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Seven Gastronomic Wonders of Peru Contest Extended
The never-ending promotional hooplah that is Las Siete Maravillas Gastronómicas del Peru has been extended an additional month, from July 25 to August 23, announced the contest’s organizers last week. That means if you haven’t done so already, you can vote online for your seven favorite Peruvian dishes, from the list of 21 culinary semi-finalists: Adobo Ají de gallina Anticucho Arroz Chaufa Arroz con pato Arroz con pollo Cabrito a la Norteña Carapulcra Causa Chicharrón Chupe de Camarones Cuy chactado Juane Lomo saltado Pachamanca Papa a la huancaína Papa rellena Pollo a la brasa Rocoto relleno Seviche Tacacho con cecina I’m voting for ají de gallina, causa, chupe de camarones, papa…
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Happy, Fiestas Patrias, Peru!
July 28 marks Peru’s declaration of independence from Spain in 1820, and today Peruvians are celebrating Fiestas Patrias with almuerzos, parties and plenty of booze. More than 1300 litres of pisco will flow from the fountain in Lima’s historic Plaza de Armas, served to passersby compliments of the Municipality of Lima. The city’s also sponsoring performances by Afro-Peruvian musicians, paso horses and a fireworks display. Events start at 11:30 in the morning and run continuously for the next 12 hours. El Hijo’s British-Peruvian school put on a big outdoors Fiestas Patrias event two weeks ago that upstaged the previous year’s effort. The schoolkids dressed in elaborate costumes and performed regional dances…
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The Sport of Dog Poisoning in Peru
I wish I never had to write this post, but since my Labrador nearly died from ingesting poison in a Lima park this week, I must share what I’ve learned to alert other pet owners. A surprising number of people in Peru like to kill dogs and cats with veneno(poison). Municipalities such as Barranco and Miraflores use highly toxic insecticides in public gardens that routinely poison pets. And poisoning a dog or cat is not a crime in Peru. El Fotografo and El Hijo took Lola to Leoncio Prado park, in Miraflores, to play fetch on Wednesday. They had her running after the ball, something she never tires of, for more…
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Peru’s Politicians Lock Horns with Scientists, Deny Crisis as Water Shortage Looms
Above: Ohio State glaciologist Lonnie Thompson gives two good reasons why loss of Peru’s glaciers is “alarming”; July 7 Adapting to a World without Glaciers, Lima (photo by Jorge Vera 2009) By Barbara R. Drake LIMA, PERU: Peru’s Minister of the Environment Antonio Brack Egg told international glacier experts and other climate specialists last week that Peru cannot be expected to avert the country’s pending water shortage on its own and that regional and local administrations must bear responsibility. Peruvian Minster of the Environment Antonio Brack Egg at Adapting to a World without Glaciers conference, July 7, 2009, Lima Peru (photo Jorge Vera 2009) “When we speak about these subjects…
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Photo of the Day: Callejón de Huaylas, Peru
El Fotografo took this shot during the drive to Huaraz last week. It's of the Callejón de Huaylas ("Alley of Huaylas"), a valley in the Ancash Region in the north-central highlands of Peru. Glaciers all along the mountains there are melting due to rapid climate change.
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Child’s Artwork in Huaraz: Care for Our Water & Air
We visited a school in Huaraz, where the children had created art works about the environment. Some showed melting glaciers, or apus -- mountain deities -- losing their "ponchos" (white snow). This child's picture depicts the need to care for our water and air.
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Blogging & Social Media, Festivals, Sacred Rituals, Religion, Money, Economics, Politics, Peru's Andes Mountains
Blogging about Greed and Injustice in Cusco
Many thanks to Alenja and Holly of Collecting Tokens for including my rant on the archbishop of Cusco as a June “Just Post for a Just World.” The Just Posts roundtable highlights “posts about topics of social justice and activism in all shapes and sizes,” writes Alenja. She adds that “Holly and I are pleased to share this wealth of posts that inspire and move and make us think.” I am honored to be part of the June roundtable, and I encourage everyone to check out Collecting Tokens’ recommended readings. I’ll be adding that “Just Posts” logo to my left sidebar as soon as I figure out the code. 🙂
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Sisters from Pucarumi — claimed by deadly cold spell?
Spoke to Alberto last night, our guide at Qoyllur Rit'i and around the Mount Ausangate area. He told El Fotografo and I that he's heard of six children under age 5 dying in his area (towns of Tinqui, Upis, Pacchanta) due to extreme cold snap. The BBC ran a story on this several days ago. I met many children on my trek around Ausangate last September. Lively kids who run around in thin sweaters and sandals made of rubber tires.
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Photo of the Day: Boats at Lake Llanganuco, Peru
We visited this lake in Huascaran National Park last Sunday. The turquoise-blue water is fed by glacier streams. Lots of trout in the lakes.
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250 Children Dead of Cold in Andes: Death Toll Keeps Climbing
I was on Twitter tonight when I learned from actress Qorianka that the death toll in the Andes due to extreme cold is up to 250 children, reports the BBC's Dan Collyns....
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Cemetery Dog, Buried City of Yungay, Peru
Dog at Yungay National Cemetery; Mount Huascaran in background (photo by Barbara Drake 2009) Last Sunday, El Fotógrafo, El Híjo and I toured the cemetery above the buried town of Yungay, about 30 miles north of Huaraz. We were with a group of scientists and historians taking part in a glacier adaptation conference, and there couldn’t have been a more stark reminder of nature’s destructive potential than to wander about this picturesque yet oppressive site — a place where nearly 20,000 souls perished in minutes from a massive avalanche that trapped them in mud, ice and rocks on May 31, 1970. Stuart of En Peru explains the catastrophe vividly. We stood on the uppermost tier of…
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Greetings from the Glacier Pow-wow
The United States is doing a good, not-so-small thing in Peru by co-sponsoring (via USAID), with The Mountain Institute, an international conference in Lima and Huaraz on the topic of “Adapting to a World without Glaciers.” El Fotografo and I were graciously invited to be part of this effort, which brings together social scientists and biophysical scientists working on climate change. The idea is for all of these brilliant minds to come up with suggestions on how to cope with the pending water crisis in Peru. (Just to clarify: EF and I aren’t scientists. We just like to hang out with them.) So much to learn from these interesting people. El Hijo is coming…
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Supermarket Cowboys
Peru’s biggest supermarket chain – Wong – plays up Fiestas Patrias in a big way, sponsoring patriotic events and featuring the “flavors of Peru” during the month-long season. The store’s colors are red and white, the colors of the Peruvian flag, but to celebrate the Independence Day spirit during July, some employees wear outfits distinctive to Peru. The young men who bag your groceries wear these white ponchos with red scarves and big straw hats – the traditional costume of el chalán, the horse trainer or cowboy from northern Peru. Peru is such a service-oriented country that the Wong bagmen will walk you home with your groceries, free of charge…
