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Ecuador - Galapagos

Maccu Picchu - Peru

EATING IN PERU

Hola everyone,

By the time this is posted, we will be back in Chicago and Florida.  Here are some wrap- up perspectives.

 

Lima

We had a quick swirl through Lima, including a lovely lunch at the Cafe de Museo at the Larco Museum. The museum was fascinating and featured a 45,000 artifact private collection from pre-Spaniards' times. To correct an earlier post, the Incans were only in power in Peru for 100 years. Evidence of earlier civilizations has been found back to 3000 BC!! 

The collection included extensive erotica that rivaled the Kama Sutra carvings from in India. This is a PG blog, so I will say no more.  After the museum, we visited the requisite Peruvian chocolatier stop and then survived an absolutely unrelenting and harrowing ride (could have done without that) to the airport.

 

Eating in Peru

We enjoyed some high level cuisine in Peru (and they pride themselves on their prowess with fusion cuisine). Many of the themes from Ecuadorian dining are true here as well: beautiful fresh fruit and juices, the importance of corn and potatoes in the Peruvian diet...

 

...quinoa, fish (particularly Peruvian trout), and ceviche (though spelled here as sebiche). There are some distinctive dishes/drinks which we enjoyed here as well-- some clearly informed by the indigenous people's influence. Cuy (guinea pig, as described in the prior blog) was ubiquitous. We sampled Pisco Sours as our welcome drink at the hacienda. And I had two versions of a traditional Peruvian dish --"causa" --a terrine layered with mashed potatoes and meat.

 

On our first evening in Cusco, we dined at Cicciolino's-- highly touted by tour guides and the New York Times restaurant guide alike as a chic, upscale eating destination. It was literally 20 steps from our hotel. Though we were somewhat disappointed in the Time's choice for Quito, we took the plunge and we were thrilled we did. This was easily one of the best meals of the trip. We started with two salads -- I had a fresh salad of quinoa-coated prawns, mixed lettuce leaves and beet root chips dressed with a maracuya vinaigrette and plated with an exceptional mango and avocado tartar.

Monica and Betsy shared a fresh arugula, watercress and black quinoa salad tossed with fine slices of Italian Prosciutto and Salami, crumbled goat cheese, sweet tomatoes, radishes, red onion, corn, and a blue cheese dressing.  The presentation for both salads was exquisite-- as was the taste. 
 
The meal got even more interesting with the next course. Monica ordered a cracked pepper tagliatelle tossed through a salsa of smokey grilled chicken. It was absolutely beautiful.

Betsy ordered puttanesca pasta though described more artfully on the menu. It was truly divine. 
Maureen ordered risotto which, while delicious, was not as artfully presented as the other dishes.

I decided to go rogue and ordered Cicciolino's version of causa, so lovingly described as: "a fine layer of yellow potato mash with chillies and herbs, topped with deboned 'guinea pig confit'  with a touch of carmelized apple. The only way to try guinea pig."  When our guide heard I had tasted guinea pig confit, he was only slightly amused as the "real way" to taste guinea pig is to taste it roasted. To make a long story short, the presentation of my dish was amazing but the taste was not. Some say guinea pig tastes like rabbit; others insist it tastes like dark meat turkey. I was so hung up that I was ingesting a rodent that I could not really enjoy it. And (who knows if there was any connection), I started a regimen of Cipro the very next day. 

 

Dessert was a definite improvement for me: almond cookie tuiles with black sesame seeds, sweet mangoes and basil ice cream garnish.  Delicious.

Looking back a bit, our meals in Mach Picchu far exceeded normal national park fare. Indeed, Monica enjoyed spinach ravioli stuffed with corn cream and garnished with green apple salsa -- not a choice I'd make, but Peruvian gourmet.
 
Our Peruvian dining journey continued on our last day in Cusco with our traditional Peruvian lunch at the hacienda. We started with Pisco Sours and several of us chose the causa as an appetizer -- prepared with tuna instead of guinea pig, it was quite tasty.

