San Juan and Rio Selva

June 30, 2010


Well these past few days I have been working to finish my class, finally finished…woo hoo!!! And Mariel and I have been looking around for some possible jobs for me here. I have had some interest, and it looks like I might even find something else to do here besides eat, sleep, and celebrate.

Speaking of celebrating, on June 23 Bolivia celebrated San Juan. It’s supposedly the coldest night of the year, and it was pretty cold, but I believe this is a religious celebration that coincides with a more pagan tradition of the winter solstice. In the past it is celebrated with fires all over the streets and people cooking hot dogs and marshmallows, fireworks, dancing and music through the night, and drinking a punch called Sucumbé (it’s made of milk and Singani, with some cloves and cinnamon and sugar….it’s scrumptious). I was told that usually the day after San Juan, one can hardly see the mountain skyline of La Paz. I believe Alberto refers to this holiday as the National Day of Contamination. However as time passes there are some laws in place forbidding the fires and the fireworks, yet there still seemed to be plenty. And the next day it was indeed pretty smoggy, but I hear it’s much better than it used to be.

We were invited by Mariel’s Aunt Lula and Uncle Pitty to celebrate with a BBQ at their house.

Here is Uncle Pitty cooking the delicious BBQ!








Here we are enjoying some Sucumbé and waiting for the BBQ.


Interesting difference from the States: It takes a lot longer here to build a fire because of the lack of oxygen, and each BBQ pit has a special tool for blowing on the coals. It was a wonderful time and the BBQ was delicious.
Mariel and I bought some sparklers to add to the festivities.





Then, finally, Mariel’s vacation time came around. Percy and Alejandra (Mariel’s brother and sister-in-law) Mariel and I went to the Jungle.


Alejandra and Percy


Ok, so it was not the machete hacking jungle that first popped into my head, but a nice resort called Rio Selva….and it is in the middle of nowhere! I have no idea how Percy was able to find it…off the beaten path doesn’t even begin to describe it. But it was beautiful! That doesn’t really describe it either. The drive there was incredible. We left in the evening and drove up, up, up to Alto Plano. Before it got dark on us I was able to see the landscape change from jagged, rocky cliffs to rounder, smoother grasslands. Then we went down, down, down, into the darkness. The drive there is not so long, but it is curvy and bouncy, and the Death Road took its toll on Mariel…we were almost at the resort when we had to pull over…and well, you know…. Backseats and death roads don’t agree with her. But she rallied and we made it there without any further incidents. I was able to see some patches of growing things, but the sudden and dramatic change in landscape was fascinating. Basically we drove north east of La Paz…a two hour drive of mostly straight up and then down. When we arrived it was dark, but I could sense the change in temperature and could tell there were a lot plants and things. The next morning was the real shocker. I found we were in a small river, valley surrounded by gigantic green mountains; their tops were shrouded in morning fog. It is so different from the barren landscape of La Paz I could have sworn we had traveled for days. I could hear exotic bird calls and actually sweat for the first time since being here.





Our room was there on the right overlooking the river.



The resort was like a dream kind of place, and the fresh juice that was available just about everywhere was beyond description, nectar of the gods! But it was still the jungle…it was wonderfully hot and humid. There are fruit trees and flowers and other tropical plants everywhere. It was amazing.







Oh, and there were mosquitoes…stealthy little buggers. I was on the lookout for them, but I never saw one, and even though I applied OFF liberally, I am a bit itchy even as I write this…no, no, just kidding. It’s not that bad. But I would say they are fierce enough to be Bolivia’s national air force, but hey, it’s the jungle.

On our second day there we went to the small village of Coroico (Corrr oyi coo) (something like that)…say that five times fast…or even one time slow for that matter. But it is a beautiful little town perched way up on a mountain top.





Corico up on the mountain.



According to Uncle Pitty, they town in this area are all perched on mountain tops to avoid the bugs and the heat. But my first reaction was that the town looked like a movie set. And now, I really stand out in La Paz as a gringo, but here, we all stood out. It’s mostly an afro-bolivian community mixed with some Aymara now, probably half and half.



