Stop Eyeing My Empanada, Sir

We're going to skip a full recap of the dinner at Panchita last weekend, both because I don't consider myself a particularly engaging food writer and because it's time to move on to bigger and better (and fresher in the memory) things. However, I will tell you that Panchita is Gaston Acurio's (Peruvian rockstar chef) upscale take on the Peruvian culinary tradition of anticuchos. Anticuchos are skewered, grilled beef hearts served with several dipping sauces, corn, and potatoes. I consider this dish to be Peru's spin on steak and potatoes, except anticuchos could be considered superior for their endless pun-tastic opportunities to tell your dining companions to "eat their hearts out." In addition to this signature dish Panchita has many other grilled meats and criolla (traditional Peruvian food) dishes. The portions are huge, the tables and place settings are equally oversized, and the interior is loud, warm, and bustling. It suggests what Claim Jumper might be if it was fancier and served Peruvian food (still with the California Gold Rush theme, of course). The anticuchos were tender (I have noticed that toughness can be a problem with beef hearts) and well seasoned, and all the other dishes (we ordered a variety of Peruvian classics) delivered on their promises as well. I tried papas rellenas for the first time (mashed potatoes filled with seasoned beef and some diced veggies, then formed into a football shape and deep fried), and you better believe I'll be coming back for more of that. Anyhow, if you happen to find yourself in Lima and you want a big, brash meal with a variety of Peruvian specialties, head on over to Panchita. Tell 'em Andrew sent you for a free appetizer of dense buttery rolls and crusty flatbreads (no, it's not complimentary).

I have been posting less frequently over the past two weeks - and I hope to rectify that situation during the rest of August - but work has been more involved recently. Last week was spent preparing for the Saturday field trip with the Callao schools. Ramon Castilla did not attend and will have their field trip delayed two weeks so they have a chance to stabilize their normal Buena Voz workshops. I think we all remember the embarrassment from last weekend! And it's really not the time or place to point fingers, but needless to say it was all Melissa's fault. During the week, Victor (VO) and I made sure all the schools were prepared for the field trip, arranged the transportation and tours, further prepared for the fundraising event in October, and managed normal Buena Voz operations. Fast forward to Saturday, and you'd find me rolling out of bed at 6am (!) to arrive at the GEA office by 7am (!!). I showed up a few minutes before 7 (!!!), and at 7:05 Celeste, the photographer for Buena Voz promotional materials and the fundraiser, arrived as well. We were expecting Victor and one youth coordinator, Kathy (who had volunteered to help out with the field trip), to appear at 7 as well, but I figured they might be a little late because it can be hard to find a taxi in Villa Maria del Triunfo that will go all the way to Barranco (tell me about it, right! Who hasn't had to deal with those clowns?). I didn't expect them to be 40 minutes late, but I still felt comfortable that we would make it to the Augustin de Hipona school before the 8:30 departure time. I didn't factor in the time needed for the taxi driver to orient himself after getting lost on Callao. I also didn't factor in the delay caused by the taxi driver being pulling over for speeding. Oh, and that llama heritage parade? Yeah I didn't plan for that either (the parade may not have actually happened, but you can appreciate some creative license in establishing that we were late, late, late!). Fortunately, the Hipona Buena Voz students and teachers were ready to rock (read: go on a field trip), so we able to depart the school by 8:45. Because each charter bus held 45 rabid Callao fans and because the Hipona, Heroinas Toledo, and Jose Olaya schools had less than that total, we had to orchestrate some bus sharing. Olaya and Hipona had about 30 attendees, and Toledo had about 20. The logical solution would be to split Toledo's 20 amongst the Olaya and Hipona buses. A key theme of the field trip was getting to know the Buena Voz students from other schools, so this mixing was perfect for a healthy interchange. A logical and appropriate resolution to our "3 bus, 4 school" dilemma. The general coordinator from the Toledo school wasn't so thrilled about our elegantly designed solution, and Victor and I had to deal with her griping throughout the field trip. Other than the taxi snafu and one grumbly coordinator, the field trip was a success. We visited the Real Felipe military castle and museum (kids sure do love castles!), the "La Punta" beach in Callao (kids sure do love castles!), and the Callao Plaza de Armas (kids sure do love plazas!).

I wish I had more to tell you about the history and significance of these sights, but if there ain't natural gas-filled intertubes being filled by guinea pig manure, it's hard for me to get engaged. Instead of paying attention to the tours, I mostly just talked to the Buena Voz students and ate. Not out of hunger, mind you. For instance, while at the Real Felipe castle I purchased a chicken empanada to tide me over. While I am eating my empanada, a fellow pops out of a van and delivers more empanadas and baked goods to the museum cafe. While walking back to his van he asks me if I am eating a chicken empanada. Despite my suspicion of foul play, I confirmed that my empanada was, in fact, filled with chicken. He then walked to his van, came back to me, and handed me a beef empanada and told me "I got this round, slim." I was shocked! A free empanada for the gringo! I couldn't refuse, so I ate more than I planned. Later, at the beach, the teachers distributed the snacks to the students. They also distributed snacks to the Buena Voz volunteers (me, Victor, Celeste, and Kathy), and for you math buffs out there, you know that means I ate 4 snacks (4 schools = 4 snacks). I definitely was not hurting for food on the trip. The students all had a good time, and by the end of the excursion even our grumpy coordinator had a smile on her face. And fortunately, we were able to catch the tail end of the llama heritage parade.

Now it's time for some general housekeeping. My good friend Stacy Ishigaki pointed out to me that I have not posted any photos over the past several weeks. Between having to work 6 days a week and increasing my fervent search for a decent wig, I didn't find much time to go anywhere/do anything worth capturing in photo form. However, I do want to be responsive to friend/reader requests, particularly to those from Ms. Ishigaki. If there is anyone who is making a real and positive difference in the world, it's Stacy, so I felt obliged to honor her request for more photos. You can now find new photos in the Flickr account. Enjoy!