Where's Grayleen?

Hello Family and Friends! Have you missed us? Between Spanish class and staying in Arequipa for two and a half weeks (about which we had already written), there hasn’t been a tremendous amount of note to share. However, we thought we’d share a bit of what recent life has been like for us.

Arequipa at twilight can make your breath catch, or for the less sentimental, at least make you go running for your camera

We did twenty hours of Spanish class at a school called CEICA. If you are looking for a place to study Spanish, we highly recommend CEICA. In addition, we recommend Arequipa: it is less touristy and cheaper than Cusco, and we liked the city itself better as well. There are a ton of Spanish language schools in Arequipa of a wide range in quality, but information is sparse on which ones are good. At CEICA, for $125 each, we had five days of private instruction for four hours a day (run out of the owners’ home), complete with excellent course materials¹. For an additional $106, we had lodging for both of us for a week in a cute little apartment above our host family’s house, plus daily family-style breakfasts (complete with more Spanish practice). The four hours of instruction were generally divided into two hours of conversation and two hours of grammar. I am quite pleased to announce that I can now usually make proper use of the past tenses and future tenses. Previously, I was known to say such things as, “Yesterday, I go visit the island” or “Tomorrow, I go to Machu Picchu”. While most of the time I could make myself understood, there is something to be said for being able to speak in tenses other than the present!

Evelyn, our dear new Peruvian friend

We also enjoyed the best food of our trip so far at two very different restaurants. One was La Trattoria del Monasterio, which serves Italian and French food with a touch of local ingredients. It would hold its own with the best restaurants I’ve ever been to, and for about $10 per person. We went the first time with Bec, David, and a sleeping Emelia, and when every dish including dessert was a winner, we couldn’t help but return another night. The other was the also twice-visited La Nuevo Palomino, a very traditional Peruvian restaurant packed with locals. Their ricoto relleno (stuffed pepper) was amazing, as was their queso helado (cheese ice cream – if you think it sounds strange, remember that cheese cake is delicious); both of these are very traditional foods.

Another delightful part of our stay was spending time with our new friend Evelyn, a 20-year old law student from Arequipa who we met in the Colca Canyon. Evelyn generously shared her family, city, and country with us.

The day after we got back from the canyon, we met up in Arequipa for dinner at a local chicharroneria, where the specialty is pork. We also tried the Peruvian specialty, cuy (guinea pig– yes you read that right), which I thought was tasty though a bit greasy. Evelyn was shocked to hear that we only have guinea pigs in the United States as pets (albeit somewhat boring ones).

Cuy: it's better than it looks

The following day, we all went on a little trip to the countryside around Arequipa, which was lovely– all terraced hills and pastoral views². We didn’t see any other non-Peruvian tourists the whole day, and definitely wouldn’t have made it out there without our local guide. This included a trip to Molino de Sabandía, a picturesque old mill with gorgeous grounds that still functions today for visitors, and Characato, a beautiful bit of the countryside known for its natural spring. We also ate at a rustic country restaurant and feasted on a couple of additional local specialties, including cows’ feet (didn’t really do it for us– kind of chewy and bland), green rice with duck (delicious!), broad beans (reminded us of edamame), and chicha (a ubiquitous drink from fermented corn). Definitely a great way to spend a day!

Characato, a beautiful bit of countryside outside Arequipa

One evening after class, we met up with Evelyn again to go grocery shopping and then cook an Arequipan specialty, chupe de camarones (a type of stew with crayfish). It was delicious! We ate with her family: mom, 10-month old baby sister, 16-year old little brother, her 20-year old cousin, and her elderly Quechuan grandmother. It was a really nice night and we felt a part of the family; the baby was adorable with her huge cheeks; we exchanged how to say “hello” and “goodbye” in our respective languages with grandma. We also shared a Panetón with hot chocolate, a Peruvian tradition for the holiday season. A Panetón is a large dome-shaped bread that contains candied fruit. Unlike in the United States where the only known use for fruitcake is regifting, Peruvians love them some Panetón³! The grocery stores are absolutely filled to the brim with stacks of Panetón topping every aisle.

Abuelita (grandmother) shows us how to properly eat a camarón

One final noteworthy delight of Arequipa was the Club Internacional, a private club to which foreigners can gain admittance for a mere 10 soles ($3.50 USD) per day⁴. We took advantage of it three different afternoons. The club is enormous, with facilities for many different sports (basketball, racquetball, tennis, bowling, pool/billiards, soccer x 3, volleyball, bocce ball, track and field, etc.), plus an indoor pool, an outdoor pool, a sauna, fitness classes, weightlifting facilities, several awesome looking playgrounds, plus five or six little restaurants around the outdoor pool. We ran the track and played some pool (I am really bad), but mostly went there to swim a few laps and hang out pool-side. Definitely recommended! It made us feel all fancy for a few hours before returning to our backpacks and economy lodging.

All in all a great experience. See more photos from Arequipa here.

1One common complaint of Spanish schools is poor or non-existent course materials, so we would recommend asking to see a sample before signing on for classes.

2I can’t help but wonder: is there any part of Peru (aside from the desert) which wasn’t terraced by the Incas? Only a small percentage of Inca terraces are farmed today because many are on such steep hills that modern folk can’t be bothered with.

3We thought the Panetón was just okay., nothing to write home about!

4Every day was different in gaining admittance. I think technically you need a member sponsor, but the first two times we went in the side entrance and I think unwittingly lined the guards’ pockets. The third time, the guard sent us to the main entrance, where they insisted we need a member sponsor. A few minutes of standing there looking confused did the trick though, and he let us in using a random member’s name and number.