Feliz 14
A day late but still funny, from the Misiura FB page:
Happy belated Valentine’s Day everybody!
Meet me out in the street, mamacita tonight!
I’m craving hot greasy pizza at the moment. Peruvian pizza isn’t that great but the exception is La Romana Pizzeria in Cuzco. The pizza is excellent and the servers know us well enough to tolerate our wild little Brianna.
Tonight I’m in the mood for a yummie pizza (mitad Vaticano y mitad Romana) and a jara de sangria, but the question is whether mamacita linda will be home early enough. One of the only bad things about living in Peru is that people who work corporate type jobs must work really long hours. Patricia’s normal hours are 9:00am to 8:00pm, 6 days a week! She does get a 2-hour lunch break which is enough to run home for a bit.
It’s not unusual for Patricia’s work hours to run a bit late in the evening, so here’s to my mamacita linda:
Meet me out in the street, to be exact, at La Romana Pizzeria on Av. Tullumayo in beautiful Cuzco, Peru 
Also, not meaning to change the subject to awful bad, we have another reason to celebrate today in addition to my craving of hot greasy pizza: 20-something years ago today, somewhere in Cuzco in the back of a taxi (*) on its way to the hospital, a baby girl was born. Feliz Cumpleaños a mi cuñada!!!
(*) Not kidding, true story.
Souvenirs are overrated
I travel quite a bit and of course I have to bring home gifts from every trip I go on. Mamacita linda has even trained our 2-year old daughter to say “bring gifts” when she knows papi is ready to go on a trip. Most of the gifts I bring for our daughter get some use but the ones I get for mami usually end up collecting dust and taking up space:
- The T-shirt I brought mami from Iceland 2 years ago? Worn once I think.
- Necklace and earrings I bought in Cartagena? Never used.
- The Big Ben souvenir mamacita asked me to bring from London? Stuffed in a file cabinet.
- The cute pillow from Poland? Never used and haven’t seen it in forever.
- The cute polar-bear hairclip I picked out at the souvenir store in Kuujjuaq, Nunavik? Mami looked at it once and said: “Cute, but you go to Canada and bring me back something made in the Philippenes??” Never been used.
I could go on. Clothes are always a bad idea. I buy something stylish and sexy and mamacita says “I can’t wear that here. It’s too cold in Cuzco to wear that.” I buy something comfy and mamacita says “Why do you buy me old lady clothes like that? Buy me something cute next time would you.”
Anyway, I’m writing this sitting in departure gate 19 of the Lima airport, waiting on a flight to Miami. I’m on my way to Kansas to pick up another new airplane from Cessna. The real reason I’m fussing and ranting about souvenirs right now is that souvenirs take up space in the airport where something useful could be, say something like FOOD!!! Airport food is never a great idea but in Lima the choices are really slim. For all the great food you can find in Peru the Lima airport is not a good place to go when you’re in a rush and haven’t eaten.
At the Lima airport there’s a food court with a McDonalds, Papa Johns and a few others. You can get a pretty good “pollo la brasa” at Manos Morenos but they give you like 6 french fries. There’s a Dunkin Donuts at the food court in the Lima airport and you can always tell the Cusquenos traveling home to Cuzco because you’ll see them carrying a dozen donuts through the Lima airport (there’s no Dunkin Donuts in Cuzco). I always feel like such a fool when other gringos in the airport stare at me walking through the airport with my Dunkin Donuts bag. They’re probably thinking something like “why would this fool come all the way down to Lima to buy a dozen donuts?”
At any rate, other than the food court there are few restaurants in the Lima airport. There are 2 restaurants in the international gate area, both ridiculously overpriced. Cheap Dutchman that I am I’ve never eaten at either of them. I just ponied up S/.26 (~$10) for a soda and sandwich at the 365 Deli by gate 19. Ten bucks for a sandwich that had like 2 slices of roast beef on it!
