You all know that I’m not one to complain.
I merely observe! Travel is a delight but it comes at a cost because when you travel, in order to visit those exotic places with the fantastic places to see, it means leaving the country.
Leaving the country means exposing yourself to the way people live in other countries, eating food that’s cooked the way they like it and embracing (albeit carefully) their lifestyle. You may be enchanted with the scenery, warmed by the personality of the residents and eager to embrace a foreign lifestyle; still the reality is harder to love. Foreigners don’t season food like home. Foreigners don’t cut meat the same ways. And look out whenever foreigners try to entice with the food from home because you are almost certain to be sorely disappointed.
My wife ordered a club sandwich in Rome which turned out to be three slices of some kind of bread with a gummy filling. That was the last time we trusted a Roman sandwich. I don’t think I will ever order a hamberguesa although yesterday in Peru, we discussed dropping by the local McDonalds. Quelle horror!
Food is our biggest difficulty.
Markets in Peru are super.
We are reluctant to savor the roasted guinea pig (Cuy) which is a Peruvian delicacy. The local corn is starchy and bland to our tastes accustomed as we are to the sweet corn of home. The food we liked best is ceviche which the Peruvians do in style but away from the coast will be limited to trout in most restaurants.
Eating out is relatively easy but since our travel lifestyle involves cooking in our apartment, we are dependent on the local markets for food. The markets in Rome were phenomenal with fresh swordfish and tuna to cook up for dinner. Buenos Aires supermarkets had acceptable meat to cook. Here in Peru, however, we find that the local lifestyle does not provide what we need to cook the food we like. First, the availability of supermarkets is limited. Second, the meat is unfamiliar and unappetising. Third the selection of other goods is limited.
So, the price for travel is some inconvenience. If you can’t embrace the local lifestyle enthusiastically, it means some struggle. We find that we are limited in our ability to compromise and that Peru is at the limit of our ability to cope. Nothing to criticise the Peruvians for. They seem quite happy with their country. It’s up to travelers to deal with difficulties in order to experience Peru.
Travelling is a lifetime experience. It may not be easy to adjust to the new environment we visit but the experience is worth it. – Kris Krohn