“Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.”
Inhale. Why does it smell like burning rubber? Inhale. Truck’s too close. Inhale.
“Oh wow 80s jams, okaaay!” Exhale.
The smell of fresh sweets and honey from Doña Pepa‘s, latch on to both nostrils as we ride por la avenida principal. As the sun beams onto my face, eyes all squinty, a soft gaze briefly focus’ on traditional architecture buildings painted pastel colors- blue, green, pink.
Inhale. Did that car just merge diagonally?
Inhale. The metro buses are packed like sardines. That’s a lot of people to cross that one street. Does anyone actually follow the lanes out here?
Inhale.
We’re almost there. Exhale.
Loud honks echo through the streets, anxiety rising, as vehicles stop short to inch their way into lanes that were nonexistent. Long vape puffs managed the tension headaches on trips to and from San Martin De Porres y Miraflores. The actual distance between both cities? 45mins. In traffic? One to two hours. There’s always traffic. Instead of reading or getting caught up in the stress of traffic, I got lost in the rhythm of songs.
Ya’ll ever hit a part of your trip when traveling, where things start to click in ways that you haven’t allowed yourself to even reflect upon? That moment when the world feels enormous and you feel like a speck in the universe. Yet somehow, everything you’ve ever wanted seems to reveal itself ever so clearly.
Don’t ask me why but something hit differently, as soon as this song played in the taxi that day.
Part of my journey, has been accepting that this world is bigger than just myself. Learning through life lessons in addition to higher education, I’ve been blessed to be an independent and dynamic thinker. Sprinkled with high levels of emotional awareness and undertones of an empath. Through the years I’ve noticed that literature, always has an interesting way of delivering messages we often need reminders of.
Struggles challenge integrity and resiliency.
Travel, shifts perspective and approach to life.
Growing through lessons, I push myself to be present.
In the moment .
Pushing myself out of my comfort zone.
One of the biggest ways I’ve been able to do so is through food and great company. I’ll travel for 3 reasons- Culture. Art. Nature. Through those experiences I’ve been able to learn so much about myself and try some flavorful cuisines. While I was in Peru I was able to take a journey through traditional Peruvian dishes and popular libations.
The intimacy of interacting with well-known chefs that are crushing their business and nailing flavor combinations, shed an inspirational spotlight on my heart to dream my future awake.
Ceviche. Plato combinado con ceviche mixto, chicharron de pescado, arroz con mariscos y chicha morada. This was such an amazing meal. The simplicity of the menu and the Combinado, special of the day, accompanied with Chicha Morrada, was EVERYTHING. The flavors instantly felt like home*. Seeing a young chef and owner, in his element was so dope! I think about this meal OFTEN and how I wish I could teleport to Lima just to take the walk to this spot in Surquillo !
Duck. Especialidad de pato con batata. Hearing the owner’s story made this meal so much more delicious. Peep this: he started off with owning a coffee shop where all he would sell was coffee. That slowly turned to small plates and over the years he was able to walk away from being an engineer, get his own farm, make dishes he grew up on and always loved. He slowly built a farm to table restaurant that is actively ran by himself and his family, legacy*.
Papa Rellena, stuffed potato. Papa rellena con salsa de aji, encebollado. My Abuelita Blanca has always been known to be an amazing cook. She comes from having traditional Peruvian recipes. Now as she gets well into her 90s, she is unable to cook as much as she used to, but has a good friend that’s an amazing cook and teaches en una escuela de gastronomia. So of course my abuela held us down, walked me through all the truquitos* of a papa rellena. Which in hindsight, I totally should’ve written down! I was in the moment, enamored by the way she spoke so elequontely about the ingredients and Peruvian traditions. Abuelita Blanca held us down with getting some POPPIN’ papa rellenas made.
home*-they say home is where the heart is. I say home is where love welcomes you.
legacy* Cafe Tostado reinforced my belief and importance of leaving behind a legacy. My life’s work to leave a legacy behind for the betterment of my family, my people and the world.
truquitos* literal definition: little tricks. My love for the women I was named after, grows every time I think about her. Her love, her strength, her essence.
Great food and even better company. We’ll get into libations later.
For the last bit of 2018, I spent time in Lima, Peru. En la otra patria.
It all started when we, my brother and I, had the idea of surprising my dad for his birthday along with my grandparents, whom we last visited in 2000! Thanks to my friends, I have developed a knack for pulling off surprises.
Where do we start after 18 years? What kinds of places are safe to visit? Do things still look the same? Would we be those strange Americans abroad? What kinds of things am I seeking? Is this trip really about to change my life? More than anything, I was excited to explore, adventure through the lenses of what I needed to feed my soul, through a place, that felt like home once before.
Let’s begin with how I remembered Lima, Peru the most, traditional.
Life of Season X 