Eden and Josh

As far as food and drink goes in Cusco, the only items worth mentioning all begin with the letter "C".

First on the list is CUY. It is served in many restaurants and is also eaten at special times like the Corpus Christi festival and fairs. Cuy is guinea pig!!!! Many families have their own little hutch of guinea pigs, not as pets, of course, but for Sunday dinner! Often walking along the street, restaurants will display their cooked cuy outside. They look like huge leathery rats with their big rodent teeth very prominant and usually a little fur still stuck to the shrivelled ears and a whisker or two. Josh and I have yet to try this "delicacy". Not because we don't want to, but because we don't want to buy the whole rodent which is quite expensive compared to other foods.

Next on the list is CHICHA. Chicha was the drink preferred by the incas. It is a cloudy pinkish liquid made by fermenting corn. Traditionally, someone used to chew up the corn and spit it in a vat to be fermented with occasional heating. Today we were assured that people no longer chew up the corn by mouth. We visited a chicharia however (where they make chicha) and they might as well chew the corn by mouth because the place was so dirty and CRAWLING with guinea pigs everywhere! They burn the guinea pig dung to heat up the chicha. We tried a little chicha so as not to be rude but it was not very good. It just tasted like sour corn. There is a tamer version of chicha though which is much more delicious. It is called chicha morada and is made with purple corn and spices. It tastes kind of like cider with a popcorn aftertaste.

The other "C" food that we encounter daily is CHICHARRON. Chicharron is hunks of pork, usually on a bone, that is deep fried in oil. It is then left to sit in a pan where cups of oil are poured over it periodically. The worst part of chicharron is the smell and that it seems to be a breakfast food. Early in the morning, when we would be heading to our Spanish classes, we would have to pass tons of restaurants selling chicharron and the smell was so pungent that we would have to try very hard not to be sick.

Another common item here is COCA. Coca leaves, also used to make cocaine, are used very commonly for tea, and chewing. The coca leaf does not have the effects of processed cocaine, but they are used to help prevent altitude sickness, increase energy and supress appetite. The coca leaves were very important to the incas and were used for many reigious ceremonies and sacrifices. Coca tea does not have a very strong taste and it is quite pleasant. Coca is also used in candies, cookies for some beers and soups.