Peruvian food is great but forget Lima airport. The first thing I plan to do when I get to Wichita tomorrow is stuff my tummy with a big juicy steak 
“Ai Se Eu Te Pego!”
This song is so popular in Peru right now, you hear it everywhere and all the time. In the supermarket, on your combi, somebody walking by in the street listening to music on their cellphone, …
With one click of your mouse (I know I’m old fashioned, no need to go there) you too can have happy, catchy lyrics you don’t understand (unless you speak Portugese) in your head for the rest of the day!
Another version:
Here are the “Ai Se Eu Te Pego!” lyrics in Portugese and English.
What songs are popular in your part of the world right now?
Peruvian food brainteaser
Here’s a questions for all you foodies and Peruvian food fans:
When making papi’s famous chicken and french fries – Peruvian style of course – which ingredient is most likely found underneath the living room couch?
While you ponder on that let me tell you I like my food simple. I’ve had a chance to eat fine cuisine at some of the best restaurants in different places around the world and I do enjoy that occasionally, but for the most part simple is better in my humble kitchen. One of the things I don’t like about Europe is that many Europeans seem to try and do fancy food all the time. You get a really pretty-looking plate with some unidentifiable food that leaves you $50 poorer but still hungry. Not me, I’ll take a simple plate of good food over fancy fish eggs any day.
When I was a kid we rarely ate out but I remember during one summer vacation eating at a restaurant with my parents and grandparents in La Jonquera, Spain. While we were enjoying simple yet delicious steak and french fries my grandfather told us this very Belgian story:
Two guys are at a restaurant and order steak and french fries. The waiter brings 2 plates of steak and fries. One guy asks his buddy: “Which plate do you want?” His buddy takes the plate with the biggest piece of steak.
The first guy says: “That is not polite, when you take the first plate it is not polite to choose the plate with the biggest piece of steak.”
“OK”, says his buddy. “So you choose”.
The first guy ponders for a moment and then grabs the plate with the biggest piece of steak. “I’ll take this one.”
“I thought you just said it isn’t polite to choose the plate with the biggest piece of steak!” exclaims his buddy. To which the first guy responds:
“It isn’t polite, but I don’t care, I’ve got the biggest piece of steak!”
I was only 7 or so at the time and thought that was the funniest story ever.
At any rate, have you figured out my Peruvian food brainteaser? If not I’ll give you a hint: it’s the same ingredient you would look for under the couch when cooking pretty much any Peruvian food. Here are the ingredients for my world-famous Peruvian-style chicken and french fries:
- Chicken.
- Potatoes.
- Spices: salt, pepper and cumin al gusto.
- Last but not least: look under the living room couch for Peruvian lemons! Soak chicken liberally in Peruvian lemon juice.
Papi's world famous chicken and french fries
OK, maybe in your house the Peruvian lemons aren’t under the couch but properly stored in the kitchen somewhere. In our house nothing has been properly stored since Pitufiloquita has gotten big enough to reach practically anything, even if she needs to drag a chair around to reach what she wants to get at. She likes to take our Peruvian lemons to her little play-kitchen and inevitably all my Peruvian lemons end up on the ground and under the living room couch.
That was easy, no? As soon as I said Peruvian food you knew there would be Peruvian lemons involved somewhere. Practically all Peruvian food gets lemon juice: salads, meat, fish, etc. Of course lemon juice is a main ingredient in both the best known Peruvian food (ceviche) and best known Peruvian drink (Pisco Sour), but you find Peruvian lemon juice in practically any Peruvian food. There is even a supposed Peruvian hangover cure based on the lemon juice.
I guess I should clarify the thing I’m calling “Peruvian lemon” here is closest to a “lime” or “Key lime” in US stores, it’s the little green one, not the really sour yellow one.
Also as a little disclaimer, I’m by no means a Peruvian food expert. In my kitchen everything is al gusto and nothing is ever cooked the exact same way twice. Every day is a new adventure. If you’re looking for a blog that is really good about Peruvian food, check out Kelly.