There were a quite a few tourists here, and we even had a dinner at a German restaurant. I had the sausage! The drive up took us on part of what used to be the death road (sorry Mom), but that description is really not even close to how the road is now. They fixed it, sort of…it’s plenty wide and safe, just really bumpy and dusty…and the views can give you vertigo. But it is spectacular. We walked around the steep, cobblestone streets and enjoyed the captivating scenery. Every direction I looked took my breath.







We passed some Coca fields on the way to Coroico. Hard to see but they are the small patches you see on the hills. How they farm the sides of these mountains I have no idea.

Overall, it was a wonderful weekend we spent lounging in the sun, and yes, eating lots of wonderful food, and drinking fresh juice whenever we were thirsty. It was a great, marvelous time. Thanks so much Alejandra and Percy for arranging the trip.


So, overall it was another amazing time. Next, we are off to Peru and the town of Cuzco…and to visit the ruins of Machu Picchu. We are pretty excited. So check back again. And check out Facebook for more pictures if you are interested.


http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/joseph.gardner1









Chau!

New Tastes, New Craves

June 21, 2010

So, this week I’ve decided to dedicate the blog to the delicious food I’ve had since being here. This is in response to all the comments I’ve gotten about doing nothing but eating and drinking…and to a large extent that’s true! LOL….They say one of the best ways to learn a culture is to try the food. Well let me tell you something..... Sure every morning I enjoy a late breakfast including a bowl of fresh fruit and some excellent Marraquetas bread, also including some kind of fresh-squeezed juice, orange, pineapple, Mocochinchi (dried-peach), but I’ve a done some other things too…

However as both Mariel and I have been sick this week and not done anything much more exciting than watch Indiana Jones films, (which I find very exciting, and can you believe she hasn’t seen them????) so with a big thanks to Mariel for planning out a large menu of exciting new dishes for me to try, here is the food blog:

Now, keep in mind lunch is the big meal here, usually around 1:00pm, and that’s what you’ll see here in the pics. These pictures are sort of taken out of order, but I am making it a point to try everything. And believe it or not I haven’t had anything yet that I haven’t thoroughly enjoyed.

Muchas, muchas gracias to Mariel, her mom, Wecky and Veronica for taking the time and extreme effort in making some of these local and mostly-local dishes.

Wecky and Veronica making some Canelones for Mariel's Birthday Lunch.

The final product...is that the Italian Flag?

Here's a picture of Paneton. It's a Christmas Cake, but Mariel was craving it for her birthday, so Wecky made five of them! They disappeared in one week...and it's not all my fault.

This one was # 3 I think.

Speaking of Italian food, here is the homade pizza we had just today! mmmmmmmm

Pizza-Celia: Hawaiian, Italian sausage, Anchovi and vegies.

Even the basic chicken soup was spectacular and it’s not even pictured here, and let’s not forget the scrumptious apple cake Wecky made that got eaten before we could get a picture of it.


Now for the more Boliviano traditional, here is a picture of Plato Paceño. Paceño is a word for a person from La Paz.

This is Choclo (corn), Papa k'ati (small potatoes), Haba a kind of big Lima bean, and Queso Frito (Fried Cheese). Of course this is eaten, like most meals, with Llajwa, (hot sauce).


Delicioso


This is another typical plate of La Paz called Chairo. Soup with lots of vegies and spices, three kinds of potatoes (papa, chuño, tunta), and lamb.

Notice the Llajwa in the bowl and the Marraquetas bread that goes with EVERYTHING!

And this is Silpancho, I hear it's Barbara's favorite.

Beef with fried egg, onions, tomatos and rice. It's a plate from Cochabamba.

Followed by Pastel de Quinua

This is made from cheese and Quinua, a seed, a natural product of Altiplano cultivated by the Incas.

And this is Ñoquis...hand rolled/mashed potatoe served with a meat sauce.

Ñoquis

This is Papas a la Huancaina. It's a Bolivian/Peruvian plate made of potatoes covered with a peanut sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, boiled eggs, cheese and olives.