I also tried a Peruvian soft drink-- Inka Kola-- tasted like cream soda with a funky color.

 

In Perspective

Powerful Peru:   A strong cultural heritage. The 5000+ year history of many indigenous peoples; it's definitely not just about the Incas. A thriving tourism industry that's getting stronger. The geography. The history.

Puzzling Peru:  Mach Picchu-- its mystery and mystique. Cuy-- who wants to eat guinea pig anyway?  And what is the deal -- Is it dangerous to visit Peru despite what their department of tourism says? (there were policemen on every corner in Cusco and much security at Machu Picchu.)

Poignant Peru: Mach Picchu--so moving. The llamas--so adorable. The children.

 

The title of the first post for this trip was "Exploring lands that time forgot " and that perspective was certainly uppermost in our minds during the entire adventure. After 10 flights, at least 12 boat rides of different sorts, several bus rides, and innumerable taxi and van rides, I must say that, with tourism being a major part of both Ecuador and Peru's economies, these lands are no longer forgotten. And we discovered they truly are fantastic. It seemed that I pinched myself (or was that a bug bite) five minutes into every Galapagos hike. And I certainly paused to catch my breath (or was that the altitude) after every third step in Machu Picchu. Even Roget does not have enough adjectives to describe the marvels of this particular journey. We were captivated by the big cities we had a chance to explore; but we will never never forget our explorations of the lands that time forgot.  What a glorious, amazing experience. Thank you  for joining me!

Before I sign off, I would be remiss if I didn't extend a huge thank you to my best friend and usual travel partner, Wayne. Thank you, thank you, love of my life, for not only enabling me to take this adventure but for being my tech support and turning my words and photos into this blog. Thank you for your patience with my late night blog entries and un-identified photos by the dozens!

To our dedicated readers: Start packing your virtual bags for our Ireland and London trip in June-- certainly not as exotic as this one-- but should be memorable nonetheless.

 

Everyone, be well and adios for now,

wendy
 

PERU--POWERFUL, PUZZLING, POIGNANT

The four of us -- Monica, Wendy, Betsy, and Maureen -- arrived in Cusco, Peru, on Wednesday and traveled to Machu Picchu on Thursday.  We toured in Cusco on Wednesday, Machu Picchu on Friday and Saturday, the Sacred Valley on Sunday, and we will do Lima (and our flight home) on Monday.  My wrap up, including Lima and Eating in Peru, will be sent to you once I'm stateside.

 
A bit of context first. When we visited Quito, our guide told us that the Incas were in power for a relatively short period of time-- certainly fewer than 100 years. Indeed, there are no Incan ruins to speak of in Ecuador because when the Spaniards arrived, they decimated any indication of Incan civilization by building right over it. This stands in stark contrast to the Incan presence in Peru, where the Incas were in power for several centuries. Indeed, part of the magic of Machu Picchu is that it appears it was never discovered (and, certainly never destroyed) by the Spaniards.  To this day, the Incan influence is strongly felt everywhere.
 

Cusco

We arrived in Cusco and proceeded to the Monasterio Hotel, a very special property actually converted from a monastery and situated in a lovely square. We were greeted with coca tea (altitude here is higher than Quito) and then off we went on a walking tour with our guide. First stop was the baroque Catedral. This cathedral is every bit as glorious as the cathedral in Quito, but quite different, primarily due to to the Incan influence.  Specifically, in the artwork, oftentimes figures' attire had Incan components (such as feathers). One of the altars had unguilded wood; another was pure silver and yet another was gold. In terms of theology, our guide shared how Catholicism had adapted here to accommodate Incan beliefs. For instance, the spirit of the Virgin Mary became one with the spirit of a tree. (Spoiler alert, this reminded me of the adaptations the Mormon missionaries made to the Book of Mormon  [in the musical of the same name] to be in a better position to proselytize their new Ugandan neighbors-- though I interpreted that as a farce in the play.  Guess truth really is stranger than fiction.)  Another definite highlight in the Catedral was a painting of The Last Supper--looked very realistic except Jesus was feasting on roast guinea pig!  After visiting the rest of the Plaza de Armas, we strolled over to San Blas -- the artsy, bohemian part of town-- I particularly liked the store completely dedicated to coca leaves.  Next stop, dinner (to be described in my next blog -- another spoiler alert-- this meal involved the eating of guinea pig confit), then back to the hotel for a short night.

