Lima

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We arrived in Lima last night after a flight from Orlando and arrived at our hotel, The Belmond Miraflores Park, at around 11:30 pm.  When we awoke this morning and pulled back the shades we were treated to this beautiful view of the Pacific Ocean from our room.  
                                                                            
Lima’s highway is built alongside the ocean. The city is built on the cliff above.

Fishing is second only to exports of gold, copper, and zinc in Lima. The ocean water is 56 degrees (the Humbolt current brings cold water from Antarctica) and the cold water fish is plentiful and fresh.

Today was an easy day. We dallied over breakfast with a view from the 11th floor, and as we were ordering another cup of coffee were joined by David and Deborah. We then went to the Barranco district of Lima to the MAC, the Lima Museum of Contemporary Art. Descriptions of what we saw range from interesting to strange.  We also loved the sign above one of the exhibit buildings that said "Not For You".

We then went to the Larcomar shopping district, observed hang gliders in action, had a great lunch, and walked back to the hotel for a short rest before going to a demonstration on how to make Pisco Sours and then to dinner.

At 5:00 p.m. we all met at the bar in the hotel for what we thought was going to be a 30 minute presentation on how to make a Pisco Sour.  Wow, we were definitely surprised.  An hour and forty minutes later we left the bar with more information on Pisco Sours and other cocktails than we could ever imagine.  Andre, the bartender at the Belmond Miraflores, led us on a journey/tasting that was wonderful.  First we learned all about Pisco, the many grapes used in making it and the different qualities of the final product. 

 We then learned Andre's recipe and tried it two different ways (shaken vs. blender).  

 3 glasses of Pisco Sour
1 glass of sugar syrup (2 parts of sugar/1 part water)
1 glass key lime juice
1/2 glass of egg white

 Shake all ingredients vigorously for 10 seconds.  Then refresh with ice.  Top with 1 drop Angostura Bitters.

First, we put the ingredients in a shaker, and after shaking vigorously, poured the contents over ice and then into individual glasses.  We then prepared a second batch and put the ingredients in a blender, after which we poured the contents over ice and then into individual glasses.  The difference was amazing and we all preferred the shaken version over the blended one.



After that, we moved on to flavored sours and the different cocktails made with Pisco.    Andre also gave us coca leaves and a recipe for making coca tea to help us adjust to the altitude in Cusco, Machu Picchu, Lake Titicaca and La Paz.  It was a truly a wonderful experience!  


We finished our evening with a dinner, outside under a heater, in the Tragaluz restaurant here in the hotel.



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