Cuzco
Lima
Cuzco
Lima
"Must try" dishes (Lima):
Ceviche: Based on fish cooked with lima juice. Ceviche is almost the national dish. Should be tried during lunch time. Place recommended: "Segundo Muelle" or "Al Fresco".
Tiradito: Based on fish cooked with lima juice. Should be tried during lunch time. Place recommended " Segundo Muelle".
Anticucho: Pieces of cow heart on a skewer, strong taste. Recommended place " Jose Antonio".
Aji de gallina: Chicken with a special sauce. Very nice. Recommended place: " Jose Antonio".
Lomo saltado: Made of beef, onion, tomatoes and French fries. Recommended place: " Jose Antonio".
Make sure you have a good sea-food lunch!
"Must try" drinks: Non-alcoholic:
Inca Kola:Gold-colored Peruvian soda. Many people consider it too sweet, but you can find it everywhere. I think it tastes like liquid carbonated bubble gum. Number one soft drink in Peru. Coke couldn't compete, so they bought them…
Chicha Morada: Made of purple corn.
Alcoholic:
Pisco Sour.....of course. Pisco, Lime, sugar… A really great drink. Don't have too many!!!
Peruvian beer is not bad either. Try "Cusquena".
Lima Attractions José Antonio (must go): Manos Morenas:
Same type of food as Jose Antonio, but on the lower end (still very good though); they have a live show on weekends. Pedro de Osma 409, Barranco, Telf: 467-4902. Lun. a Dom. de 12:30pm a 4:30pm/7:00pm a 11:00pm
Turned me off a bit because the waitress had been dressed to look like a slave.
Las Brujas de Cachiche:
(Lunch or Dinner) - Typical Peruvian food
Al Fresco:
Seafood (another must). There at least two of them in Lima, one in Miraflores (Malecón Balta 790, Miraflores, tel 444-7962), one in San Isidro (Av. Santa Luisa 295, San Isidro, 422-8915). Things to try: ceviche de corbina, tiradito de lenguado a la oliva, causa de cangrejo (one of my favorites), arroz con mariscos (great), etc.
El Francesco:
(Lunch) - Seafood (Typical Ceviche)
MUSEUMS
Museo de Oro del Peru: Gold Museum. Big collection, must see. But not very well documented.
Museo de la Nacion: Includes models of Peru's major ruins. Hours are 9-9pm. Tel: 476-9875 Javier Prado Oeste 2466, San Borja
Museo Rafael Larco Herrera: Apparently it has an incredible ceramics collection, known for erotic art. I couldn't make it. Hours are 9-6pm. Tel: 461-1312, Bolivar 1515, Pueblo Libre
Museo Nacional de Antropología, Arqueología e historia: Traces the pre-history of Peru from the archaeological sites to the arrival of the Spaniards. Hours are 9-6pm. Tel: 463-5070, in Plaza Bolivar at the intersection of San Martin and Vivanco in Pueblo Libre.
Macchu Picchu Site of ancient Inca ruins located about 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Cuzco, Peru, in the Cordillera de Vilcabamba of the Andes Mountains. It is perched above the Urubamba River valley in a narrow saddle between two sharp peaks--Machu Picchu ("Old Peak") and Huayna Picchu ("New Peak")--at an elevation of 7,710 feet (2,350 metres). One of the few major pre-Columbian ruins found nearly intact, Machu Picchu was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983.
It escaped detection by the Spaniards and was "discovered" in 1911 by the Yale University professor Hiram Bingham, who was led to the site by Melchor Arteaga, a local resident. Additional discoveries have shown that Machu Picchu was one of a series of pucaras (fortified sites), tambos (travelers' barracks, or inns), and signal towers along the extensive Inca foot highway.
The dwellings at Machu Picchu were probably built and occupied from the mid-15th to the early or mid-16th century, although the site's use as either a fortress, city, or palace is uncertain. Some researchers believe that its water supply was insufficient to support a large population during periods of low rainfall. Machu Picchu's construction style and other evidence suggest that it was a palace complex of the ruler Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui (reigned c. 1438-71). Several dozen skeletons were excavated there in 1912, and, because most of those were identified initially (though not conclusively) as female, Bingham suggested that Machu Picchu was a sanctuary for the Virgins of the Sun (the Chosen Women), an elite Inca group. The reason for the site's abandonment is also unknown, but lack of water may have been a factor.
