with the clay bricks. Some are lucky enough to have a clay-tiled roof or corrigated metal or plastic roof. If they don't have the money, when it rains, they have to rebuild they home. We saw a house about 12'x12' that housed 2 parents and 8 children. The people in the countryside only have a house to sleep in. The rest of the time they are working in the fields to make a living.
More about the people who live in the countryside later.
I have visited several ruins while in Cusco. By-the-way, you may find two spelling for Cusco this is why. When the Spaniards came they spelled it Cuzco. Because of the damage the Spanish caused to the Andean people (this is what they call themselves), the Andeans didn't want to use their spelling.
We hiked around for hours. The weather was terrific. There was blue skies and moderate temperature. I wore long sleeves, capris, a big floppy hat, and hiking boots.
My guide, Freddy, had a vast knowledge of the Inca's history. It is simply incredible how precise they were in the building of the temples and surrounding buildings. In many of the Incan buildings, the trapezoid was a prominent figure used to assure structural integrity. Like California, it is earthquake country. In fact, when we were in Machupicchu, they said that we there was one. I didn't feel it as I don't feel them unless they are over 4.0 .
The boulders that were used to make the buildings are huge. I can only imagine how many people were killed while working on them. The people had to transport them many miles for the mountains to the cites. Most were rolled on some kind of logs or slid them most of the way. They were boulders that weighed tons. It took at least 100 years to build on of the ruins that I explored. I am sorry that I do not have the exact names of the ruins since I am in the Lima airport and all of my paperwork is in my suitcases. We are leaving for Quito, Ecuador.
In Cusco (the pronounciation is like Costco), the elevation is 11,000+. Yes, I was sucking air for the first several days. I was like the tortoise in The Tortoise and the Hare. Slow and steady wins the race. I'm so glad that I had walking sticks. This saved my knees. The paths were not paved, but very rocky, dusty, and the steps were very uneven. I really had to concentrate on every step I was taking.
I have never seen so many land with so many stones, rocks, and boulders. The land has a lot of clay. The people use this to their advantage. If you are familiar with the adobe brick buildings, you will understand how the Andean people make their bricks. We were fortunate to get to see how a family on the side of the road was making bricks for their home. They take the clay from the land, break it up, add water, and then place it by hand into a wooden rectangular mold. They continually add water, stomp on it with their feet, and add straw. Afterwards, they remove the mold and let dry in the sun for several days. In the countryside, almost all of the buildings are made with the clay bricks. Some are lucky enough to have a clay-tiled roof or corrigated metal or plastic roof. If they don't have the money, when it rains, they have to rebuild they home. We saw a house about 12'x12' that housed 2 parents and 8 children. The people in the countryside only have a house to sleep in. The rest of the time they are working in the fields to make a living.
More about the people who live in the countryside later.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
