I am not going to write in Spanish for a few blog entries in order to conserve some time. I will continue writing in both Spanish and English after adjust to my new schedule, which includes working in the aftertnoons at a clinic. There will be more on this story soon! Sorry for the delay in updating my blog! Enjoy the following stories!
English
Guinea Pig for 20?
Finally, the day has come... That's right, the day that you have all been waiting to read about--the day I ate guinea pig. Last week, a group of us met up, around 20 of us from the school, in the Plaza de Armas, which is the central plaza and main meeting point in Cuzco. We found ourselves a nice restaurant and ordered one guinea pig to share between 20 people. I don't know if you have seen a guinea pig lately, but they aren't really made of much substance. The look on the waiters' faces as we ordered a guinea pig, which cost s/.50 (50 soles or around $17) to share between a table of 20 people was pretty priceless. I spoke to them in Spanish and said that if it were a problem, we could leave but they wanted us to stay. They just didn't understand how we would get full off one guinea pig. So, some people ordered some drinks to satisfy the waiters...
When I say guinea pig, I mean they literally cook the WHOLE guinea pig, sepereate some of the body parts, and then serve it. Upon receiving the garnished baby pig from Guinea, I dug in. Sometimes you gotta take a stab at many of life's great opportunities (no pun intended).
I must say, though, that the little pig was quite delish! I spoke with Delayne and Kyndall, and my cute, two and a half year old niece ended our conversation by saying, "Don't eat anymore guinea pig!" so I guess this will be my last time for eating guinea pig. Luckily they call guinea pig "cuy" here, so I can still eat that ;)
I was incredibly surprised to find that the guinea pig had a blended flavor of pork and chicken, along with a special mix of something new, something not quite tangible in explanation. After everyone crossed off one more bucket-list item with a simple bite of cuy, two other students and I, devoured the remains of the common American household pet. Do I feel sorry for the little guy? I might have, that is, until I tasted him. However, I must say, I don't think I will ever look at a guinea pig the same way...
An U.S. Citizen, a Brazilian, and some Cuzqueñan "Folk"
As part of the tourist ticket that we had bought, Alex, Bre, and I decided to go to a show where we would be exposed to various traditional Andean dances. It was a cute little place with about 200 seats, located off of la Avenida el Sol. There is a small stage with a little area in front where 20 Cuzqueñans play live, traditional music for the program. Alex had already been to the festival and gave us the highlights of the show, all of which were summed up by the words "There is a gorgeous MC, and I hope she's here again." Alex dreams were realized when a tall model, which means she was definitely not from Peru (I was referring to the tall part, of course). Alex began salivating and became enthralled whenever she walked on stage. I had to continually remind him about proper theater etiquette, which included not drooling on the seats and armrests.
The show was interesting, to say the least. Some of the dancers didn't seem as enthusiastic as others. However, there came a part where the MC, Alex's dream-wife, invited audience members to participate in dancing on stage while the orchestra played a traditional Cuzqueñan hymn. I guess I should clarify something. When I say "participate" I really mean that there were no professional dancers on stage, only yourself, and that you are cordially invited to make a fool out of yourself. For anyone who knows me well, you can probably guess what happened next...
Alex had made a joke about going on stage, but what he didn't know is that I missed the joke part. I started pushing Alex after receiving the invitation, telling him that we only live once (well, we don't really know for sure, but it worked well on the Brazilian Catholic). People around us began encouraging us to go on stage upon seeing us stand up. Alex frantically searched for a female to come up with him after Bre denied him the opportunity (she was slightly ill) and even almost had someone's wife come up (ironically at the persuasion and suggestion of her husband). Finally, I pushed Alex forward and we climbed the few steps as the crowd began to cheer us on.
It's hard to say what happened next, between the blazing lights and the constant laughter. You will just have to see the video below for the full effect... Oh, and you will get a glimpse of my newly learned "Salsa hips" during one section of the video... Enjoy the video!
Guinea Pig for 20?
Finally, the day has come... That's right, the day that you have all been waiting to read about--the day I ate guinea pig. Last week, a group of us met up, around 20 of us from the school, in the Plaza de Armas, which is the central plaza and main meeting point in Cuzco. We found ourselves a nice restaurant and ordered one guinea pig to share between 20 people. I don't know if you have seen a guinea pig lately, but they aren't really made of much substance. The look on the waiters' faces as we ordered a guinea pig, which cost s/.50 (50 soles or around $17) to share between a table of 20 people was pretty priceless. I spoke to them in Spanish and said that if it were a problem, we could leave but they wanted us to stay. They just didn't understand how we would get full off one guinea pig. So, some people ordered some drinks to satisfy the waiters...When I say guinea pig, I mean they literally cook the WHOLE guinea pig, sepereate some of the body parts, and then serve it. Upon receiving the garnished baby pig from Guinea, I dug in. Sometimes you gotta take a stab at many of life's great opportunities (no pun intended).
I must say, though, that the little pig was quite delish! I spoke with Delayne and Kyndall, and my cute, two and a half year old niece ended our conversation by saying, "Don't eat anymore guinea pig!" so I guess this will be my last time for eating guinea pig. Luckily they call guinea pig "cuy" here, so I can still eat that ;)
I was incredibly surprised to find that the guinea pig had a blended flavor of pork and chicken, along with a special mix of something new, something not quite tangible in explanation. After everyone crossed off one more bucket-list item with a simple bite of cuy, two other students and I, devoured the remains of the common American household pet. Do I feel sorry for the little guy? I might have, that is, until I tasted him. However, I must say, I don't think I will ever look at a guinea pig the same way...