 

 

Machu Picchu

We left the Monasterio at 5:50 A.M. Thursday morning and after a spectacular 1-1/2 hour van ride through the misty Andes and the Sacred Valley, we arrived in Poroy where we boarded an Orient Express train for a scenic, full service ride to Machu Picchu station. After arriving there, we met our guide and porters from the hotel and we boarded a bus for the final 30 minutes of our journey.  We checked into the Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge--the only hotel in the national park and well worth the extravagance. The food in the dining room was excellent but more on that later.

Magical. Mysterious. Mystical. Majestic. Magnificent. Mountainous. Munificent. Marvelous. We have been to Machu Picchu and it conveys every one of those attributes and more.  You've  probably seen plenty of pictures of this 16th century Incan mountain hide-away. But when it actually appears before you, it defies description. I've had the feeling before-- when I saw the Eiffel Tower for the first time ... and Lake Louise...  and when the Taj Mahal rose before me, it took my breath away. But Machu Picchu was different.  More powerful and puzzling.  Built by hand out of natural stone in an extraordinarily awesome setting and only rediscovered by Hiram Bingham, a Yale University misunderstood professor (and, some say, the model for Indiana Jones), in 1911... it evoked a sense of wonder I hadn't expected. Why did the Incas choose to build here? And did they leave or stay? And where did they get the inspiration to integrate the spectacular  backdrop into the community?  While archaeologists have unearthed some answers, many remain and that is part of  the magic here. So, we hiked for about 3 hours the first day and more than 4 hours the second day, with the kind, gentle, and expert Abraham guiding the way. He pointed out the different sectors of the community (religious, agricultural, residential, industrial), the landmark mountains (Machu Picchu / "old mountain" and Huanyu Picchu / "new mountain"), the astronomical observatory, the llamas and a chinchilla, and various gorgeous orchids and other flora along the way. On Saturday morning, we took the 3 hour hike to the Sun Gate, the primary entrance from the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. The hike was amazing with eye-popping panoramas every time we increased altitude (every two minutes). Needless to say, the photo ops were countless (good thing I have an extra memory card).  Here's an infinitesimal sample ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sacred Valley

We spent Sunday touring the outskirts of Cusco including parts of the Sacred Valley, an area the Incas considered paradise for its fertile earth. The Sacred Valley is cut by the muddy Rio Urubamba which runs to Machu Pichu and includes the archaeological rich towns of Pisac and Ollaytaytambo. Many tours spend several days here (and I wish we had); we only had time for an overview. We started the day with a stop at a lookout point...

 

...with great views of the entire city. In the background was the fascinating White Christ (6 meters high and strongly lit up at night), a statue given to Cusco by Palestinians living here during WWII.

Not as large as the one at Cocovado in Rio, but impressive nonetheless.

 

After several more beautiful lookout stops...

 

...we visited Awanacancha Center where we not only met several adorable llamas and alpacas, but were also treated to a weaving and dying demonstration. Next up, my favorite stop of the day -- the town of Pisac and its terrific Sunday market.  The fruits, vegetables, and other foodstuffs were beautiful and so were the people selling them.

 

This last picture reminded me of the colorful dyes we saw in the local market in India.

One of the treats (if you can call it that) during our market tour was a visit to a shop that fire-roasted guinea pigs (cuy). We had the "privilege" of seeing the pigs as they were prepared for  the roaster and then once they exited (all nice and crispy). We weren't interested in eating them. Afterwards, our guide, Boris, (who referred to our group as "Charlie and his Angels")....

