The "Peru Flu"

The remainder of my time in Peru was spent visiting the touristy center of Miraflores, venturing to the beach and exploring the actual city of Lima. Miraflores is a big tourist area, with an assortment of shops and restaurants overlooking the beach. There are tons of things to do, from video arcades to movie theaters and a bowling alley. Nearby is parapente, or paragliding, as termed in the United States. Dan and I decided against parapente due to the expensive price and the fact that it didn´t seem as exhilerating and scary as we had imagined it to be. The beaches of Miraflores consisted of a small area of rocks, crowded with Peruvians. Not a huge fan of sand, I preferred the rocky beaches, despite the slight uncomfort of lying down on a bed of rocks.

The actual city of Lima contains many historial landmarks and churches, and tons of people. Unless you have a love of churches and political buildings, one day was the perfect amount of time to spend in the city center.

During our time in Peru, Dan and I attempted to try every authentic Peruvian dish possible. Here were some of my favorites:

-

Ceviche (raw fish marinated in a lemon seasoning, served with onions and sweet potatoes)

Anticuchos (beef marinated in Peruvian spices and grilled)

Chaufa con pollo (Peruvian rice with chicken)

Raspadillas (crushed ice with delicious fruit flavoring, sold at the beach)

Pisco sour (cocktail made from pisco, sour mix, egg white and sugar)

Churros (cinammon, sugar pastry filled with deliciousness)


However, as a result of Dan and my dauntless eating habits, my last day in Peru was spent on the toilet. Or rather, alternating turns on the toilet with Dan. Apparently, traveler's diarrhea, or TD, is the most common illness affecting travelers, commonly accompanied by abdominal cramps, nausea and bloating.

While doing a bit of research on TD, I came across the following which made me laugh...

"There are a number of colloquialisms for travelers' diarrhea contracted in various localities, such as "Montezuma's revenge," "turistas," or "Aztec two step" for travelers' diarrhea contracted in Mexico, "Pharaoh's Revenge," "mummy's tummy," in Eygpt. "Delhi belly" in India, "kabulitis" in Afghanistan. In Canada it is termed "Beaver fever." A recent local term in Thailand is "Thai-dal wave." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traveler's_diarrhea). I guess what I have can be called the "Peru flu."

Dan and I made sure not to drink any water unless it was bottled, but forgot to avoid crushed ice and raw fish. We were unprepared for the extent in which Peruvian food would disagree with our stomachs. Hopefully it goes away soon...