Arequipa, Peru Dining

Dispite the barnyard type accomadations in Arequipa we enjoyed two evenings and some fabulous meals! Because we were in one of the largest cities, it was quite metro and so offered a variety of dining options. And as Ivan has realized, what really makes a trip for me, is the food! One evening we dined in a gorgeous place called Zig Zag, and tried their house speciality which was a trio of meats cooked on a hot stone. The alpaca was nice, as was the beef..but I have to say the Ostritch was not my cup of tea at all...but it was fun to try.

We had spend the day touring the Santa Catalina Monastary which was gorgeous...like a small city within a city...and the walls were so thick and strong it created a peaceful and serene atmosphere..but the second you stepped outside the walls you were bombarded with city life, horns, whistles, yells etc.

The second tour we did was of the Museum of Andean Sanctuaries, where Jaunita the Ice Princess is. Because I don´t watch the news and therefore am totally ignorant to all of the brutal shit that goes on in this world, I had not heard about her discovery...but Ivan remembered it. She was found in 1995 after being frozen atop an Andean mountain for 500 years. We learned about the Inca ways, and how they would sacrifice young women of 12yrs and babies to the ¨Mountain Gods¨ in order to change the fricken weather pattern. Sounds logical hey....hmmmmm the Vancouver forecast calls for rain...maybe we should sacrifice a child....at least make sure its a bad kid...maybe one from Juvie. All kidding aside, it was fascinating to learn about their beliefs and ways, and to actually see this frozen Princess...albeit quite haunting...her hair was still in perfect condtion as was most of the skin on her arms and hands.

The next day brought us to some absolutely amazing Ceviche....I think the place was called Ceviche Fory For, and it was AWESOME! For those who have not had Ceviche, it is basically a salad of fresh, raw fish that has been marinated in a variety of flavours with citrus...either lemon or lime which actually cooks the fish....this was just amazing. We had one night left at the barn, but unfortunately we realized that Mr. Cermaks wallet had been hoisted. Luckily we didn´t have much in it...but had to do the inevitable...cancel the credit cards and got the heck out of dodge. The bus schedule was proving to be a little more difficult than we anticipated and we needed to get to Cuzco for Jan 1st...but most of the busses were already booked...so we made a quick decision to leave pronto....packed up our shit and headed to the bus station...of course not before getting some fabulous dinner of the most amazing Crepes we have ever had! Crepesimo was the place to go, and we indulged....of course it was happy hour so we HAD to order martinis with our crepes....what goes better????

We hopped on the night bus for a very LONG ride to Cuzco....it was 11hrs, and of course not that comfortable. We heard there was a toilet on board, but we had also heard that you were not allowed to take a dump in it!!! So we made sure we emptied out everything before we hit the road. Happy to say we are safe and sound in Cuzco, Peru and it is a gorgeous city...AND we get to spend New Years here now, instead of on a bus! I am just going to zip up to the room to doll myself up (in the same 1 nice shirt I brought....ugggg I am dying to put on some heals and a slutty top!). Happy New Year to you all....we hope that you have a fabulous evening, and we will be toasting to you all at midnight. We wish you all of the happiness, prosperity, health and well being for 2011 and hope to celebrate with you when we return.

Enjoy!