Homegirl Doesn’t Eat Cuy!

First order of business: THANK YOU for the shoes! I had no idea that most “normal” people also let shoes pile up long after retiring them.  Perhaps a strange psychological attachment that we have?  At any rate, thanks for the great response; I have more than enough to fill a big bag. 

Next: Congratulations to all my teammates and friends who competed in the 70.3 World Championship down in Clearwater yesterday. So proud of you guys and it looks like you all ended your season on a high note!  (Now hurry home so I can get back to riding with you, Dennis & Hanson!)   For me, it was a little sad not to race, but we’re slowly getting to the bottom of my hip issue and I’m hopeful that this will be resolved soon.  So does my insurance company.  

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Now, on to the post.  Bianca, this one’s for you.  A “pre-acclimation” post, of sorts.  Although for some reason, I always think of you Kiwis as tougher and less squeamish than us.  At any rate, I came across the Cuy while doing more reading/preparing for our trip.  Ahhh, the Cuy.  I had almost forgotten about the Cuy. 

Back in Ecuador as a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed Peace Corps Volunteer, I ran into another bright-eyed, bushy-tailed critter: The Cuy:

Except he was on the menu.   

“What!? I’m not eating a RAT!”

It’s not a rat, though. It’s a CUY, I was told many times.  A guinea pig.  Whatever. The Rat’s second cousin then.  Close enough.   I’m still not eating Rat on a Skewer. 

(As if “Guinea Pig” is better.  I think I’d almost rather eat a rat than the cute little guy from Show & Tell in the first grade.) 

I would avert my eyes whenever I saw one sprawled on a plate (all crispy and toasty), but it wasn’t so easy to avoid them when walking through the street markets, where they were impaled, BBQ’d, and seemingly always staring right at you.   Could you imagine if the class pet returned to school on Monday looking like this?

I’ve never been much of a red meat eater anyway, so this wasn’t a culinary debate for me.  But there’s something about seeing so many of the animals alive so soon before you eat them (like the chickens that NEVER shut up, or that you had to share your bus seat with) that turned me into a fish-only veggie while living in the homeland.  I’ve been to Peru twice before, when working for K-C, but was always along the coast where the seafood is PHENOMENAL.  I am telling you, the ceviche in Lima is the best in the world.

However, we won’t be kickin’ it on the coast for more than a day, and other than the trout from the lakes, I’m not expecting a seafood culinary delight.  Cuy, however, will always be a ready and willing source of protein, as Cuy is a “rico” dish in many Andean countries. 

As a precautionary measure, I am taking ziplock baggies full of protein powder. Homegirl doesn’t eat guinea pig!  

Can’t wait to go through Immigration with my white powder.  That should be fun.