The Soda Bottle Defense

From what we've heard so far the majority of the thefts in Arequipa occur in taxis. However, home security is pretty intense here. Many homes have electric fences, barbed wire, or even broken bottles on top of the walls to protect against intruders. Some houses even use cactus as a deterrent.

Selva Alegre

Alex and I went to check out a park, Selva Alegre, here in Arequipa this past Sunday. Unlike the plazas at the center of each barrio (neighborhood), this park was clearly designed to give people the feel of escaping the city. There were concrete slides, ducks to feed, boats to row in a small manmade pond, nice views, and plenty of space for young couples to escape the watchful eyes of their parents.

Big boat. Small pond.

Our new house from afar! Find the bright pink flowers on the roof directly to the right of the arches. The arches are Plaza Yanahuara.

They were selling all sorts of food from behind the fence so they didn't have to pay the fee in order to be able to sell within the park itself. 

Weeeee!!!!

People were charging to guess your weight. We watched couples do this as the guy was  watching and the girl didn't appear the least bit self-conscious. We thought this was kind of strange and noted this would never happen in the States. 

Alex passed on the opportunity

Peruvian Beer

I didn't expect it, but Peru has a few beers to choose from. The first one I tried was Arequipeña because right? I've come to learn that Arequipeña is a beer that used to be good but no longer holds up to the competition. It's the cheapest, but no beer here is expensive. For 30 cents more you can have your pick if the selection is there. Cristal, Cusqueña and Pilsen are all pretty decent and cheap. I've seen prices for beer here range from 3.4-10 soles ($1.30- $4) for a 650ml (22 ounce) bottle from bodega to expensive live music venue. Each brewery has a few different brews and as of now I don't know the difference. I haven't seen beer on tap yet interestingly enough. It seems like 650 ml bottles are the way. The bodega where we have bought beer charges 1 sol more if you don't return a bottle for each beer purchased. We're not sure how common that is but we don't mind recycling.

BDay Weekend!

Dave was nice enough to give me some time on his blog to tell you about my birthday weekend. It was certainly eventful to say the least. It began with a trip to the peluqueria (salon) where I got my hair did for less than I would normally tip in a Boston salon (Please note the sauve locks throughout this post). We then headed to a music festival called "AcustiRock Arequipa" featuring 12 hours of the best rock bands in Peru. We rallied 6 of our friends from our language institute and found out along the way that there would also be a food festival happening right next door. Our tickets gave us entrance to both festivals, which made for a delicious afternoon. We began at "FestiSabores" (Festival of Flavors), which had tents featuring different Peruvian regions. Our first meal was ceviche from the Arequipa tent and was slightly different from the ceviche I've had in the past. The usual "leche de tigre" (lime/fish juice with onions) was used as a base, but the fish was served in large chunks rather than the traditional slivers. Next we entered the outdoor area where we shared a monster portion of cerdo (pork) cooked in an oven made of a circular stack of bricks served with pan de platanitos (plantain bread) cooked in corn husks, various types of potatoes, and a starchy green been. This was all washed down by countless 24 oz. cervezas Arequipeña and Cristal for about $2 US each.

Alpaca and owner (he didn't spit at us)

Ceviche!

This is the brick "oven" where they cooked us up a massive platter.

Jacob and the massive platter

Chomp!

Sup Bros

At one point there was a group of young dancers dressed in traditional Peruvian costume who hit the stage in front of the food tents. Their dance told a story of romance, including the chase of a beautiful young woman. To impress the woman, a shirtless male dancer began sticking cactus' to his chest in rhythm. I found out later this may have been the "marinera" dance. It was all very exciting, but at this point we decided it might be time to check out the music. I won't sugar coat anything- so not too much to say about this. I've got to be brutally honest and tell you it was a tad disappointing. I've truly enjoyed popular Peruvian music so far. Salsa, bachata, even criolla- it's all up my alley, as long as I can shake it, it sounds good to me. Unfortunately, the angsty teens of Peru are about 15 years behind with the rock music. It was a mix of late 80s hair band sound and early 90s punk. One of the primetime slots was taken by a Nirvana cover band...nuff said!

My salsa partner and amiga- Connie!

Thijs and Fabiola- I spy couple twinsies...

Late night anticuchos!

