FSU Football

Not much new happening in Peru right now so let’s talk football. My very computer savvy brother-in-law, Greg, helped me find some websites to watch any football game live on the internet. Unfortunately, my connection is not the best so I am stuck watching the play-by-play as it is typed on FoxSports.com. That is okay though because at least it is something. As many of you know I am a Florida State fan and I must say I am a little disappointed so far. I knew there was not a great deal of hope for this season but after the big win over BYU I think we all were getting a little excited. And then the USF game happened. Even though I am a USF alumni and I should be very happy right now I was pulling for FSU because that is where football started for me. As far back as I can remember my Aunt Andy, Uncle Dean and Cousin Adam would drive up to Tallahassee late Friday night in order to go to the football game on Saturday. We usually greeted them, unless Karen and I were sleeping, and then off to bed to get rested for the big game on Saturday. Adam, Karen and I would then wake up early Saturday and get to work right away. Instead of watching Saturday morning cartoons we had our work cut out for us. We would rake all of the pine needles in the front yard and use them to spell out encouraging phrases for our favorite team. I do not remember exactly how they went but things like “Go Noles” or “Beat the Canes”. After the work was done we would clean up and off to the game. We always left early so we would have time to play a few downs on the practice field outside the stadium, we had to warm up just like the players. Then our parents would walk us to our seats. That is right, we had our own seats and we did not have to sit with the grownups, we felt so mature. After a long game of screaming for our Noles the game would usually end in a victory and then we would wait. This was one of the most important times of the game because something exciting was about to happen. All of the fans were clearing out and the people who collect the cups were starting to collect but we were all just waiting. Finally the time was right, the Police Officers were finally off the field and we were off to the races. It is our time now to show our stuff. We had our warm up on the practice field before the game and now it is time for the real thing. Uncle Dean would take the ball to play quarterback and we each took turns catching touchdown passes, spiking the ball and doing our victory dances in the in zone. We were playing on the same field where Deion Sanders just made an amazing tackle and Sammie Smith just ran for a 50 yard touchdown. This is where football began for me and I will never forget all of these great childhood memories of FSU football. Go Noles!

Peruvian Food

As most of you know, I visited Peru a couple of times before we decided to move down here. In that time I tried a ton of different Peruvian dishes and most were good but none were excellent. This was disappointing because I had always heard that Peruvian cuisine was some of the best in the world. It was not until we moved here that I realized this fact. I do not know if my taste bud had to adjust to the spices or what but I am really enjoying the food now. I know I have also told some stories about some of the “strange” dishes here and I am afraid I might have scared some people away from trying this wonderful food. For starters Chorizo is a type of sausage that is best grilled and eaten on a bread roll with aji de casa (a type of yellow jalapeno sauce). Another great dish is lomo saltado which is sliced beef cooked with onions and served over french fries.
The most famous dish is ceviche which is pieces of fish cooked by marinating it in lemon juice and served cold with sliced onions. I know this sounds a little out there but it is an excellent dish on a summer afternoon.

And finally one of my many favorites is papa a la huancaina. This is boiled potatoes covered in a yellow sauce that has just a hint of spice, but not too much.

These are just a couple of the over 400 dishes that Peru has to offer, some are a little strange but most all of the ones I have tried are fantastic. Now I know why Johanna missed the food some much. For those of you living in Tampa, and your mouths are watering, there is a great Peruvian restaurant called Terra Sur Café.

Our Family Visit

Mom and Karen on the flight down.

Me with my mom's in downtown Lima.

Me with my mom and Karen at Larcomar overlooking Costa Verde.

Johanna, Karen and I overlooking Costa Verde.

Us on a night time bus tour, it was quite cold.

