Here are the highlights from our last few weeks while my (Hannah's) mom visited and we traveled on the weekends.

LIMA: Not much of a highlight, but we did see a few interesting things and eat at two stellar restaurants. One was Astrid y Gaston, owned by the South American celebrity TV chef Gaston Acurio. The other was Huaca Pucllana, an open-air restaurant overlooking pre-Incan pyramid ruins. Wow. We also had a chance to taste some of Peru's fame: pisco sours and cuy (guinea pig).



PUERTO SUPE: A short-term team arrived the day we did so Mom got the "tour": the beach, the sandals microenterprise, Monica and Margot's cafetin. She also got to see my new house and meet my team and my Puerto friends.



AREQUIPA: I saw a lot of Arequipa's tourism highlights for the first time while Mom was here. We also toured the Monasterio de Santa Catalina by night, which was a real treat. More Peru dishes tasted: rocoto relleno (stuffed spicy pepper) and alpaca meat.



SACRED VALLEY: For the first time in Peru, I saw some green! The Sacred Valley of the Incas is everything I thought Peru should be- mountains, rivers, green . I think our taxi driver/ guide was half-senile but we managed to enjoy ourselves anyway.



MACHU PICCHU: What can I say? I'm still overwhelmed by the experience. I think more than the ruins, the mountains were what stole my heart. If only I could have a house there!



CUZCO: We had a brief visit here but enjoyed the terra cotta roofs and beautiful artwork. Unfortunately it was rainy and Sunday morning, neither of which made for a great time.

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