The high level of preservation and the general layout of the ruin are remarkable. Its southern, eastern, and western portions are surrounded by dozens of stepped agricultural terraces formerly watered by an aqueduct system. Some of those terraces were still being used by local Indians when Bingham arrived in 1911. Walkways and thousands of steps, consisting of stone blocks as well as footholds carved into underlying rock, connect the plazas, the residential areas, the terraces, the cemetery, and the major buildings. The Main Plaza, partly divided by wide terraces, is at the north-central end of the site. At the southeastern end is the only formal entrance, which leads to the Inca highway.
Few of Machu Picchu's white granite structures have stonework as highly refined as that found in Cuzco, but several are worthy of note. In the southern part of the ruin is the Sacred Rock, also known as the Temple of the Sun (it was called the Mausoleum by Bingham); it centres on an inclined rock mass with a small grotto; walls of cut stone fill in some of its irregular features. Rising above the rock is the horseshoe-shaped enclosure known as the Military Tower. In the western part of Machu Picchu is the temple district, also known as the Acropolis. The Temple of the Three Windows is a hall 35 feet (10.6 metres) long and 14 feet (4.2 metres) wide with three trapezoidal windows (the largest known in Inca architecture) on one wall, which is built of polygonal stones. It stands near the southwestern corner of the Main Plaza. Also near the Main Plaza is the Intihuatana (Hitching Post of the Sun), a ceremonial sundial consisting of a wide pillar and pedestal that were carved as a single unit and stand 6 feet (1.8 metres) tall. The Princess's Palace is a bi-level structure of highly crafted stonework that probably housed a member of the Inca nobility. The Palace of the Inca is a complex of rooms with niched walls and a courtyard. There are also ruins atop the dark peak of Huayna Picchu, which is accessible by a lengthy, precipitous stairway and trail. At the other end of Machu Picchu, another path leads to the famous Inca Bridge, a rope structure that crosses the Urubamba River.
Machu Picchu is the most economically important tourist attraction in Peru, bringing in visitors from around the world. It is commonly reached in a day trip from Cuzco by first taking a narrow-gauge railway and then ascending nearly 1,640 feet (500 metres) from the Urubamba River valley on a serpentine road. Smaller numbers of visitors arrive by hiking the Inca highway (Inca Trail). The portion of the trail from the "km 88" train stop is normally hiked in three to six days. It is composed of several thousand stone-cut steps, numerous high retaining walls, tunnels, and other feats of classical engineering; the route traverses a wide range of elevations between about 8,530 and 13,780 feet (2,600 and 4,200 metres), and it is lined with Inca ruins of various types and sizes. At Machu Picchu there is a hotel with a restaurant, and thermal baths are at the nearby village of Aguas Calientes. The Inca Bridge and other parts of Machu Picchu were damaged by a forest fire in August 1997, but restoration was begun immediately afterward. (Source: Encyclopedia Britannica)
Verrrrryyy Important (don't take this lightly) Water: "Agua mineral" is the way to go!! Food
Altitude Sickness Prevention
(I could only make it to the Gold Museum)
Do not drink the water.
Avoid ice cubes.
Be careful of fruit juices, as they are prepared with water.
Make sure salads and fruit are washed with purified water.
Beware of bottled water with broken seals on the caps, it's not uncommon for water bottles to be refilled with tap water and sold to tourists. Also in restaurants, try to drink carbonated water ("Agua Mineral Con Gas"), as bottles of normal water are often refilled.
Use purified water if possible for brushing teeth and do not open your mouth in the shower
Eat well-cooked foods, served hot, avoid rare meats, uncooked fish, and be wary of uncooked vegetables, including salads
Try to eat only fruits that you peel yourself, they may have been washed in unsafe water
Avoid food from street vendors
Make sure dairy products have been pasteurized
Ascend slowly
Symptoms can include headaches, dizziness, fatigue, shortness of breath, and nausea.
If you experience any of these symptoms, you should take caution and know your limits! Be willing to sit down and take a break if needed.
To help prevent altitude sickness, be sure to drink extra fluids, which often helps the acclimatization process. Also, avoid alcohol and unnecessary medications.
Drink coca tea (Matte di Coca)