And that brings us to my favorite: Pique Macho!!!!

A typical plate from Cochabamba, made with beef strips, french fries, onions, green pepers, boiled eggs, and sometimes hot-dogs...not this time, and depending on how MACHO you are you eat it with Locoto or chilies, or with Llajwa. Actually, it's hard to pick a favorite after trying everything. Salteñas are top of the list as well.


I'm Macho!!



And for the first time in over three weeks...some fast food: Pollo Copacabana. This a place that serves some excellent Fried Chicken. It's one of Mariel's favorite places to eat Chatarra (junk food). She says it's the best Fried Chicken in the World.



It was finger licking....shhhhh

So, how 'bout all that! If you want recipies, you'll have to get in touch with Mariel.

It hasn't all been food, but these are some of the highlights. Thanks for checking in. Next week, Mariel gets vacation time, and we are planning on doing some traveling. We are feeling a lot better and Mariel has even got her voice back now, so keep an eye out for some more adventures!

Chau!

Later still

Well, this week was tied up with too much class work. I also started taking some Spanish classes. My teacher, Alan, comes by and works with me for a couple of hours each day. But that’s not to say we didn’t have any fun!

Mariel and I hosted a small gathering of friends…I’m still in the process of meeting her friends.

Waiting for the guests to arrive


But we had a good time enjoying some wine and cheese…and we would have had some sausages but unfortunately we forgot in all the excitement to check the stove…and well…you know how cooking sausage at the best of times causes the whole house to smell like sausage? Well, when you burn sausage the effect is much more dramatic and long lasting…anyhow…Mel got some good treats that day, and we fumigated the Luza’s house thoroughly. But there was still plenty to be had, and the wine from Argentina, Chille, and Bolivia was more than satisfying.



Afterwards, Mariel, Susana, and I went out to one of the more colorful areas of town and hit what Mariel called “The Fake Hard Rock Café.” It was pretty exciting and the music was great. In this part of town are a lot of Gringos, and I made one more. It is a fairly touristy place and for a minute I thought I was finally understanding a lot of Spanish until I realized it was just more people speaking English. We moved from there to another cool, touristy place called Mongos. It was here I probably should have stopped with the drinking, but what was one more Fernet?


The next morning I realized that perhaps I should have stopped with the wine…live and learn. With a little rest and some more great food, Pique Macho this time, I was almost human again. More on the Pique Macho and Fernet to come, I’m working on a food blog next!
That night we went out to a new place with some more of Mariel’s friends; basically we just kept celebrating Mariel’s birthday. After starting at Bar Bar Ohs…a cool little bar…we moved on to some dancing, and the next thing I knew it was 4:00 in the morning. The party really does start late here and end early…I wonder if perhaps I am too old for La Paz! But it was a lot of fun.


.....and I would want to leave why?




Then on Sunday we had a lunch at a Chinese restaurant with some very close friends/family. Sr. Roberto and his wife Sonia and thier children Monica, Roberto, and Cynthia were kind enough to treat Mariel and me as a further extension of our engagement party. We had a great time and, of course, the food was incredible. After lunch, dessert and tea at their home. I was a bit overwhelemed by the very generous welcome to the family. They are very warm and friendly, and it makes me realize again how lucky I am to be joining such a great family.

Food, Family, Fun


And after that we met up with Tetsuro. Tetsuro is another student from the ELTI at UNCC. He is taking some time to travel around South America, and we met him downtown at his Hostel and we went for a scenic drive around the city and a coffee and dinner. Tetsuro is from Japan…congrats btw Japan on the game today…and Tetsuro is having a real adventure. He relayed some of his stories about Peru. It was really interesting to get his perspective. He’s a brave one. Next month Mariel and I will be seeing some of the same places he just visited, and it made me excited all over again. So, as soon as I am finished with this class and as soon as Mariel gets some vacation time…we are in for some fun traveling.





So, good luck Tetsuro with the rest of your trip, and I’ll see you back in Charlotte where we can exchange stories. Keep an eye out for the food blog coming.

There are some extra pics on the Facebook page if you are interested.


Chau!

