Bolivia yummies

Snacks, I love snacks, especially cheap delicious snacks.

Alfajores

Alfajores. Alfajores is one of those things that will make you crazy eat 6 at a time then feeling really fat about it but can't help but do it again the next time you lay hands on them. I walk by this small pastry stand open on the way back home from spanish class. I buy one every single time I see it, it's like they have magic power over my taste buds. Bolivian alfajores is kind of like macaroon but it crumbles easily with sweet dulce de leche in the middle.

the root of all evil yumminess, dulce de leche

Dulce de leche. I was first introduced to dulce de leche at breakfast on the amazon trip. It was one of the spreads you could put on breads apart from butter and jams. It's directly translated as candy of milk. It taste like caramel sugar and it's AWESOME. Kim, Ariane and I loved it when we first tasted. Ariane was so enchanted, she wanted to import to Canada. Dulce de leche became my top choice in bread spreads. So yummy, so delicious, so fat. 

fried potato wrapped egg ball

This is a street food. Cooked egg wrapped in mashed potato then fried and ate with various spice sauces and mayonnaise. It's also very high calories and the food safety is very questionable. I found this while waiting in Potosi bus station waiting for the bus to Uyuni. I ate two because it was most frequently visited by locals. It tastes pretty good considering, might be because of my hunger and need for energy. 

Saltenas mmmmmmm mmmm mmmmmmm

Salteñas. It's a popular Bolivian mid morning snack. Estephanie took me to a cafe called "El Patio" in Sucre. It's a massive colonial building with seating in the centre patio. This place only sells saltenas and it's the most famous place for it, even among locals. I got the chicken saltenas. Geezes, I immediately regretted not knowing this cuisine two weeks ago, otherwise I would've ate this every day. It's got chicken, peas, potatoes with a slight sweet spicy sauce inside. The pastry is crusty and baked perfectly. The hot ingredients inside match very well with the sweet and slightly spicy sauce... Mmmmm Mmmmm mmmmmmmmm dear saltena, you had me at first bite.

el patio on a sunny day

el patio!

Strolling with chef Red

Chef Red lives with a Bolivian family. He's a professional chef from Australia. He studied Spanish in Bolivia then travelled around south america then eventually went back to settle in Sucre, Bolivia.We met briefly at the Oktoberfest party and eventually became friends by multiple mutual friends. 

Sarah and I got invited by Red and Simon to their place for dinner. He cooked pork belly with potato and beet salad. The pork belly was simply done with crunchy skin and fatty juicy meat paired with a scoop of mysterious yummy sauce. Baked potatoes were seasoned simply, keeping all the natural flavours. Beet salad was just a surprise, I haven't seen these for the longest time since travelling. YUM YUM YUM. This guy is freakin' talented. 

waiting... waiting....

fooood food food fooooood

On a sunny afternoon, my second last day in Sucre, Red and I met up for a walk. We met at Plaza 25 de Mayo. Sitting on the bench. Observing people, talking with a mom and kid at the next bench. We wore sunglasses and hoodies, it's those breezy sunny day.

this fell in front of my face. pretty little hurtful things... 

We walked away from the plaza, going towards the big park. Passing the parliament, supreme court, opera house, universities and libraries... We bought ice creams from the little shop near the entrance to Bolivar Park. Unpasteurized milk ice cream with an expresso shot poured over. SO YUM. Milky and coffee-ie. So simplistic and so simple. We happily walked down the long park, passing by people picnicking, dating on the benches, teenagers chilling out under the tree. The park is surprisingly organized and well maintained. It's beautiful and elegant. 

He is entertainingly honest. In fact, our first meeting goes like this,

"do you know that girl?"

"yeah, she's from my hostel"

"she is so hot, help me out, i want to meet her"

"okay"

We found a bench at the end of the park, across the old rail station. Red told me about his trip around south america. Every location and every story evolved around meeting a girl. He even shared the phone numbers he got the night we all went out dancing. The follow-up phone calls and texts. 

"that girl with crotches was really hot"

"crotches in the club?"

"yeah, she couldn't run or hide"

"that's how you got the phone number"

"yes"

"you know that he was hitting on you that night?"

"what?"

"you are slow"

"yeahhh..."

"i want to open a club at the abandoned gas station"

"that sounds awesooome."

"don't tell anyone though"

"let's walk, i'll show you the mini eiffel tower"

plaza Libertad

bench talking at Parque Bolivar

Bolivian Lunch

Who says Bolivians don't have delicious meals? You just need to follow the locals...

