Spicy

A good Thai curry is pretty hard to come by in South America (although on occasion, it can be found), so I've been suffering some serious Thai withdrawal. That's why tonight, for dinner in the city where any and every cuisine is available 24/7, I couldn't help but go for Thai. Went to a little joint up near the bottom of Central Park, on 9^th Ave, and got some great chicken and stir-fried vegies, in a spicy coconut-milk soup. I'll save the Indian for when I get to London. And I'll save more Thai for... well, for Thailand!

An American guy showed Tony and I a great little restaurant tonight. It's in the middle of Quito's overpriced, tourist-infested Mariscal Sucre district; and yet it's full of locals, and there are only two things on the menu: shawarmas, and beer! Only $1 each, respectively. The shawarmas taste great (be sure to smother them in the provided chili sauce), and they're best eaten on a 1-1 ratio with the large-size Pilsener beers. Relish the chow, get a bit drunk, and enjoy the local company. Nargila pipes (known as pipas around here) also available, if you're into 'em.

Last time that I tried Peru's famous ceviche (raw fish / raw seafood) cuisine, I wasn't too hot on it. But clearly, I just didn't go to the right place for it. Punto Azul, a restaurant in Miraflores, does some amazing ceviche. Went there for lunch today, in a big group, and we had one hell of a feed. Had some of the traditional ceviche dishes (i.e. fish and seafood soaked in lemon juice), as well as some with a more spicy sauce, and some that came in a big risotto. I'm totally converted.

Delicious, vegetarian dish of beans and potatoes, simmered in a spicy sauce of chili, egg, milk, and onion, and served with rice. This afternoon, for my final cooking lesson with Amigos, our amazing chef Ricardo (of tiradito de pescado and causa rellena fame) showed us how to cook up some kapchi de habas, another spicy dish local to the Cusco area. A great final addition to my Andean cooking repertoire, and another one that I'll have to make again sometime!

A gourmet dish of spicy mashed potatoes and shredded chicken, garnished with egg and vegetables, causa rellena makes for a great meal or afternoon snack. This afternoon, for my third weekly cooking lesson at Amigos, the acclaimed chef Ricardo (of tiradito de pescado fame) showed a small group of us how to prepare causa rellena. He did most of the cooking, we did most of the eating. Here's how you do it.

After the success of making lomo saltado in last Thursday's cooking class, I decided to come back for more this week. Tiradito de pescado is a delicious dish of raw fish, served cold with a chili and lemon paste sauce, and with sweet potato and corn. This week, not only did we have this gourmet cuisine to prepare; we also had a professional chef instructing us, a bigger kitchen to work with (Jesus's kitchen), and a bigger class. ¡Perfecto y muy Rico!

At the corrida in Santa Elena, they were selling fresh mango slices in a cup. When I bought myself some, the lady asked if I wanted some chili on it. Chili mango? Ah, what the hell, I thought, and I tried it. Ugh! Not my cup of chili.

The 5 Uxmal road trippers stopped in Santa Elena to grab a nice, cheap, Mexican lunch. Our first try was an over-priced restaurant in the middle of town. But after a bit more in-depth searching, we managed to find a family-home-slash-little-restaurant joint that opened up especially for us, and that treated us to a massive taco feast for a very reasonable price.

I had about an hour to spare for dinner while I was in the city of Villahermosa, in between bus trips. So I went across the road from the bus terminal, to grab a taco. The way the local kids there greeted me, you'd think I was a movie star or something! I guess they don't see many tourists round here. They all wanted to sit and chat while I ate my tacos, and then they all wanted a photo with me.

Mauricio and Lachlan took Steve and myself out for lunch, to have some moles. The moles themselves weren't that spicy, but they came with something on the side that was, as Lachlan said, "bloody radioactive". It was some kind of chili, and although it looked like grated carrot, it felt like a weapon of mass destruction inside my mouth.