An U.S. Citizen, a Brazilian, and some Cuzqueñan "Folk"
As part of the tourist ticket that we had bought, Alex, Bre, and I decided to go to a show where we would be exposed to various traditional Andean dances. It was a cute little place with about 200 seats, located off of la Avenida el Sol. There is a small stage with a little area in front where 20 Cuzqueñans play live, traditional music for the program. Alex had already been to the festival and gave us the highlights of the show, all of which were summed up by the words "There is a gorgeous MC, and I hope she's here again." Alex dreams were realized when a tall model, which means she was definitely not from Peru (I was referring to the tall part, of course). Alex began salivating and became enthralled whenever she walked on stage. I had to continually remind him about proper theater etiquette, which included not drooling on the seats and armrests.
The show was interesting, to say the least. Some of the dancers didn't seem as enthusiastic as others. However, there came a part where the MC, Alex's dream-wife, invited audience members to participate in dancing on stage while the orchestra played a traditional Cuzqueñan hymn. I guess I should clarify something. When I say "participate" I really mean that there were no professional dancers on stage, only yourself, and that you are cordially invited to make a fool out of yourself. For anyone who knows me well, you can probably guess what happened next...
Alex had made a joke about going on stage, but what he didn't know is that I missed the joke part. I started pushing Alex after receiving the invitation, telling him that we only live once (well, we don't really know for sure, but it worked well on the Brazilian Catholic). People around us began encouraging us to go on stage upon seeing us stand up. Alex frantically searched for a female to come up with him after Bre denied him the opportunity (she was slightly ill) and even almost had someone's wife come up (ironically at the persuasion and suggestion of her husband). Finally, I pushed Alex forward and we climbed the few steps as the crowd began to cheer us on.
It's hard to say what happened next, between the blazing lights and the constant laughter. You will just have to see the video below for the full effect... Oh, and you will get a glimpse of my newly learned "Salsa hips" during one section of the video... Enjoy the video!
After the show, Alex and I were congratulated a multiple times by each audience member. One lady asked to be my partner the next time I danced while another thought that Alex and I had learned traditional Peruvian dances and had choreographed the whole event. However, my favorite comment was given by a cute, middle-aged Peruvian who asked me if I was studying or going to school. I responded, "Yes, I am" and she ended by saying, and I quote "Don't waste your money. You should perform." So dear mom and dad, after this long story, I am proud to inform you that I will be staying in Cuzco to take up Traditional Andean Dancing... Jokes...
The Story of My Life
This is the story that I feel many people in my life have been waiting for. Some might even qualify this story as "blackmail."
It all started when we, a group of us from the school, met at the Plaza de Armas and went to some of our favorite bars and pubs to grab some food and drinks. Finally, after we were done with our drinks, we meandered to Mythology, a local discotheque that the students frequently visit. It was there that I let loose, despite the incredible cigarette smoke--the one part of Cuzco I will definitely not miss--and danced the night away.
The night had lasted for a bit and I was getting ready to leave when the people from the group, after trying to say my goodbyes, pushed me towards the bar. You see, the popularity of the Mythology radiates in letting people dance on top of the stage, or rather, the "bar" as they call it in ley/sober terms. Now, considering that I was 4,300 miles away from home, I figured I would satisfy my friend's desires and show them how we "Wyomin' " boys dance. That's right, I climbed up onto the bar and danced with my friends, while everyone snapped photos, laughing the whole time.
I can't say that I would have ever foreseen myself dancing on a bar, especially one in Cuzco, Peru, but after seeing Claus dance on the bar--a 31-year-old Dane, I figured I was allowed to have fun as well. Now to answer all of your questions and calm my family down, I can assure you all that I wasn't drunk, because that's just not me. I drink to be social, which usually involves smoothies and milkshakes.
I am sure that the pictures will be posted soon, somewhere, some place, for everyone to smile and laugh at. I left after the few minutes of blazing glory on the bar and went home, unlike the others who continued making more interesting memories. I had my fair share of dancing for that night and for a while...
The Story of My Life
This is the story that I feel many people in my life have been waiting for. Some might even qualify this story as "blackmail."
It all started when we, a group of us from the school, met at the Plaza de Armas and went to some of our favorite bars and pubs to grab some food and drinks. Finally, after we were done with our drinks, we meandered to Mythology, a local discotheque that the students frequently visit. It was there that I let loose, despite the incredible cigarette smoke--the one part of Cuzco I will definitely not miss--and danced the night away.
The night had lasted for a bit and I was getting ready to leave when the people from the group, after trying to say my goodbyes, pushed me towards the bar. You see, the popularity of the Mythology radiates in letting people dance on top of the stage, or rather, the "bar" as they call it in ley/sober terms. Now, considering that I was 4,300 miles away from home, I figured I would satisfy my friend's desires and show them how we "Wyomin' " boys dance. That's right, I climbed up onto the bar and danced with my friends, while everyone snapped photos, laughing the whole time.
I can't say that I would have ever foreseen myself dancing on a bar, especially one in Cuzco, Peru, but after seeing Claus dance on the bar--a 31-year-old Dane, I figured I was allowed to have fun as well. Now to answer all of your questions and calm my family down, I can assure you all that I wasn't drunk, because that's just not me. I drink to be social, which usually involves smoothies and milkshakes.
I am sure that the pictures will be posted soon, somewhere, some place, for everyone to smile and laugh at. I left after the few minutes of blazing glory on the bar and went home, unlike the others who continued making more interesting memories. I had my fair share of dancing for that night and for a while...
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