This is an excerpt from my travel blog, Walking with Inkas, and was originally written on May 30, 2006.
Memorial Day Weekend
SUMMARY:
Had
a great Memorial Day weekend, starting with sleeping in on Saturday and
heading to Wong--much more than just a grocery store. Followed Wong
with a trip to the Rodeo, followed by a barbeque at the intern house,
followed by a night out on the town (although we missed the Marines by a
hair). Went to bed at 3:30 and got up at 5:00 to head to Ica for an
overnight trip full of sandboarding and winery tours. Some reflections
on my new political status in light of the upcoming presidential
elections and a thank you for my first two pieces of snail mail that
arrived at the Embassy and are hanging in my cubicle to make it look a
little more homey!
FOR DETAIL LOVERS, ONLY:
Happy
Memorial Day! Hope you all had a great holiday, celebrating in whatever
way you could, whether in America or abroad. Since the Embassy
celebrates both American and Peruvian holidays, we had a three day
weekend, and we interns decided to live it up as much as possible!
Unfortunately, three days just isn't enough time to go on a major trip,
say to Brazil or Argentina, or even to Cuzco. Especially when you don't
even begin the planning process until Wednesday, the logistics are a bit iffy. That didn't stop us from getting out of Lima, though.
Other
than a barbeque being planned by Jared at our house and a possible
rodeo suggested by Angie (one of the summer hires), I didn't really have
any big plans for the weekend. I figured I might do some sight-seeing
in Lima and hit up the indian market (apparently a great place for
bartering and inexpensive souvenirs). That all changed with the arrival
of Max and Brianna, two new interns in the FCS (something about
communications for local branches of American companies) department!
They were determined to make the most out of one of our rare long
weekends. As soon as I heard them talking about going somewhere, I
jumped on the bandwagon.
After
lots of online research and plenty of input from coworkers in each of
our departments, we compiled our information and decided that Ica
sounded like the place to go. We didn't want to let the others down,
either, though, so we decided not to leave until Sunday morning.
Saturday
morning was glorious, as I started it off by sleeping in, followed by a
trip to Wong: my favorite grocery store. I am convinced that there's no
grocery shopping experience quite like the one you get at Wong. As you
walk in the entrance, you're immediately swept into a zone of boundless
energy. You may be greeted at the door by a keyboard-playing
spokesperson for a music company or a girl dressed all in yellow,
highlighting the rack of 3M hooks nearby. Or perhaps you'll merely be
escorted by the shopping cart attendant, eager to guide you and your
cart into the buzzing frenzy of shoppers navigating their way through
the aisles as if they're on the streets of Lima.
Maybe they think they are on the streets of Lima. I certainly feel like I am as I swerve past the
shampoos and suddenly back up to nab an open shopping cart "parking
space" for a quick stop at the mini-bodega (winery) in the back of the
store. I select an unfamiliar bottle of Peruvian wine, and am on my way
back to the cart when I am offered a sample of "Pisco Puro" mixed with
ginger ale. I take a sip and pick up a bottle to complement the wine. I
avoid the Absolut sampling and the wine tastings and head toward the
cleaning products, not wanting to over-do it on a Saturday morning at
the grocery store.
I make my way toward the frozen section, eager to see
what's on the menu today. I'm the ideal target for this kind of
marketing, and the feeling is mutual. The entire store is full of people
sent by their companies to draw in customers by tasting their products.
Unlike America, where the three or four sample carts tend to come out
only on Fridays and Saturdays, on any given day you can eat (and drink)
your way through Wong. I gladly accept a cup of Fanta, but deem it too
traditional a product to actually purchase. I'd choose Inca Kola over
Fanta any day! Mmm, but those tamales are another story. When the woman,
dressed in her white dress and red polka-dotted apron explains that all
I have to do is pop them in the microwave for a couple minutes, I
snatch up a pack of four. No more Ramen noodles for this starving chef .
. . I left those in Winona! Okay, back to reality, leaving Wong for
another day. Sigh.
continued in Pearl #22 . . .
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