arequipa

i need to tell you... it is very complicated to write in a spanish keyboard, especially if i am writing in english. but hey, i can breathe spanish, and you have no idea how happy that makes me. i can breathe spanish in the streets of arequipa, perú. i hear it, along with the hundreds of cars around plaza de armas, that honk their horns non-stop. i am telling you, it is non-stop. it is almost impossible to cross the street, so i team up with the person next to me and say ´vamos!?´ ´vamos!´and then we go. it does not matter, because i am making a friend in each corner right? a friend in spanish, and i am no longer ´sandrita ESL´ (well, until i start writing here...) ;)

after sleeping for about three hours i needed food, and i discovered the amazing rocoto relleno. oh lord, pepper stuffed with meat, raisins, potatoes and cheese (i think). amazing. 

so, i walked around the city and of course, like mr. bourdain thaught me, hit the local market. mercado san camilo. yes, the one that all the websites and the book i am carrying said not to go, that one. the one with the amazing fruit, dozen kinds of potatoes, vegetables i have never seen, random people singing around, delicious food and stinky raw meat. walking around i hear a ´gringo´singing cuando tenga la tierra (mercedes sosa) with a charango. i smiled, my friend, because music like this moved me to come here. 

´casera! a cuajada with papaya, maracuyá (passion fruit) and naranja (orange), no water please!´delicious fruit in a glass. :)