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Waiter, There’s an APEC Fly in My Ceviche Classico!
By Barbara R. Drake, with photos by Jorge Vera Ceviche Fuerza Asiatica, from Pescados Capitales, Lima, Peru Call it haute cuisine with a political bite. That’s what some foreign dignitaries are tucking into at a top eatery in Lima this week, when the APEC Leader’s Summit concludes with a special focus on the world economic crisis. Pescados Capitales, on the city’s gastronomic corridor of Avenida La Mar, is serving up a menu of original dishes that salute and satirize “Los Pecados de la APEC” (The Sins of APEC). Overseen by head chef Wilfredo Castillo and owner Nguyen Chávez, the APEC dishes feature “summit” gatherings of classic Peruvian foods like ceviche…
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Peru Police Arrest Man with 36 Grenades (for APEC?)
Just two days ago, El Fotografo and I were talking with El Hijo about the beefed-up security for the APEC Summit, which concludes this week in Lima. “Are terrorists going to kill the presidents?” EH asked, as we drove by the LarcoMar shopping mall in Miraflores, which was swarming with police. “Probably not,” I told him. “But you never know, so that’s why they have roadblocks and police checking things. Sometimes it can be just one crazy person who throws a bomb to get attention.” “Oh,” said EH somberly. He looked out at a row of police in green uniforms guarding the entrance to the Marriot Hotel. One guy in combat…
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Best Cevicherias & Seafood Restaurants in Lima: Where to Dine During APEC Week
An American in Lima recommends… Seafood and rice at La Mar La Mar (Av. La Mar 770, Miraflores; 421-3365): Gaston Acurio’s chic cevicheria is sure to be on many APEC dignitaries’ “must eat at” lists. There’s always a line at this trendsetting restaurant, so expect even longer waits during APEC week. La Mar’s head chef tells An American in Lima he’s ordering 30% more fish than usual to accommodate the rush. Open 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. only.* Pescados Capitales (La Mar 1337, Miraflores; 421-8808): Top-notch, innovative ceviche served in upscale/rustic surroundings. I lurve, lurve, lurve this place, which is several blocks down the same street as Acurio’s La Mar. I…
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Cootie-free APEC Eating Zones in Lima
The final week of the APEC summit begins next Monday, and that means thousands of hungry delegates and heads of state will be seeking good places to eat in Lima. Peru’s capital city may be home to the best cusine in South America, but not all its restaurants are up to par. In fact, some eateries violate sanitation codes and use contaminated tap water (with e coli) to wash their produce. (Visitors cannot drink the tap water in Lima because it contains foul bacteria and heavy metals; many locals have adjusted to it, however.) To prevent epic outbreaks of diarrhea among delegates, APEC and Peru’s Ministry of Health have instituted…
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Because You Need to See Another Picture of a Peruvian Hairless Dog, Don’t You?
Me & the Peruvian hairless wonder dog in Pachacamac, Peru; photo by Jorge Vera c. 2007 El Fotografo shot these images in Pachacamac last year. The Peruvian hairless dog was strolling around the dusty parking lot, looking blase in his yellow t-shirt. (These dogs sunburn easily.) The image on the left is the back of my head. I’m wearing a cotton scarf with a fish printed on it and looking at the dust-covered ruins. That is EF’s idea of a joke — an image of a fish in a desert where it never rains. Ha ha. I’m posting the photo (actually a dyptich from an original tryptich) because for 15…
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A Peruvian Hairless Dog for Obama’s Family? Vote on It!