 

...was generous enough to take us to a town where the women stand over a charcoal fire and barbecue guinea pigs on a stick each Sunday. Boris went a step further and actually got out of the car to take pictures.  One of the women informed him that the pigs were served with potatoes or spaghetti.

Ready for roasting....



Ready to eat...

 

An alternative way to cook them....

After the guinea pig adventure, we stopped for lunch at a beautiful hacienda, Hacienda Huayoccari, with a huge collection of antiques; some going back to pre-Incan days. The ride back to Cusco included a great drive by Sacsayhuam -- Incan terraces and structures (some say it was a fortress) from the 15th century (or even earlier). 

 

On Monday, we fly to Lima which I'll describe in my final blog (also with an eating review and wrap-up) after I return home.

Until then, with hugs,

wendy

 

EATING IN ECUADOR

Hola,

 

In the spirit of wrapping up our 10 days in Ecuador, I thought I'd pull together a brief recap of the food scene here.

On our pick-up from the Quito airport, our guide informed us that the fruit and fruit juices are plentiful and delicious and that we should partake whenever possible. She was right; the fruit is out if this world (though we never did take a liking to the tree tomatoes). Oftentimes they even combine the juices (mixto) for a delicious beverage.

 

Bananas are an important export.

I wrote earlier about the different types of corn and potatoes. Both are an important part of every meal.  I am not a corn fan but the little cornmeal rolls are a ubiquitous part of every breakfast buffet.

 

Corn meal also makes an appearance fairly regularly with the corn empanadas. Quite tasty.

 

Another important export (and popular food) is seafood-- whether that be shellfish or fish. Our send-off dinner for Marita and Irene (they are not joining us in Machu Picchu) was at La Nuestro where we had a wonderfully authentic Ecuadorian seafood dinner. Three of us had the Ecuadorian prawns (gigantic and very sweet) and the other three had the sea bass. 

 

 

Speaking of fish, another popular Ecuadorian dish is ceviche-- basically made with anything that swims! We had some on the yacht (complete with preparation presentation - see prior post), and at La Nuestro (that dish was a mixed ceviche platter with shrimp, octopus, bass, and black clams). Succulent and superb. For those readers not familiar with ceviche--it is prepared with VERY fresh raw fish which is cured with lime juice.

 

 

Soups are another important component of an Ecuadorian meal and we've had all flavors-- plantain, shrimp, tomato, onion, and potato. ..

 

...and some other tasty lunch foods!

 

Last, but not least, the Ecuadorians like their sweets (you may recall that our Quito guide told us they counteract altitude sickness). We had wonderful ice cream on the yacht and the pastries are everywhere. Here is a photo from a breakfast buffet.

 

So, lots of good eating here and we are looking forward to more in Peru. We have also been hoping that the Galapagos hiking has counteracted all of the eating! We shall see.  At least we know that a trip back to the Equator will cause us to lose 2.2 pounds!

Adios 'til Peru

Hugs,

wendy

Galapagos: Grand, Gorgeous, and Goofy - Part II

Hola everyone,

As you read this, I'm comfortably settled in Guayaquil after almost 5 days without a connection. The time flew by. The galavanting Galapagos Gals continued to live it up on Monday and Tuesday of this week. We visited the Darwin Center early Wednesday morning to see the giant tortoises.

The islands and their inhabitants continue to baffle and amaze us. And there's been plenty of additional goofiness to boot.

MONDAY

We had a choice of early morning activities on Monday-- kayaking or strenuous hike. The hike was in Tagus Cove off Isabela Island--kicked off by a dry landing requiring a medium level of rock climbing skills. The hike was beautiful-- culminating in a vista overlooking the ocean.

