Today I felt a little bit better, so I went to work in Occoruro. I only sewed curtains today, since I didn’t want to take a chance and do too much while I was still a little sick. After work I came back home and ate one of my favorite meals thus far in Peru. Margarita had prepared lentils with chicharrones for us. I really liked the flavor of the dish, and the two ingredients really meshed well together.
This afternoon, after Spanish class, I talked with Luis for a long time about different foods that he likes. We talked about some of the native fruits in Peru, all of which I took note of. Before I leave, I would like to try all of them, if possible. Today I tried lucuma and maracuya. Lucuma is a fruit that is different from others, since it is dry on the inside. It has a soft green skin, kind of like a mango, and a paste-like orange interior. I thought it had a really interesting taste, and Luis told me that people often use it to make milkshakes. Maracuya is the Spanish word for passion fruit, which I have had before. It was just as good as I remembered it, with its tart flavor and yellowish green pulp.
I then told Luis about some of the cool foods from Oregon. Something that I found really interesting was that blackberries are really hard to find in Peru. Luis has had one before, but almost no one else in his family has. I promised him that I would do my best to send over a jar of blackberry preserves through the mail.
At night, we watched the NBA Finals as a family, which I really enjoyed. I feel that doing things as a family, no matter what they are, have really helped me in my immersion into the Peruvian culture. These events have also helped me to connect with my host family. I definitely want to continue these kinds of things, and with some of the biggest festivals in the Cusco area coming up, I’m sure I will have many more of these opportunities.
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