Expensive Taste

So, before I even left home for Peru, Nicole sent out an email saying how inexpensive it was out here. Knowing how much I love to eat, she wrote me that I will eat like royalty...three course meals for next to nothing...Well, I have to admit, I could not wait for this!

On Sunday, we decided we wanted to stay in the same hotel since our flight left for Arequipa on Monday night. At 11:30 am, we were told we had to leave by noon because a large group was coming in for a few days. DOH! We still had to find a hotel for the night, get packed, find the location of La Mar, the restaurant recommended to us for brunch, etc. Somehow, we left AT 12:02, and made it happen. The hotel we booked happened to be literally across the street. PERFECT! I actually like Hotel Rancu much better than Hostel Torreblanca, and had a great breakfast this morning with a 180 degree view of the ocean below us. Yes, please!

Anyway, Sunday, after we dropped off our bags at our new hotel, we walked over to La Mar...oh, my goodness. I have expensive taste. So much for Nicole's inexpensive food declaration. We shared a cebiche clasico y una plata de causas mixtas (mashed potatoes with fish or veggies on top - similar to a sushi roll but not really at all) - this is very traditional food due to the fact that Peru has more variety of potatoes than anywhere else in the world (Ireland got nothin' on us!). We, then, washed down our meal with a nice buttery Chardonnay from Argentina...all for a low-cost of about $40. It's not expensive necessarily, but considering we are in a pretty poor country, I think we found one of the more high-end spots. Oh, well. Pretty damn worth it. :) But, more importantly, I looooooved the architecture of this place. They used natural lighting above by using bamboo poles for the roofing. This was juxtaposed against concrete walls that gave it a distinct chic feel. It also had the nicest bathrooms in Lima...yaye, developing world!

From there, we just walked the rest of the day. And when I say rest of the day, I mean REST OF THE DAY. We got back to the hotel at 8:30 pm, and am pretty sure no one walks from San Ysidro through Miraflores to Barranco...not in one day, at least. It was definitely a nice oceanside walk along the cliffs of Miraflores. Along the way, we saw a skatepark, poor surf, lots of couples making out on the grass, the famous Parque del Amor with probably the worst public art in Latin America (a giant statue of a fat couple making out...weird) and a weak imitation of Parque Guell (Gaudi's park in Barcelona), a mega-mall called Larcomar (complete with a Tony Roma's nonetheless), Puente de Suspiros (a small footbridge in the Barranco area that supposedly grants your wish if you hold your breath as you cross), the Biblioteca y Iglesia bookending the Plaza in Barranco, and more couples making out. Did I mention there were couples making out?? Young. Old. Fat. Skinny. Brown. White. Didn't really matter. Oh, well. Spring is apparently in the air...wait, is it Spring here?? Do they do Springs? I thought it was rainy season...and dry season. ANYWAY.

We sat down at a restaurant to grab papas fritas and a cerveza before we head back to nap and eat later, but nope. They had only meat options. Not even bread. Thank goodness for Cusquenas (cervezas)!

At that point, we hopped in a cab from much farther out than the night before, but for half the price. Yeah. We actually decided we wanted to try this vegetarian spot near Parque Kennedy, but since it was Palm Sunday, and we are in an uber-Catolico pais, we had no chance. However, we walked by (yes, more walking) Las Tejas, a restaurant my friend, Nina, had recommended, and decided to check it out. I am so glad we sat down for a bite here. It was yumsters - we had the vegetarian fried rice (apparently there is a huge Chinese influence here because of the railroad workers in the mid-1800's just like home), and Tacu Tacu (yes, it was actually called that), a traditional Incan cuisine typically made from boiled and fried mash of rice and beans with meat, but we got it with fish. It was actually really good. It tasted a little bit like the Costa Ricans' gallo pinto...and that is definitely one of my weaknesses. :) Of course, we had more pisco sours, and after a $20 check, we then decided to head back to the hotel.

We thought we were going to nap for a bit before hittin' up the town...but yeah, we woke up this morning at around 8:30 am. A good solid 12 hours of sleepage.

This morning, we booked our hotel in Arequipa and Puno...I think I may have to let go of my expensive taste. We have a room for $23 in Arequipa at a place called...wait for it, wait for it...Amazing Home Hostal. And our room in Puno for the four of us is $35 total. I am probs going to really like how much the food costs there...Nicole was right, and I am getting hungry just thinking about it. No, really...I am.

Off to shower and walk around San Ysidro and then off to Central Lima to see La Plaza de Armas y la catedral.

Where to eat next?

Thank you vacation...