Bolivian day goes like this, wake up around 8, go school/work, lunch from 12 to 2 ish, siesta, head out around 4 again then dinner around 8 to 9. Lunch is their biggest meal of the day. Many go home to eat or eat out with family. Restaurants offer menú del día, menu of the day, which is usually 15-25 bolivianos approximately 3 dollars. It usually consist of an appetizer and main with drink and/or dessert. It's mainly locals who fill the restaurants for lunch and less tourists as lunch is a light one in our culture. I actually started to eat like them and find it healthier. Lunching big follow by small dinner somehow feels better.

secret restaurant by fluven with awesome 3 course lunch. jammed
with locals. pasta potato chicken soup

main is beef  with potato, tomato, beans, onion and spices.

st germain vegetarian bean veggie soup

st germain main, veggie sprice sauce with rice and a wrap of
something  that taste like meat 

simple sugar coated cake

Celebrating Oktoberfest at Sucre

"you going saturday?"
"what?"
"oktoberfest! at fluven, starting at 8pm all you can drink beer for 49bolivians"
"for how long?"
"till 2am"
"affirmative"

Everyone kept talking about the oktoberfest throughout the week. the german spirit here surprised me, apparently the hostel owner is german, fluven is german, and the owner of my spanish school is also german, plus he got another cafe/school complex. fyi, 49 bolivianos is about 7 canadian.

Fluven's 2nd floor was were the event is, its a courtyard surrounded by wooden tables and chairs and attached to another small bar room. Will, Simon, Sebastian, Sean, Lota, Elana, Nathan, Simon, Red, Youri and everyone I knew and kind of knew were there. In this small town, everyone is a friend's friend. The night blasted away. We refilled our plastic cups again and again and again and again. The bar got so jammed and the staff so busy, they ran out of beer in light year speed. I guess they didn't expect the drinkability of travellers and the meaning of oktoberfest, because the plastic cups were not the oktober size.

half way through the beer marathon

I went to the washroom and surprisingly discovered a group of boys were chit chatting on the sofa. They gave me a secretive smile which I didn't understand until one of my friend came up to use the washroom as well...

"the boys said hi to me, then I said hi back."
"uh huh..."
"one of them reach his hand out which I thought was a friendly hand shake..."
"yeah?"
"but his hands grabbed lower..."
gasp.

"you got gay charm."

Gringo's Rincon Gang

Gringo's Rincon is one of my favourite hostels. It's a colonial old building turned hostel with a large wooden door.The kitchen is small, no television, no hang out lounges, there's only three showers, the owner is a bit of a character (he is always wearing orange gloves), and the wireless internet barely works. 

"Is this all the Gringo Rincon people?"

"No, give it another 10 minutes, more are on the way."

The people here tend to stay here for a long time, well, some like to leave but always find reasons to stay. We like to hang out in massive groups. I'll come back from the Spanish lessons at noon and find the gang playing shitface at the roof again. We join together to cook dinners. We ventured down the road for 2 for 1 drinks in the pub's courtyard. We hopped on taxis to the dodgy part of town's only local club. We jam the entire clubs and pubs full of our own and others that we snatched up. We see each other hook up with people and secretly smiles while fading away. We like to exchange gossip, about people in town and people staying here. We visits parks and cemeteries. We fight for the bottom bunks when people check out. We complain together on the crappy internet. We buy groceries off of each other. This place is crappy but nice. It made me feel better. Less homesick and better rested. 

It's usually the people we met not the places that makes good memories. But this place definitely has some kind of magic to it. 

Gringo cooking in Sucre

When I got to Sucre, my mental health wasn't doing great. I miss my family. I miss cooking. I miss stability. I was tired of backpacking around and sick of making friends then bidding goodbye the next day. I started cooking. The ability to cook whatever I want and the joy in creating them provided a sense of comfort. It reminded me of my mom.

I ventured out to the public market after Spanish lessons. The trick is to visit the same seller every time. The same veggie lady, same egg lady, same fruit lady and same spice lady. Haggle, haggle and haggle more. They like to rip off of gringos but after a week or so, they will feel bad and give you a better offer.