Here’s an offbeat story from today’s El Comercio that just begged to be translated into English for this blog: “Peruvian Hairless Dog Offered to Obama’s Family” A Peruvian Tenant in the White House? EFE: An offer of a Peruvian hairless dog has been made to the family of Barack Obama, whose daughter Malia suffers from pet allergies. A hairless Peruvian dog will be offered as a pet to the family of the president-elect of the United States, Barack Obama. Claudia Galvez, president of the Association of Friends of Hairless Peruvian Dogs, reported that tomorrow she will send a letter to the Peruvian Embassy in Washington, D.C., to inquire if the new president is…
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What U.S. Citizens Need to Do to Solve the Immigration Crisis
President-elect Barack Obama campaigned on a promise to grant amnesty to the 12 million undocumented aliens living in the United States. Now many wonder if he will live up to that promise. A recent news item from the Andina news agency, summarized by Living in Peru staffers, reports: Peruvians living in the United States hope that America’s next president Barack Obama will grant amnesty for undocumented immigrants, as part of a new immigration policy that would benefit millions of immigrants. ”This would help to legalize the immigration status of some 12 million undocumented aliens living in the United States”, said July Rojas, president of the Consultative Council of Peruvians in New York,…
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Peruvian Ingenuity at 15,300 Feet Above Sea Level
Guy selling dolls at Qoyllur Rit’i 2008 The average Peruvian works so hard, for so little. El Fotografo and I met this souvenir vendor at the Qoyllur Rit’i pilgrimage in May. He was selling little handmade dolls of costumed dancers for 7 soles a piece. That’s about $2.33 each. They were cute. I bought one. To get to the plaza where he could sell his dolls, the guy had to travel for hours in a bus or truck to the town of Mawayani, which is about 13,800 feet above sea level. The good thing about Mawayani is they have toilets there. Then he had to climb a steep five-mile path up the mountains, ascending another…
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We Want to Be Your Solution for All Things Potato
Delicious purple Peruvian potatoes Potatoes are a big deal in Peru. The Peruvan Andes were the birthplace of the potato, and today Peruvian farmers cultivate more than 3,000 native varieties of them — potatoes with names like Ica Huila and Purple Viking and Wilja. The United Nations has declared 2008 “the International Year of the Potato,” and this event is being celebrated in gastronomic festivals, restaurants and stores throughout Peru. Peruvians are passionate about potatoes and spend a lot of time preparing and eating them. This is not a country where you can get away with serving inferior spuds. Peruvians know a good potato when they eat one. Now that I’ve lived here for a…
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Welcome Back, Bob / Roberto the Builder! (More Jobs for Peruvians?)
Here’s a welcome piece of news for expat Peruvians who are seeking shelter from the U.S./global financial crisis: The Peruvian MInistry of Labor and Employment Promotion (MTPE) is offering economic incentives for Peruvians who emigrated abroad and now want to return to Peru. A new program will make it easier for returning Peruvians to find work in their homeland. MTPE wants to boost employment in the country’s construction and tourism industries. The ministry is offering “incentives” for returning Peruvians to work in those fields, says Jorge Villasante, the program’s director. Translating a story from Peru.com, Living in Peru reports today: The Peruvian Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion (MTPE) will boost a…
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Peru Is Not Protecting Its Uncontacted Tribes, Witnesses Say
Houses built by Indians from Peru were found three miles (five kilometers) within the Brazilian border. Illegal logging is displacing uncontacted tribes in Peru and forcing them into Brazil, conservation groups say. Photo by Gleison Miranda/FUNAI There have been several major shakeups in Peru’s capital these last few weeks — bribery scandals toppling the Peruvian Cabinet, President Alan Garcia hiring a new prime minister and assembling a new Cabinet lineup, the Lima stock market suffering its worst losses ever — and so the world’s attention has been focused on Lima. Meanwhile, a historic struggle deep in the Amazon has receded from public view: that of uncontacted tribes fleeing illegal logging efforts. The story broke in May…
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Peruvians Returning from Abroad to Live in Peru — the exodus begins
Crowds at LAX, photo by Philip Figures from Peru’s National Statistics Institute (INEI) show that increasing numbers of former expatriate Peruvians are returning to live again in Peru. The immigration numbers from August 2008 alone show a signficant rise in Peruvians choosing to repatriate. About 12.7% more Peruvians (180,000 people) left other countries to return to Peru in August 2008 than did expatriate Peruvians in August 2007. Israel Ruiz, writing for Living in Peru, summarizes the trend: A 12.7 percent increase was registered in the number of Peruvians that returned to the Andean country in August 2008 when compared to the same month in 2007. According to the country’s National Statistics…
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Should Americans Consider Moving to Peru? Part II
By Barbara R. Drake On Sunday I posted Part I of “Should Americans Consider Moving to Peru?” (click here for link). I floated the idea, proposed to me by a Scandinavian expat who’s lived in the United States as well, that because Peru and the United States are so dissimilar, it’s difficult to evaluate which country’s lifestyle is better. In her words, Peru and the United States are “different realities.” A Peruvian in New Jersey comments that he agrees with the Scandinavian expat: “For forty years I have been trying to explain the Peruvian culture to Americans.” He points out that the metaphysician Carlos Castaneda, who wrote the bestseller…
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Should Americans Consider Moving to Peru? Part I
Today my opinion piece “Escaping the U.S. Credit Nightmare” appears in the Sunday Miami Herald, Money section (10/12/08). The teaser reads: “An American who now lives in Peru finds that she no longer must fend off unwanted offers for credit cards and loans,” which highlights one of the unanticipated benefits I gained from our move to Lima last year. That benefit might entice some overwhelmed Americans to consider moving to Peru to experience a reprieve from credit offers or to weather out the economic crisis. I’ve heard from several friends, and a few strangers, that the idea has crossed their minds in the last month. Closing the door on a…