So if you’re entertaining or just in the holiday spirit and want to impress your friends with your Peruvian food expertise, just add Peruvian lemon juice to whatever it is you wanted to do in the first place
Pitufiloquita enjoying chicken and french fries - Peruvian style!
Mamacita linda having papi's world famous chicken and french fries
Playing cards with my grandparents on vacation in Spain, many moons ago.
Vacation in Spain
All is normal in Belgium
Occasionally I check the news headlines back in the “old country”. Loosely translated, the top headline on Google news Belgium reads:
“Minister Vande Lanotte requests investigation into higher beer prices.”
Belgian minister of economics requests investigation into higher beer prices. Salud!
Johan Vande Lanotte is Belgium’s new minister of economics and I actually had him pegged as one of the more reasonable politicians in Belgium.
Here in Peru, most Peruvians have a fairly low opinion and approval rating of their politicians. What’s interesting to me though is that during any conversation I have about politics with a Peruvian (for the most part I stay away from the subject) most Peruvians somehow think politicians in those far away Northern countries are really the proverbial cat’s meow.
I love Europe but the leaders there live in such a fantasy world.
Peruvian Christmas carol by Juan Diego Flórez
In the comments to my previous post reader Natalia suggested this wonderful Peruvian Christmas carol composed by Juan Diego Flórez, so here it is. Huayno Peruano Navideño, compuesto por Juan Diego Florez:
Happy holidays to all!
Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town
We’ve done this here before but I see absolutely no reason to break a good habit. Merry Christmas to all, Feliz Navidad a todos!
UPDATE:
Another one of my favorite Christmas songs: Joan Jett’s live punk-rock style rendition of Little Drummer Boy. Goes to show girls don’t just do soft and mushy.
If you see me blowing at the sky…
It would only be because we’re now in the middle of rain season here in Cuzco.
Cuzco during rain season.
Now mind you, not everybody is blowing at the sky during rain season in Cuzco, only those people whose birthdays fall during the DRY months of the year. That’s right, there’s a belief or superstition here in Peru that people whose birthdays fall during the dry months can make the rains go away by blowing at the sky!
Occasionally while walking down a street during rain season, when clouds are building or rain starts to fall, you’ll see somebody blowing at the sky. Brianna and I do it all the time when we’re playing in the park and rain starts to fall, it really helps to hold off the rain for a while
Rain season in Cuzco begins towards the end of November and lasts through the beginning of April. It’s not bad really, no tropical downpours, just a steady diet of clouds and rain. But the rain helps rejuvenate the lands and green areas look good again. Meanwhile in the coastal areas of Peru summer is just beginning, so many Cusqueños take a trip to the coast for the traditional summer vacation. It’s something to get used to for gringos coming down from the Northern Hemisphere, when you visit Lima in December everybody is getting ready for Christmas and summer vacation at the same time.
Message to Otto:
Dear Otto, please stop making fun of Peruvian Economists now:
After the official graduation ceremony at UNSAAC, Peru's newest economist!!!
And another thing, lentils? You take the day off and that’s the best you can think of
All kidding aside, I’m very proud of my mamacita, this past Friday she walked in the official graduation ceremony at the Facultad de Economia at UNSAAC, the major university here in Cuzco. Studying economics at the Universidad Nacional San Antionio Abad de Cuzco (UNSAAC) is very intense and academic, and she did great. Mamacita finished her studies nearly 3 years ago but with baby and thesis her graduation was put on the back burner so to speak.
Felicitaciones Mamacita linda!!!
About us
View from Machu Picchu, Peru
Read the story about 2 tickets to Lynyrd Skynyrd, love over gold, and our move to the beautiful city of Cusco, Peru.
Ward Welvaert & Patricia Carrasco
Cusco, Peru
contact: ward DOT welvaert AT gmail DOT com
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