Peruvians, from an outsider's perspective...

Most of the Peruvians Dan and I have encountered during our time in Peru have been friendly and helpful. From the random Peruvians on the street that helped us bargain with cab drivers, to the waiters and hostel workers that were patient with our lack of Spanish. Most Peruvians become excited when we tell them we are from Estados Unidos (as they properly call the US). A sudden smile seems to overcome them as they exclaim the one word they know, "Obama." "Si, Obama," we would reply back. Sometimes Peruvians would approach us out of nowhere, just to ask where we were from, and then proceed to offer us directions and tips. One man even grabbed my hand and kissed it. The young children attempting to sell us candy giggle at our terrible accents, the shop owners smile as I attempt to bargain the price down with the few words I know. Thank goodness I know the numbers...



However, there have been some Peruvians that have tried to take advantage of us and our lack of Spanish knowledge. My height, pale skin and dirty blonde hair, along with Dan's Red Sox hat, and the semi-permanent confused expression on our faces, screams tourist. In a city filled with dark haired, dark skinned people, its tough not to notice Dan and I marching through the streets with our backpacks. At the sight of us cabs would line up offering us insanely overpriced fares. Luckily, Dan and I always managed to find a local Peruvian to ask about the appropriate price before trying to get a cab. If they would not lower the price, we would refuse the offer and within seconds a new cab would pull up.

During our time spent in Ica, we were taken advantage of for the first time. Before heading to the bus station Dan and I decided to stop for lunch. Being the frugal travelers that we are, and knowing how large the portions were from the night before, we decided to split a meal. The waiter came over and when we asked to see a menu he replied "Que quieres?" meaning "What do you want?" We knew we wanted rice, beans and beef, so I replied "Arroz con bistek y beans" (now I remember that beans are called frijoles, but at the moment it slipped my mind). We knew the dish was 19 soles or about $7, from spotting in on the menu the night before. The waiter mumbled something and a little while later returned with our order. After finishing he told us that our total was 36 soles. Knowing he was wrong, Dan and I grabbed a menu from the nearest table and pointed at the price of the meal we got. He shook his head and explained that they replaced the beans with mashed potatoes that were 14 extra soles. Oddly enough, we hadn't noticed. Unfortunately, it's difficult to argue when you are unfamiliar with a language, so we just continuously repeated "no" until we realized he wasn't budging. We paid the money and informed him that he was a "mal hombre" or "bad man" on the way out. I'm sure we stuck it to him...