Love (NY?)
The cool thing about strolling about civilized cities is that one never ceases to stumble upon interesting objets d’art. Recently, somewhere in the Upper West, I caught this sculpture on a corner.
It is neither beautiful nor technically complex, yet it delivers. I doubt that anyone, upon seeing the sculpture for the first time, was not hit by the warm-and-fuzzies. The artist clearly achieved what (IMHO) he had in mind when he conceptualized the piece.
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Travel, Art, Architecture, New York
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Andean Cosmo: Cuzco
[Editor's note: Let's forget for a second that I haven't a clue how to correctly spell Cuzco, if with an s or a z. I'll stick to the z if only for consistency.]
Those of us who live in Peru, and especially in Lima, find ourselves immersed in a society with tastes and habits that are surprisingly homogeneous. This is true across districts, quarters, and economic and generational strata. I’ll concede that while some use True Religion jeans (and not because of their beliefs) and others prefer local brands, in general terms, we all listen to the same music (yes, reggaeton is danced just the same in Comas and La Molina), dress more or less alike, watch the same movies, eat the same food and complain about the same things. This homogeneity give urman beings a sense of calm and belonging (or “nAffil”, the basic need for affiliation according to David McClelland), that compensates the inevitable boredom from lack of variety. If you do/act/dress in the standard ways allowed by your city, you’ll be accepted. Escape the norm by an inch, and brace yourself for countless hardships to befall your soul!
It is thus that being able to escape to a nearby place like Cuzco becomes so amazingly refreshing. Having the option to leave the normalcy of the capital, in a flight no longer than 50 minutes, and arrive in a parallel universe filled with foreign tongues, bars and restaurants that are much more interesting and creative (in style and cuisine) than many in Lima (see recent note on the Cuzco lemonades, and don’t doubt for a second that I am a huge fan of Lima cuisine!), and significantly more cosmo than the capital itself (and not to mention one of the top cultural destinations in the world) is a luxury that not many countries can afford.
The best part is that this ‘luxury’ does not come at a high price. Cuzco offers decent lodging options for the most miserly mochileros (backpackers) all the way up to the most spoiled gringo. Cuzco is cosmo in the purest sense of the world: international and open to all. Insuperable cuisine (I recommend especially La Cicciolina, Jack’s and Incanto), lounge bars that would make Lima proud (Los Perros, Green’s, Fallen Angel and the sadly departed Blueberry Lounge), night clubs that I dare not suggest because frankly I’ve been out of that circuit for way too long, and, further cementing the town’s cosmo-ness, a remarkably full embrace of the gay community.
According to Webster’s:
cosmopolitan <ˌkäzməˈpälitn>, adj.:
• familiar with and at ease in many different countries and cultures : his knowledge of French, Italian, and Spanish made him genuinely cosmopolitan.
• including people from many different countries : immigration transformed the city into a cosmopolitan metropolis.
• having an exciting and glamorous character associated with travel and a mixture of cultures : their designs became a byword for cosmopolitan chic.
For anyone who is able to visit, Cuzco has much more to offer than ruins (including the recently-named Wonder of the World). It is a small city but one that has matured nicely and created its own identity as an international destination, untethered from Lima, and setting itself apart from many a horrendous provincial town, like those which unfortunately abound in Latin America.
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Travel, Peru, Cuzco, Lifestyles
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Urman Spaces
Certain cities, regardless of how caotic they may be, have spaces within their dishevelment to afford their humans an escape to tranquility. Often, these spaces are to be found in between buildings, or in spaces “donated” by a development to the public good. Most civilized indeed.
In larger cities these spaces become a necessity. London has its hundreds of parks and squares. NYC does too, in its fantastic Central Park and its several mini-plazas all over town (especially in Midtown, where the developments, generally more modern than elsewhere in the city, have provided such spaces). There is one public space that is unique in that it has an original segment (of some 5m/16ft in length) of the Berlin Wall, complete with original graffiti, which at the very least represents a conversation piece for its visitors.
Most of Latin America is notoriously lacking in these spaces. Inorganic and disorganized growth of the vast majority of its cities have not allowed their appearance. Those that have appeared under the auspices of local governments have become emporia for informal ambulatory commerce, displays neo-folklore performance, petty crime and other undesirables.
Where they can be found, they are few and far between, and underutilized by a population that does not fully understand them, and does not feel at ease in them. With a few notable exceptions (Buenos Aires comes to mind), the lack of culture and/or civility converts them in places that are, at best, unattractive for spending a lazy afternoon.
Just a matter of time, one would hope.
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Lemonade: that cool, refreshing, minty drink
I fell obliged to share with the world a very well-kept secret. Those guys in Cuzco have advanced lemonade technology to a degree never before seen. And urmans need this information to recover from their hectic lives.
Cuzqueños, presumably due to the dearth of distractions found in bigger cities, have achieved a product that is without defect. With the ideal level of sourness, a subtle, noticeable but not overbearing touch of bitter, perfectly cold temperature (served in large glasses with copious amounts of ice), absolute “refreshingness” (to use the anglicized version of a despicable-but-useful term from Sony Entertainment Television, that bastion -unknown to the US- of Latino-Venezuelan commercial pop culture), and total satisfaction of both thirst and whatever other desires that may befall the consumer.
Without being a chef, I think I’ve hit the formula:
- Peruvian limón (duh), in abundance to ensure tartness (these are most similar to the key limes known to our US audience);
- water (double-duh);
- gum arabic (moderately applied so as to not taste like those watered-down sweet concoctions that many Lima restaurants call limonada);
- peppermint (or what we call hierba buena);
- peel of the aforementioned limón, but just a tad so as to provide a hint of bitterness without totally screwing up the product.
Blend everything, serve over ice and attempt to contain your excitement.
Particularly suggested are those served at La Cicciolina and Los Perros (the latter pictured).
…and let’s hope that this know how never leaves Cuzco.
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