Glossary

Glossary:

Altiplano: High plateau of the Andes at an altitude of about 4000 m.a.s.l. reaching from southern Peru over Bolivia to northern Chile
Arequipa: Provincial capital in the South Peruvian Andes. Second most important town of the country
asado: BBQ
Araucanía: The province of Chile in which Pucón is located
Ceviche: Kind of salad of marinated, raw fish or seafood
Cevicheria: Restaurant specialized in Ceviche
Chicha: maize beer
Chiriuchu: Typical plate served for Corpus Christi in Cusco
Chuño: Dehydrated potatoes
Combi: Minibuses, public transport in Arequipa
Cayma: District of Arequipa
Inca: a.) Precolumbian people in the Peruvian Andes, b.) The leader of the Inca nation
Machu Picchu: Quechua for "old mountain", a.) a mountain in the Cusco area, b.) the village close to the ruins of the same name, c.) the archaeological excavation of the ancient Inca settlement
Malbec: Red Wine, typical for Argentina
Mapuche: Native people of southern Chile
Nuevo Sol: Currency of Peru, S/. 1 = 0,33 €
Pablo Neruda: Chilean poet and winner of the Nobel Prize
Pisco: Destillate of grapes, Peruvian and Chilean national drink
Plaza de Armas: Generally the name of the main square of Latin american towns
Quechua: Spanish term for the language of the Incas
Santiago (de Chile): capital of Chile
Sillar: white, volcanic rock of which the old town of Arequipa is mainly constructed
Temuco: capital of the Araucanía
Valparaiso: Port town and UNESCO World Heritage Site
Yanahuara: District of Arequipa

Monday 13 May 2013

A big Party and Some Funny Facts

One of the last weekends I had been to a good party with my colleagues. It took place in a huge bamboo covered hall which housed various restaurants and bars the funniest of which was called "Mister Fish - Cevicheria, Bar & lo que quieres que sea" (Mister Fish - Cevicheria, Bar & whatever you want it to be). Outside there was a big grassy terrace which of you had a wonderful view over nocturnal Arequipa. Inside in the center of the hall was a kind of stage where first really cool skate, BMX and slackline performances took place. Later on that was the huge dancefloor where the whole crowd danced to the tunes of a good local live band followed by an awesome DJ-team which rocked the place until early morning. It was a great night out including everything you could wish: a fascinating location, action, big tunes, cheap drinks and an incredible number of beautiful girls as almost everywhere here. Once more I came back home to the hostel at dawn.
When not partying I am still on the river either working or for example moving some rocks which had been lying in the line of a tricky rapid as we did last week. And I am still wondering and keep on smiling about Peruvian idiosyncrasies. For example Peruvians have a weakness for fireworks. You can see and hear them daily somewhere over the town. Seems like locals are celebrating almost everything with fireworks and various times I have seen big bamboo constructions assembled with fire works waiting to be sparked on a public square or in a backyard.
Female Peruvians are definitely keen on nail polish. Before coming here I did not know in which variety of colours nail varnishes do exist. And normally it doesn´t remain with just one colour. You see purple hearts on red nails, yellow cats on green ones, black flashes on blue ones and so on. Even elderly women with colourful painted nails are a common sight.
The garbage collection truck drives around town playing loud music or announcing garbage collecting tips over speakers. So everybody knows when to put out the rubbish bags on the street to be collected and indeed when the car is coming all doors open and people deliver their waste to the garbage truck.The range of music played varies from Peruvian classics like "El Condor Pasa" to Mozart.
Sometimes I pass by small shops which sell mostly kitschy things of Chinese origin - all for just one Nuevo Sol. For some reason all these shops are promoted by a kind of mountebank. A man who in florid phrases loudly announces to the public via a microphone which sensational products they offer. Considering the real value, usefulness and quality of the offered products an almost surreal kind of publicity that always makes me smile.
So daily there are still new things to discover and wonder about which doesn´t ever let the place become boring.

No comments:

Post a Comment