I made fried rice, for 3 straight days. Fried rice with veggies and eggs. Simple but way better than anything the restaurants provide. I loved veggies. Eating it makes me feel good, like my body is fresh and regenerated. I started liking papayas. The stalls sell massive papayas. Apparently it's a super fruit with lots of good stuff for health. They were delicious and easy to eat. I chop them in half, eat one half then couldn't help myself but eat the other half too. The free food/spice cupboard is also a must visit everyday. I found rice, pastas, spices, cooking oil, instant soups, instant noodles and even cereals.

very first self cooked meal

and then the lazy versions days afterwards

papayas the size of my face, still consider small by
the local standards

Las pampas, ending notes

The tour was with Indigena Tours. They are known to be the best in terms of sustainability and wildlife treatment. Tony took us to "find" the pampas habitats, never did he disturb/catch them to show us except piranhas which he set free afterwards. Our meals are healthy and always more than enough to get us fully satisfied. We had meat spaghetti, variety of salads, cheeses, bread, rice, and 3 different styles of donuts among other delicious yummies. They were sanitary and beautifully plated. These are probably the best meals I had since start of the trip. 

Packed and loaded. We go upstream, back the way we came. Bidding goodbye to the alligators, birds and passing by the pink dolphins... The jeep trip back to Rurrenabaque was total nightmare as the roads are rough and muddy due to the rainstorm which caused the journey to be more than 5 hours. My plane back to La Paz was also delayed by a day due to cancellations. 

Thank you Indigena, Tony Bullshit, my tourmates and the Amazonian wildlife.

lunch om om om om om eat them all!!

goodbye alligators... an allie ready to crack the bones of fishes.

little wild adventures

A day in Rurrenabaque

The pampas tour got delayed for a day so I got a night free accommodation at Rurre hotel. So, extra day in Rurrenabaque not knowing anyone in this remote town. Warm moist air, blazing sun and breeze from the the mountains... No parties, no wild rovers. The town basically survive off of tourists, there are lots of tour offices, hostels, hotels, restaurants, bars, snack shops, and convenient stores. Everything is a bit more expensive than La Paz because of its remoteness.

Wandering aimlessly, I found THE bakery shop. The shop all visitor would strongly recommend and RAVE about upon their return to La Paz. The luring baking smells drift in all directions, forming a block radius to total smell heaven. Croissant, rolls, pizzas, pistachio, butter, sausages, cheese, veggies..... fresh squeeze juices. GAHHHHHHHHH... mouth watering. mmmmm mmmm mmmm!!! Unfortunately, I didn't catch the name of this pastry, but anyhow, there's only one anyway. Backpackers gather from all over the town to relax here, hiding under the shades from blazing sun. I mentioned La Paz was cold at night but this place, is hot hot HOT and mosquito everywhere... Nevertheless, I gulped down 2 croissants and 2 glasses of orange juice (for 17 bolivianos, roughly $2.5) then proceeded back to hotel's hammock garden.

Hammock, something I've come very familiar with later on the trip... Everybody likes to relax in a hammock listening to music with book in one hand and a chill beer in the other. It's one of those days for me. Swinging, swinging, a sip of water, couple bites of chips... When it gets too comfortable, throw your head back and cocoon yourself for a breezy nap. Yeah, this is the place and the time to do it.

Whooooosh, someone pushed my hammock. "Hey!" It's Mike, the first person I met in Wild Rover. Then "Hey!!!" Jen, THAT girl in Wild Rover. Apparently they just returned from the same pampas tour. 5 of them and I went for a chatty dinner at an Australian owned restaurant hidden in a small alley (delicious food, fyi). Mike and I head to the internet cafe to get online and report that we are still alive and breathing air while the others went to Moskeetos for drinks. We were both tired so ditched the drinks for couple pool rounds back in the garden...

I was a bit frustrated initially with the tour delay but then I started to appreciate this extra day in this quiet town. Away from the crazy wild rover parties and not on a rough pampas tour, yet. Next, AMAZONSSSSS!!!

streets of Rurrenabaque, filled with tour offices, restaurants and shops

the purple flowers were blooming everywhere in town. 

Orange ladies

Walking in La Paz on a Sunday, nothing is open, except the stalls on the street. As I was heading back to hostel, bored, Maurice, one of my dorm mates walked out and invited me to accompany him to the modern art museum. We came across an orange stall, which Maurice stop to buy a glass. The lady was in her 30s (probably). She had a cart full of oranges, a simple squeezer, lots of plastic cups and a small plastic garbage bag. A cup for 3 pesos. Quickly, swiftly, she’s done it 500 times a day, squeezing the juice out to a plastic jar then pouring it to the thin plastic cups. Maurice drank it all at once then the lady offered another half glass.

