2013 Nov. Arequipa.
Took a 1.5hr domestic flight from Lima to Arequipa. Arequipa is Peru’s second most important city (after Lima), and second most popular among tourists (after Cuzco). The city centre is a UNESCO world heritage site, and we were lucky to have a university professor who works part time as a tour guide to give us a very detailed introduction of Arequipa. Arequipa is an example of Spanish and mestizo culture developed in Peru. There are no Inca artifacts or ruins in the city.
Arequipa’s central market Mercado San Camilo is a vibrant and bustling place. It is a very organised market with many different sections. The variety of fruits, veggies and potatoes is immense. I was told there are about 4000 varieties of potatoes, each with an unique name. Quite an eye-opening experience just wandering about in here. Another interesting trivia is this market was designed by Gustave Eiffel!
Read and heard so much about the Peruvian national dish “cuy” (deep fried guinea pig), but I was hesitant to order it as I have a phobia of rodents. My dining companion decided to try, and when the dish was served, it looked really scary and disgusting. Nevertheless, I mustered all my courage to take a tiny bite. It tasted like deep fried crispy chicken, nothing unusual. But after that bite, I just could not look at the carcass anymore, and had to avoid eye contact throughout dinner pretending it was not even there. Ok, been there done that.
… to be continued …
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