Fiesta de Compromiso

Well this past week went by really fast! And although Facebook is being a pain with the photo uploads, I will post more pics there. I thought the previous week would be hard to top, but we managed. We took a bus tour of the city. There was a bit of a mix-up as we were supposed to tour the northern part of the city, but the tour guides gave Mariel the wrong information and we found ourselves touring the southern part of the city….where Mariel lives…it was unfortunate, but still it was very interesting. It was a beautiful, sunny day. My advice when you come here is to take a tip from the locals and WEAR A HAT! The tour, although familiar in aspects of terrain, was still very interesting. I was able to learn a lot of history of the city…for example: Once there was a president for only 6 hours, one president gave away a large portion of valuable coast land in trade for a horse! Now, I love horses, but this must have been some grand animal! I also learned a bit about the Cholo society. When you think about Bolivia, what may come to mind are images of the Cholo women or the “Bolivian Indian,” although I don’t believe they like that characterization. The characteristic dress was imposed on them by the Spanish King way back in the 18th century. You can see several images in the photos of Gran Poder. The dresses are usually very colorful and have several layers causing them to poof out. Usually the women wear a shaw, or a llijlla, around the neck that serves also as a pocket, a giant pocket that can carry most anything from a baby to home supplies. The characteristic hat worn by the Aymara women are what I find most distinct. How do they stay on? According to the tour guide, an English manufacturer ordered too many of the hats and convinced the Aymara women they were the height of fashion in the 19th century. According to tradition, the unmarried woman will tilt the hat to the side, while a married woman will wear it straight.
We stopped for a few minutes at Moon Valley, but more to come on that later as Mariel has planned a trip for us there this week, a geographically fascinating place.









But better still…when we returned home Mariel’s brother, Percy, was cooking some BBQ….oh, yes, more good food. We were able to enjoy the rest of the beautiful day drinking Chuflays and eating some of the best BBQ I have ever had. I couldn’t stop even when I wasn’t hungry anymore.












Percy's Excellent BBQ!



We also played Sapo; it’s a game where you have toss coins into a Sapo box….there is a frog in the center, and if you get it in the frog’s mouth it’s like 5000 points. It’s kind of like a sophisticated horse-shoe game.


The Sapo Champs!

I’m happy to report that the team of Wecky, Mariel, and Joe…after a long and ferocious Sapo battle came out the champions. After all that fun there wasn’t much left to do but sleep.



It was a fun afternoon.

The next day one of Mariel’s friends, Marah, had a birthday, and we went to a disco….and what a disco! It was a blast. And of course we went VIP….special seating, special drinks, and loads of fun. Check Facebook for more exciting pics....

Yes, I actually get to hang out with these gorgeous women. Only in Bolivia! Viva La Paz!

The next day was our engagement party. Mariel and her mother and Veronica worked very hard to get the house ready for extended family and close friends. I admit I was pretty nervous meeting everyone, but as usual there was no reason to be. They were all very friendly and funny and welcomed me to family in a most gracious and genial way. It was great. I encourage you to see the Facebook pics that finally loaded, well most of them anyhow, and see the food and family. It was a very good time.

It was a great time and the food...well...how many times can I say awesome before they don't allow me to blog anymore?


So, after a full week in Bolivia here are some things I’ve noted:

1. The Coriolis Effect does not apply to small bodies of water…I was interested to see the water going down the drain opposite to what I am used too.
2. I actually feel tall for a change
3. Breathing is not so hard if you take your time and don’t run up steps. You should run only when crossing the road.
4. The idea of personal space is much smaller here.
5. I’m still not ready to try driving…but maybe soon.
6. Public bathrooms are wherever you need them to be…a point that Mariel does not like, but I just find interesting.
7. Power lines resemble the back of our family Christmas tree in the 70s. Lots of wires….I mean LOTS.
8. I once thought houses deep in Appalachia were precariously perched on Mountains, but they have nothing on the gravity defying houses here.
9. The party starts late and ends early
10. This place is cool

I guess I should shut up now….my Spanish teacher is coming and I better get ready.

Chau for now