Well my mom and sister Karen came down to visit for a week and left on Monday. They brought down a care package of things we asked for and also some surprises like candy bars and gum. Johanna's mom and dad were very helpful with carting us all around and making sure we did not get lost, we could not have done it with out them. We toured around Lima and I think we saw everything and a little more. It was great to have them visit but it was hard to let them go. When we said good bye in Tampa back in February, it was hard but I was very excited about moving so I dealt with saying good bye pretty well. This time that excitement was gone so it was a lot harder. We watched as they walked down the hall and out of sight. It was very sad but it was sure nice to see them.

Washer and Dryer

Our washer and dryer in the new place are better in some ways but lacking in others. As you can see in this picture our dryer is enormous so it can handle a lot of cloths. Look at the size of that thing; you are looking at 7 lines. The position of the dryer (on the roof top) also helps because the cloths dry a lot faster.



The down side to the new place it the washing machine. Our old place had a very large and deep washer but you can see the new one is the exact same size and looks exactly like our small kitchen sink. This makes it a little time consuming but I am perfecting my system and getting a lot more efficient.

The agitator (my hand) is the same and the spin cycle on this washer uses two agitators (both of my hands) in almost a twisting motion. It is a little inefficient and tiresome but it works. As for the detergent you can see that bar of soap in the agitator, which is called “Popeye” soap. I think the reason is because my forearms are starting to look like Popeye’s from scrubbing, sloshing, and ringing all of these damn cloths. I do not know if you picked up on this but I, that’s right I am the washer and dryer.

Our New Place

We recently moved into a new apartment a little closer to Johanna’s parents home. Our old place was nice but our landlord was crazy as a loon and we got a little tired of her shenanigans. Johanna, her mother and I went out one day with the goal of finding an apartment and we knew it was going to be a little difficult because they rent very fast right now. We called the first place on the list and got directions and we were off. We arrived about time minutes later and the apartment was already rented. I said they go fast and they do. So we called the next place and it was close so this time we literally ran, Johanna and her mom took off while I lagged behind. We were running down a street with a lot of people and stores and of course when they flew by everyone was looking. I did not realize but they were also looking at me running after them and I think they thought I was chasing them because I got a few strange looks. Anyway, we arrived and the apartment was on the 5th floor, I counted 56 steps. We finally reached the summit and the place was great except it was on the 5th floor. While we were deciding what to do the door bell rang and it was another couple apartment hunting. Time was running out, we “weighed” our options, basically we were unsure about all of the stairs but we knew we both could use the exercise, so we took it. Moving was a pain but Johanna’s parents helped us a lot and it made it a lot easier. I want to invite them over for dinner sometime but I think I will let them rest for a couple of weeks before they have to make the climb again. Mom and Karen when you come down be sure to bring your walking shoes for Lima and your hiking boots for home.

Johanna is going to kill me when she sees I did not clean up before I took these pictures.

Seven more stairs up to the bedroom but look we finally have a couch.

Peru Winter Clarification

A little clarification about the wet Peruvian winters. As I said earlier it does not rain so how are the winters wet? It is extremely humid. There are no drops of water falling from the sky but this incredible mist that keeps you damp when you walk down the sidewalk. Some days this mist is heavier than others but no matter what the air is still humid therefore it takes forever to dry cloths. I still stand by my post about the hugh storm not too long ago because I still have not seen such a heavy rain since. I wish I could put it into words but it was too extraordinary to describe. You will just have to trust that it was an amazing sight.

Peru Winter

Here in Peru the winters are very wet and the sun rarely comes out. Most people do not like this grey climate because it can be a little depressing but I am enjoying it especially since I know it is almost 100 degrees in Florida right now. Another drawback to the wet winter is that the cloths take 3 days to dry (we do not have a dryer). I am sure those of you who have every had to line dry cloths knows that after 3 days cloths start to sour so we have been using a fan to try to speed up the process. Well today is Sunday and we woke up to beautiful weather, the sun is shining and it is about 70 degrees. We both have the whole day off so what should we do first? The only thing I can think of is getting the laundry done. It is only going to take one day to dry this stuff so let’s do it all today. It is amazing how your priorities change.