Pure juice, no ice, no sugar. Simple & delicious, ridiculously cheap at 50 cents each. FRESHLY SQUEEZED. Orange stands became one of my hobbies/obsessions. Whenever I see one, I’ll stop for a glass. The ladies work hard and silent. They don’t talk much, just moving their hands quickly and quietly. I suspect they are from the suburbs, making an income with the oranges they grow. (I may be completely wrong though). At siesta, they are the only people still on the street while everything else shuts down. Sometimes, strangers stopping for a glass make small talk with each other, comments on the weather and sharing a moment of simplicity.

Returning to Vancouver, I miss the spontaneous drinks on the street. Not those canned juice and pops made from massive factories, but in-your-face natural fresh orange juice. 

Taquile Island, homestay family

Homestay and their baby sheep

Celso Huatta, Juana Machaca and their kid Wilfredo who is 6. They live in Comunidad Quinuapata on the island and are our homestay family. Celso works with his brother to build houses on the island. Juana takes care of the family and their livestocks and makes textile works. They have a kid Wilfredo who goes to school just down the road every day. They are young and energetic yet quiet and peaceful.

Provided by Allen

Celso sits down with us at the dinner table waiting for dinner, talking about their hat culture, his family, the plants and the livestocks. He asks of our stories and families. When we could not understand each other, he picks up the thin English learning book on the floor. Flipping through it quickly, he searches for the word that would help him communicate with us. Together, we draw on paper, use numbers and physical actions to make sense of each other. Their life is simple, as it seems, though the tourists are slowly changing the life of this island. There are, though still rare, mobile phones, generators, television and even internet. The young people of the island leave for bigger cities in hopes for prosperity.

Wilfredo and I played soccer in the cold evening in the garden. He seems to be very familiar with the darkness and the cold air, it does't bother him at all. Yelling, shouting and laughing while passing the ball to each other. Allen stands by the side setting up his camera for the starry night to come. I tickled Wilfredo when I catch him and taught him turtle origami while we waited for dinner. He is an amazing child, eyes of the future.

Provided by Allen

The entire family sat down and had the meal together. Wildfredo fell deep asleep in his father warms without finishing his meal. They bid their good nights early. Allen and I went to the garden to see the infamous night sky. The sky is clear as ever, the stars are magical. My horoscope, scorpion, was clearly visible, the curve of stars lined up shining down on us, twisting its tails over the nigh sky.

The island was very very VERY cold. 4000m above altitude, with only a fleece jacket and merino cardigan. I went to bed, burying myself in 10cm thick worth of wool blankets.

Breakfast, Mana tea and perfected made pancakes.

The next day, we woke up to a lovely meal. Drinking Mana, the herbal tea Celso picked, and two pancakes sprinkled with sugar. I wrote my daily journal while Allen poked around, taking photos and cleaning up. He slowly came to me and said "Juana was crying in the kitchen." We don't know why she cried, what was bothering her or what happened. We'll never know.

Peruvian Cuisine

The photos will tell you so I'm going to shut up.

Traditional cuisine. Fried chicken, potato fried and rice.

Potato fried, sliced sausages, egg, onion, tomato, lettuce on rice.
San Pedro, Cusco.

fat corn cob, fried marinated pork, banana cake wrapped in corn leaves,
potato, white cheese slice, uncooked onion with spice sauce. Locals love this.

I always get too excited and forget to take photo before digging in...
half time photo.

Más o menos Pisco Sour

Low and behold, the Peruvian national drink, Pisco Sour.

It was invented in 1920s by an American bartender, Morris, at Morris' bar in Lima. It's a cocktail drink with a slight twist. Major components are Pisco and Sour. Pisco is a yellowish brandy produced from grape in the wine regions of Peru. Sour is the combination of lime, water, sweetener, egg white and angostura. It tastes tangy, frothy and a punch of alcohol. As a newbie on cocktails, the egg white froth was a weird component but it's for sure nice to have something sour after a big meal. My view on this is skewed as the one I tried was más o menos (so-so) but I've heard people loving it as well.

Nevermind that, what you really need to know is beer please, "Cerveza por favor".

Peruvian tentempié & postre

Tentempié and postre means snack and dessert respectively. Being a big foodie, I'm constantly hungry and hunting for snacks and desserts. I'm the kind that sleep in 16 person dorm to spend more money on munchies. Thankfully, the Peruvians got amazing cuisine. Ceviche, churros, and mazamorra arroz zambito are my favourites.

