Urubamba
Two weekends ago, the director of my volunteer program Gabi (who is also a great friend!) took me with her on a day trip to a city close to Cusco called Urubamba. The town is about an hour or so from Cusco and we went to spend the day with her family and relatives that live there.
After wandering around the town and meandering through various markets, we took a taxi to the place where her family lives. We arrived at a large metal gate and my expectations weren't too high. I had seen many very humble homes and anticipated to find similar living conditions behind the gate. However, I was amazed when we entered into a vast expanse of land filled with beautiful gardens, homes, and other buildings. The property is owned by Gabi's family and many of her relatives live there. It was very interesting to walk along the paths that wind around the gardens because the homes are all constructed in a very interesting manner.
For instance, there was a round house...
A house that appeared to only be the roof and upper section of a cottage...
A pyramid house...
And more!
During our time in Urubamba, Gabi decided that she wanted to make pizza for dinner that evening. We bought the ingredients at the market and went to work making a caprese pizza with fresh basil, tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese. We cooked the pizza in the wood burning oven on the property and it turned out pretty well. Overall it was fun to spend time with Gabi and I really enjoyed visiting her family for the day!
Abancay
For Mother's Day, my host mom wanted to visit her family in the town where she grew up, so we all took a trip to Abancay for the weekend! We arrived at my host mom's father's home in time for lunch on Saturday after picking up my host brother from the airport in Cusco when he arrived to surprise my host mom for Mother's Day!
La Fruta
The home where we stayed was wonderful fun. In the middle of the house there was a garden/patio area that had several fruit trees. We spent time sitting in the shade in the patio enjoying the sun while picking fruit off the trees and eating it just moments after picking it. The fruit was unbelievably delicious and super fresh.
There was one tree that had "tomates del arbol" also known as "tamarillos," in addition to a lime tree, a fig tree, and a "granadilla" tree.
The children loved trying to find the ripe fruits and catch them as they knocked them from the tree. Our favorite fruit to pick and eat was definitely the granadilla. This is a type of fruit that is related to the passionfruit. It has a hard outer shell that can be broken open to reveal a soft white pulp. Inside the white skin are various sweet pockets of juice with little seeds. The seeds are crunchy and can be eaten, much like pomegranate seeds.
Additionally, there was also a plant with blackberries! For me, a huge fruit-lover, this place was paradise! We ate so much fruit on Saturday that I almost didn't want to eat any dinner. It was a wonderful, marvelous day.
After visiting the cemetery, we went to the home of some relatives to eat lunch and enjoy the company. For lunch we had "cuy," which is GUINEA PIG, served with a potato, salad, and pasta. I had tried a little bit of cuy in the first few weeks I was in Cusco, so it wasn't my first time eating it. I was actually somewhat surprised because not only did I not dislike the flavor, I actually enjoyed it! The meat was super tender and tasted a lot like the dark meat from a chicken or turkey. The piece of cuy that I was served was complete with a little paw attached.
After lunch, a few of the gentlemen at the gathering pulled out their instruments and played some music while everyone else danced! I love this aspect of the Peruvian culture. Everyone loves to have fun and dancing is a perfect way to enjoy the afternoon. I am often in awe of how the Peruvians can dance so naturally and with so much fluidity. It seems like the entire culture was born able to dance! I love it!
The children loved trying to find the ripe fruits and catch them as they knocked them from the tree. Our favorite fruit to pick and eat was definitely the granadilla. This is a type of fruit that is related to the passionfruit. It has a hard outer shell that can be broken open to reveal a soft white pulp. Inside the white skin are various sweet pockets of juice with little seeds. The seeds are crunchy and can be eaten, much like pomegranate seeds.
Additionally, there was also a plant with blackberries! For me, a huge fruit-lover, this place was paradise! We ate so much fruit on Saturday that I almost didn't want to eat any dinner. It was a wonderful, marvelous day.
El Puente
Additionally on Saturday, we went on a little outing to visit a beautiful bridge outside of Abancay. The countryside was stunning and it was fun to see a different part of Peru. I went with my whole host family including my host brother, whom I had never met before, and my host grandpa, who is quite the character.
Mother's Day
On Mother's Day we went to church early in the morning and went out for breakfast afterwards. For breakfast we all had "caldo de gallina," a type of soup with hen (not chicken...) rice, vegetables, and potatoes. It was quite tasty! After lunch we visited the cemetery in Abancay to visit my host mom's mother's grave. We brought flowers a spent a little bit of time there before moving on to our next event for the day.
After visiting the cemetery, we went to the home of some relatives to eat lunch and enjoy the company. For lunch we had "cuy," which is GUINEA PIG, served with a potato, salad, and pasta. I had tried a little bit of cuy in the first few weeks I was in Cusco, so it wasn't my first time eating it. I was actually somewhat surprised because not only did I not dislike the flavor, I actually enjoyed it! The meat was super tender and tasted a lot like the dark meat from a chicken or turkey. The piece of cuy that I was served was complete with a little paw attached.
After lunch, a few of the gentlemen at the gathering pulled out their instruments and played some music while everyone else danced! I love this aspect of the Peruvian culture. Everyone loves to have fun and dancing is a perfect way to enjoy the afternoon. I am often in awe of how the Peruvians can dance so naturally and with so much fluidity. It seems like the entire culture was born able to dance! I love it!
"My mouth is filled with your praise, and with your glory all the day."
Psalm 71:8
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