On the walk back, we passed Darwin Lake, a salt lake that is significantly saltier than the Dead Sea, and we also saw a land iguana -- relatively rare for this area.  We returned to the Eclipse for breakfast and then left again at 10:00 for deep water snorkeling. Everyone had been assigned a wetsuit but, even so, the water was relatively comfortable. Javier, our guide, made sure everyone was all set and then he proceeded to lead us closer to the cove where we saw (either on the rocks or underwater: the incomparable blue-footed boobies (they're dive bombers with great precision),

sharks, sea turtles, sea lions, beautiful fish and more). Then, we returned to the Eclipse for a traditional Ecuadorian lunch, followed by live dolphin entertainment. There must have been at least two dozen of them swimming alongside the boat. WOW!!

After siesta time, we ventured out on the pangas again -- this time for a dry landing at Fernandina Island, home to several huge colonies of marine iguanas and sea lions by the hundreds. According to our guidebook, the island is "one of the most pristine and dynamic ecosystems in the world. La Cumbre Volcano last erupted in April 2009". We made our way across multiple lava fields to some unbelievable sights.

First off, marine iguanas in huge colonies. Indeed, not 20 steps from our landing. We were greeted by what seemed like thousands of marine iguanas piled on top of one another. We had to tiptoe around them because as one of our guides had said: "You step on or kill one of these creatures, you eat it!?!"  Think it tastes like chicken!?!

 

We wandered across the lava fields ( catching sight of several other large iguana colonies) and then got to several sea lion colonies. For the most part, they were friendly and indulged us with photo ops but at one point one in our group stepped too close to a male sea lion who indicated his displeasure with a loud bark / roar. We won't do that again.

 

We hiked  back to the panga, sped back to the yacht, got ready for dinner and called it a day.

 

TUESDAY

On Tuesday morning, we headed to Western Isabela at the foot of Alcedo volcano. This was a strenuous hike with some rock climbing and scrambling  and several land iguana and land turtle sightings.

After a serious rock scramble, we had the opportunity for a swim; it was wonderful. We returned to the yacht for departure information and a fresh tuna ceviche demonstration and tasting. Excellent.  A short siesta (as we had a 14 hour journey to get to Santa Cruz Island and the Charles Darwin Research Station), then out on the panga again -- this time in search of the small Galápagos penguins and blue-footed boobies. The ride did not disappoint!

We also saw some masked boobies, sea turtles and the ubiquitous sea lion.

Back to the yacht in time for another dolphin show, then we were beckoned to the Bridge for the ceremonial crossing of the Equator. It was a legitimate crossing (per the captains' multiple controls--including a countdown on the GPS to latitude of 0), but the crew added a large dose of shtick, including a "to the minute" display of an Ecuadorian banner to simulate crossing the line (no line in the ocean anywhere in sight!). 

 

To celebrate the actual crossing, the captain invited us to a reception afterwards with tasty sushi rolls, teriyaki chicken, and champagne. Why I bothered to eat dinner afterwards is a question for the ages.  

 

WEDNESDAY

Those departing the yacht had an early wake-up call, followed by a combination of various sea and road vehicles to get us to the Charles Darwin Research Center to view the giant tortoises and learn about the incubation experiments underway there. Lonesome George, the last of his species, died last June, but there were MANY other giant tortoises. It was worth the trip. 

In closing the Galapagos portion of our trip ...

GRAND: scenery, landscapes, the regal giant tortoises, the outcroppings of rocks where the blue-footed boobies hung out

GORGEOUS: the golden land iguanas-- they were really beautiful, the flight patterns of the blue footed boobies, the stately male sea lions, the volcanic landscapes, the flying dolphins right off the deck, the snorkeling sights

GOOFY: the whole " crossing the equator" shtick, the thousands of iguanas when we entered Fernandina Island, our guides' sense of humor-- they were so knowledgeable but some times they resorted to slapstick

 

Back to Guayaquil-- then Lima to Cusco tomorrow-- Machu Piccchu bright and early Friday morning-- so stay tuned.

