Peru

My first backpacking trip to Peru was when I was 20 years old and an idealistic vegetarian on a $20 per day budget. That’s $20 per day for everything – transportation, hostel, sightseeing entrances, and food. Being a vegetarian anywhere is South America is a challenge but particularly when you are on a super tight budget. This all being said, my first introduction to Peruvian cuisine was very lack-luster and involved mostly potatoes (of which there are some 4000 varieties), avocados, quinoa (ancient protein-rich super grain), corn, and runny eggs. Needless to say I did not return home after my first foray to South America and rave about Peruvian cuisine (though I did rave about almost everything else). Oh how times have changed. I am no longer a vegetarian. I do not travel on a $20 per day budget. I have been to Peru at least a dozen times. I love Peruvian cuisine. Over the past decade and a half my love affair with Peruvian cuisine has become very potent but apparently, I am not the only one. Peruvian cuisine has recently received an immense amount of attention in the culinary world and is becoming increasingly popular worldwide. Modern day Peruvian cuisine is a melting pot indigenous dishes combined with nearly 500 years of Spanish and more recently African, Japanese, Chinese, and Italian influence. Peruvian cuisine is varied in colour and texture, extremely fresh, and mildly spicy. From the seafood-rich Pacific, to the fertile Andes where potatoes, corn and tomatoes… Read More »TOP 5 PERUVIAN DISHES

As a professional gypsy, I am very fortunate to have had the opportunity to travel to some of the most amazing places on earth. I have been affected by all of the places that I’ve visited but am very aware that not all destinations are created equal and everyone’s personal experiences in those places are different. For me, there are those places on this planet that cause my heart to flutter and face to beam every time their names are mentioned. I light up when someone asks me about them and a sense of euphoria overwhelms me when I begin to talk about them.  Rapa Nui, Iguazu Falls, Torres del Paine, El Camino de Santiago, Ngorongoro Crater, and the Salar de Uyuni are a few of those places that make my heart skip a beat. The one place above all that has this euphoric effect on me is Machu Picchu. Machu Picchu is one of the most mind-blowingly beautiful places that I have ever seen. Of course there are older and more important archaeological sites in the world, but few of them have a location as stunning as Machu Picchu. The Inca were not only ingenious architects but they knew it was all about location, location, location. They could appreciate a room with a view in the 14th century. Located high above the lush Urubamba Valley, the stone buildings hug the mountain and the terraces cascade down the steep-sided slopes into the dense vegetation. There is no question that this… Read More »HEART FLUTTERS AT MACHU PICCHU

The jewel of South America, Peru will send your camera into overdrive with its jaw-dropping terrain, colourful markets, white-washed cities, forgotten temples entangled in jungle vines, and massive archaeological complexes. The ancient citadel of Machu Picchu is one of the New Seven Wonders of the world…click through the Finisterra Peru Photo Blog below to find out why!