Granja Porcon

All is well down south! My cold has subsided and the morning has been
good. We decided to go to Granja Porcon on saturay morning. Granja (meaning farm) Porcon is an evangelicist community about an hour away that makes their own cheese
and artesan products. We went in taxi and it was quite amusing, seeing
as some of the roads were under construction, so at one point it turns
into a one way road with dirt piled high on either side and the road
curves around a corner, and there are no men with reflector vests and
walkie talkies to tell you when to go. So, you just go and hope, our
first attempt we got about two thirds through before coming about a
foot and a hlaf away from a head on with a semi truck who through a
series of hand gestures refused to back up. so we did for about a
quarter mile. Our second way through, we came on to a car and this
time refused to back up, and they had to do the reversing. The entire
way there are signs along the road with bible verses, and all the
buildings in the center are covered with them as well. We staid in a
little house, and we were the only ones there, so we had the entire
house to ourselves complete with a stocked fireplace. The weather was
amazing, we went and waded in the river, crossed a hanging bridge,
walked through a pine forest to a little waterfall, and passed by the
zoo they have there. The menu there is trout, trout, and more trout
cooked in various forms, because they raise it there domestically. A
classic example of the way peruvian restaurants function is my order
"Ill have chicharron de chancho"
"no hay señorita" (there isnt any, even though its on the menu)
"okay then Ill have ceviche de trucha"
"no hay, señorita"
"okay Ill have grilled trout"
"yah señorita"
"and to drink could I have a bottle of water?"
"would you like it with gas?"
"is there with gas?"
"no, no hay"
really, its classic. Fred, whos from france dared to ask at dinner if
they had any wine, and she gave him a look and said its prohibited. He
then asked, with bravery I admire, if they had any beer. "no, no es
prohibido". The stars out there in the countryside were amazing, with
a perfect milkyway, the only bad part was that since it was in the
southern hemisphere I am not familiar with the constilations. We woke
up late on sunday and laid out in the sun and ate some more trout
before getting in the combi, a privately owned van used for public
transportation, and squeezing in between the 9 other people in the
van, the pile of firewood and the can of extra gas.
One back in the city, we showered and lazed around before going out to
dinner on the main plaza. Today I woke up in an excellent mood, I
think due mostly to a winning combination of good health, good
weather, and a weekend outside the city.
And pictures soon, I swear, it just takes about 15 minutes to load one picture...I am apparently not so patient...