Luckily, we were able to make up for the blahhh music which ended the night. I exited the festival with a slight hunger and ended up with a plate of street anticuchos (grilled beef heart). Yummy! We woke up the next day to an eagerness for exploration. OK- I woke up to an eagerness for a hot 30 minute run to sweat out the alcohol and Dave was nice enough to join me, since it was my bday and all : ) 30 minute run turned into 3 hours of being utterly and totally LOST. For about 2 hours we were in the country on the outskirts of Arequipa where we could count on 2 fingers the people we saw and on 2 hands the farm animals. We also came across abandoned construction sites and a bullfighting ring!

Bullfighting ring

Volcàn Misti on the right and Chichani on the left

Cows!

When we finally found our way back we were horizontal for the duration of my birthday, until dinner. We deserved something extravagant, so Dave took me to one of the nicest restaurants in town. It began with a fruity pisco drink for 2, served in an ostrich egg, and ended with alpaca meat sizzling on a dish made from volcanic rock and trout served with a variety of tasty sauces. No room for dessert, but I wasn't mad since I came home to an extra box of Besos de Mozas (s'more-like treats), which I eat daily after dinner. All in all, I'd say my birthday was a great success. Thanks, Dave!

pretending this isn't the coolest drink ever served in an ostrich egg

Salmon and tuna entrada (appetizer)

Excited for Alpaca

Kebab Inn

We are currently enjoying the food and internet of a small Turkish cafe. Our internet went out in our house yesterday so we figured it was a great excuse for a $2.50 delicious falafel. The couple who run this place is awesome. The four of us are constantly battling to speak the other's language. We stumbled upon this place a couple weeks ago and were served the strongest Pisco Sour we've had yet.

Plaza De Armas

This is Arequipa. This church is the most famous building in the city. Like many of the other buildings, it's made of white volcanic stone extracted from the volcanoes surrounding the city (giving Arequipa the name "The White City"). The plaza is the largest open area to chill we have seen thus far. There are a ton of pigeons here as people sit on the benches and feed them. Kids love to run through the flock of pigeons which is adorable until the pigeons are suddenly taking flight into your face.

Puente Grau

Puente Grau, kid! This is the bridge we cross to head downtown to the city center. Downtown has tons of restaurants, bars and the architectural landmark of Arequipa, the Plaza De Armas (you can see the towers from the Plaza De Armas in the background of the first picture). Puente Grau is made of stone, has two narrow lanes for two-way traffic. You'll often see cabs pass cars on the bridge with incoming traffic (kind of crazy).

Rio Chili

El Rio Chili cuts through the city of Arequipa. There are many bridges that cross the river and so far, in order to get downtown, we have used two: Puente Grau and Puente Bolognesi. Both of which are one-way, narrow, made of stone and pretty high above the water. El Rio Chili is also the water supply for the irrigation channels mentioned in the previous post.

Our house is a 20-25 minute walk in this direction. This photo was taken from Puente Bolognesi.

This is Puente Bolognesi, which is the closest bridge to the city center and the Plaza De Armas. We more often use Puente Grau as it is closer to our side of town. Puente Grau is the next bridge that is barely visible in the distance in this picture. 

Walk home at sunset

This is a photo taken a block from our house after a long days walk in search of a backpack for me:

Alex is sporting my Peruvian-made Adidas backpack while the sun sets on Chachani. The water on the right flows in many spots throughout the city providing irrigation to parks and gardens. The cabbies also use this water to wash their cars. 

Brightly Colored Homes

There are a lot of beautiful colors here in Arequipa. Many of the buildings are made of volcanic stone and/or concrete and some are incredibly old (see the pictures of the Adobo restaurant in Plaza Cayma from yesterday's post). In contrast, many of the houses and buildings here are brightly colored (with what looks like fresh paint) which gives a really warm feeling to many of the neighborhoods.

Large stained glass window at street level on a small side street

Adobo at Plaza Cayma

Alex and I went to Plaza Cayma earlier this afternoon. Plaza Cayma is another awesome, small plaza only a few minute walk from our house, which is amazingly located between Plaza Cayma and Plaza Yanahuara. Both Cayma and Yanahuara are considered safe and affluent districts in Arequipa. Each have a beautiful plaza with their own church, restaurants, shops and feel.

Plaza Cayma is encircled by a half dozen adobo restaurants. In Arequipa, adobo is a spicy soup with pork that's cooked for hours in paprika, oregano, salt, garlic and vinegar. We met our friend and classmate, Fabricio, and had adobo at a place that was recommended to us by both Fabricio and a kind, messy stranger who approached Alex in the park. With all the places to choose from I think we found the one. Apparently this place opens at 3 am and it's a popular late night spot. We'll be getting on that soon.