Our Day without Electricity

So, I was reminded yesterday morning that in Ayacucho they periodically turn off electricity, usually on Sundays, in order to do maintenance or something. So, we woke up to no power yesterday! Luckily, There is a lot of natural light in all of the rooms at the house, and there was still hot water in the tank, so I did not suffer at all. In fact, it was a pretty great day!

We kept our original plan of heading to an artisan market down in the center of the city. To get there, we rode the bus. My first time doing so here! There are two buses that go from Carmen Alto (our neighborhood) down to the center. One of them has nice buses, but the drivers are also under a lot of pressure to go fast, and that results in some pretty dangerous driving that has resulted in some casualties. So, we take the other bus, which is not so pretty, but I sure prefer it if it means being safer! Going down, the bus wasn't too crowded and we got seats, so that was really nice. Then we hopped off right near the market and went shopping! This market is in an old prison building, but I don't know that I would have guessed that just seeing it. Here's the front

This place is also pretty touristy- definitely catering to foreigners. Lots of woven stuff and trinkety key chains, pretty cool overall. But, a bunch of the stalls were closed because there wasn't power and there aren't really windows inside the building. Still, what was there was fun, and we visited a jewelry maker with whom mom had made friends last summer. She basically bought a bajillion pairs of earrings from him, so they got to know each other well. He recognized her and was super nice to us, giving us lots of deals and making me a wish bracelet for free! And some of you know how much I like wish bracelets... Here's a picture of the three of us

Notice the whiteness of my skin- the anemia is being mad at me. Anyway, that was really fun, then we left the market, and there's this cute little plaza in front of it! The statue is, according to GeGe, the lover of somebody who did something important in the revolution. I'll need to wiki it or something to get more details because the info plaque was missing. (Also, sorry about the cars, they wouldn't stop)

Then, we walked towards the central plaza just because. There, the streets were actually closed to cars, which was nice! We went into the grocery store since we were right there, and mom wanted to find some chicha, which is a drink made from purple corn. We bought a big bottle, but we still haven't opened it yet... In the grocery store, you may think that a lack of electricity would be a big problem. Our stores would probably be closed. But, they're pretty accustomed to it here and so there were still a bunch of people shopping, with candles lighting up the darker rooms.

Then, after not too much longer, we caught the bus back up. But! This time, it was much more crowded. At first, neither mom nor I had a seat, then mom had a seat for a little while, but then a woman got on with four kids, including a baby on her back, so mom of course gave up her seat. They just kept putting more and more people on! It was quite the experience! I liked it though. Better than Madrid public transport when it's crowded just because people aren't mean here. Anyway, we got off at our stop and walked back to the house, where we freshened up really quick before lunch.

For lunch, we walked up to the Mirador because they have a bunch of food and activity going on up there on Sundays. We were in search of Puca Picante, which is a festival sort of food that they have on Sundays a lot of places. It's made of potatoes stewed in a saucy mixture which consists of beets, peanuts, onions, garlic, and other spices, and it's served with rice. Mom had it last summer and loved it, so I have been waiting many months to try it for myself. And! It was everything that I had hoped and dreamed. So yummy. I could probably eat it every day forever and not get tired of it. I'm definitely going to have to learn how to make it at home. Here's a picture of my anemic self getting ready to indulge in the heavenly puca.

We ate at this row of tents with tables, where the "moms" cook. It's a bunch of ladies working over their fires, cooking chicharrones (pork stuff) and puca mostly (I think). Supposedly, it's the best place to go because these ladies really know how to cook good, authentic puca. I would certainly believe that after trying their food, although I don't know much about authenticity!

After that, we wandered around the Mirador for a bit and then headed back home. I took a little nap and an iron pill, and when I woke up it was getting pretty dark out. Still no electricity, so we pulled out the flashlights and ventured downstairs, where everyone was hanging out outside, just chatting. After awhile of that, we headed up to our respective living spaces, with us in GeGe's kitchen. We set up a bunch of candles and lights, and then the power came back on. Right as I was about to send a facebook message, out again. Mean electricity people, just playing with our feelings. After another few minutes, it was back on for good and has stayed that way! Yay!

So far today, we've just been cooking up some lentil soup (after some carrot and potato peeling), drinking Coca tea (which is really just a lot like green tea), and anticipating the arrival of those children this afternoon!