Hasta la vista with hugs ,

wendy

GALAPAGOS-- GRAND, GORGEOUS AND GOOFY--PART I

There's just so much to report (and no wi-fi for instantaeously doing so) here in the Galapago Islands that I thought I'd segment this part of our journey.

The goddess Maureen, the good-natured Monica, and got-it-together Wendy arrived on Saturday and were joined by gutsy Marita, gracious Irene, and the good-sport Betsy on Sunday afternoon after an ("you had to be there to believe it") adventure involving about 36 hours of sleepless flight re-arranging and including -- but not limited to -- a one hour speed boat ride through the Galapagos National Park to meet up with our yacht, the Eclipse, 24 hours into our voyage. Needless to say, they were a sight for sore eyes!

The cruise has been outstanding.  The food is superb -- more details on Ecuadorian cuisine in a future post -- but here are some tasty treats from the ship's buffet.

(seviche)

 

(al fresco lunch)

 

The cabins are decent and well-equipped. The yacht itself is nice (accommodates approximately 75 with staff and guests). The staff is super accommodating and the four naturalists are incredible and bend over backwards to ensure we have the photos we want, the right gear, and all the right moves (whether it be in snorkeling, negotiating a disembarkment from the " panga" (the Zodiac dinghies we use to get from the yacht to the islands) or engaging in pleasant conversation.

 

SUNDAY

We arrived at the Baltra airport ( a remote military base) mid-day Sunday and were greeted by several of the Eclipse naturalists. After a short bus ride to a small dock, we suited up in life-vests (always) and sped away in our motorized raft (panga). We were welcomed on the yacht by the cruise director and staff, got settled in our cabins, had a brief orientation and safety drill, then a huge lunch. After lunch... our first excursion to the mangroves and Black Turtle Cove. Twelve of us filled up a panga with our Galapagos resident naturalist Sandie and our driver and away we went-- floppy hats, insect repellant, sunscreen and all. This is all about the amazing sights, so I am including lots of pictures with very little text.

The mangroves were fascinating (though we got stuck once or twice )....

 

... and finally we made it to the Cove. Very peaceful; before we knew it, a grand and magical sea creature display materialized before our eyes-- green sea turtles mating, pelicans, frigates, flying fish, a school of stingrays, and Galapagos sharks. The turtles, in particular were fascinating and tenacious.

We returned to the yacht about 7, heard an overview of the next day's activities, ate dinner, and called it a night.

 

MONDAY

After an early breakfast, we prepared for our first wet landing at Rabida--a small island with red volcanic rocks encircling a red, sandy beach with plenty of opportunities for sea lion, pelicans, land iguana, Galapagos hawk, and flora sighting.  The hike was hot (we're at the equator) but really interesting-- our guide Wilson assured us it would be so.

 

After the hike, it was snorkeling time. There were beautiful fish and even sea lions swimming by.

Back for a lovely Italian lunch on deck, a siesta, then off for excursion two of the day to Puerto Egas on Santiago where we hiked to tidal pools featuring dozens of fur sea lions. This is not like a zoo-- the sea lions were right there for easy picture taking. As long as you back off when / if the males get aggressive, you can get incredible photos;  not just the sea lions, but iguanas too. We will have seen thousands by the time the trip is over!

 

 

After two hours of hiking....

...back to the boat for a preview of Monday, dinner, and bed.   The sea air, hiking, animals, and sun, combined, were wearing us out. Plus no "Words With Friends" temptations as there's no wireless. (Too pre-occupied to miss it.).

I'll blog separately about Monday,  Tuesday, and Wednesday. In the meantime, in regards to Galapagos...

What's grand:  cruising in the middle of the Pacific toward absolutely primeval islands. Who could imagine the wonders that are here.

What's gorgeous: each island, in its own way, is more gorgeous than the next.

What's goofy:  seeing our 3 friends speed up to our yacht (literally In the middle of  nowhere) was implausible and somewhat goofy .  So were the turtles rolling around in the cove.

 

Hasta la vista with hugs,

wendy