Ceviche, pronounced seh-bee-chay, is essentially marinated fish often made into a salad with other accompanying ingredients. It's a popular dish along the coast and lakes. The fish are marinated using citrus stuff most likely lemon or lime then paired with baked sweet potato, slightly charred corn (maize), onions, lettuce and a light citrusy sauce. The dish is full of flavour and healthy plus it provides a bit of starch to keep you rolling. It's yummy because of the freshness. The best ceviches are the ones before noon because they use fish caught in the early morning. yum, yum, and more yum.

As a sucker for sweets, I know churros is definitely not from Peru, but how can anyone resist it when walking in the cold?! The slight savoury fried dough sprinkled with sugar paired with a nice thick hot chocolate dip. Hand me one right now and I'll come around later for another as midnight snack, thank you very much. The trick with these is to pick those stalls frying them in front of you, otherwise you might end up with a cold hard crunch wood stick. And, they should only be at the most 1 solus each. 

Lastly, mazamorra arroz zambito. Allen and I were taking the less beaten path in Cusco one evening which led discovery to a dessert shop filled with locals. Out of curiosity and the welcoming locals, we stepped in and got one of whatever everyone was eating. "You haven't tried this? then you must! Get the combination. Oh, and watch your belongings..." Mazamorra is made with a local maize (which makes it super purplie) and apparently cooked with cinnamon, pineapple and sweet potato. Arroz zambito is essentially rice pudding with raisins, pecans and molasses. The combination of the two makes a warm super gooey yet somehow interesting earthy taste.

provided by Allen Chang

Peruano tentempié and postre, gotta try it once!

Mate mate mate de coca

Mate de coca, coca tea, tea of the Andes.

Coca tea is simple. It's leaves of the coca plants in hot water. Locals drink it so often, it's more than Vancouverites drinking coffee.

What's interesting about these little green innocent looking leaves is that it contains alkaloids, which is the source of making cocaine. But don't worry, the leaves contain a very minimal amount of alkaloids so drinking the tea is okay.

Coca tea is the problem solver in the Andes.You have altitude sickness? Drink coca. You got a little headache? Drink coca. You're cold at night? Drink coca. You feeling a bit tired? Drink coca. You're sleepy so you're backing out a party night? DRINK COCA. You feeling hungover? DRINK MORE COCA!

This is the first thing I learnt arriving at Cusco. Step in the hostel, help yourself to the stash of coca leaves, bucket of sugar and unlimited hot water by the courtyard 24-7. I continued doing this 4-6 times a day, when heading out, coming back, and relaxing in the yard. It's a rough drink with a rough taste, but hey, it's the Andes.

San Pedro Market, Cusco

San Pedro Market, backpacker's heaven.
Cusco is a very touristy town, all the restaurants around the plaza is geared towards stripping every penny off the tourists. (well, I'm exaggerating) The point is, where do locals go? SAN PEDRO MARKET (and surrounding area)

San Pedro is THE place to do all your grocery shopping, meals and desserts. Allen (a travel buddy I met in the hostel and will talk more about afterwards) and I went there numerous times to get cheap meals and fruit salads. There are seared fish, grilled beef, chicken soup, yogourt salad with fruits, peruvian sushi etc etc etc. It's by far, the best place to experience traditional Peruvian cuisine at a very reasonable price. My favourite is a big plate of rice, fried potato, fresh salad and a fried egg with spicy sauces at a stunning 5 pesos, which is about $2. If you aren't full by the massive meals, get a massive cup of salad would be around 5 pesos or a classic Peruvian coffee.

Here's a few tip to get around the market,

1. You can bargain everything except the warm food sector. A little Spanish will be an advantage.
2. Take care of your belongings because it gets crowded and thus pickpocketing is not uncommon.
3. Observe, observe! Watch how the locals do it and copy them! It's SO fun!

If you feel ultra adventurous, trek out the market and head opposite direction of the city centre plaza, you'll find open market streets (day and night). You can also purchase grocery and street food here but the hygienics level is probably a notch down. There's also local Peruvian dessert shops, bakeries, ridiculously cheap hamburger shops and the best churros in town. This is where the Peruvian culture hits. 

the lunch crowd in the food sector

meat & cheese section

SPICES, in massive amounts!