Friday, October 28, 2011

Queque (keh keh)

The last Friday morning of every month, the executive staff sends their kitchen assistant to the Hildegard Pastelería y Salón de Té, a German bakery and Tea House, for their special cakes.
And then....once a month Jacobs sponsors the Birthday cakes!  Welcome to South America....we have NOTHING like this in the U.S., at least not for any company that I have ever worked for.








The popular cake on the left is called the "Sophia Loren." It is very similar to the "Italian Cream" that my mother makes at Christmas, but it has a lot of sliced almonds as well. The cake in the center, which is hard to see, is a German specialty layered streusel/cake...with black cherries, a phyllo style center and a carrot cake bottom.
The cake on the right was very light with some type of maís de morado pudding between the layers....
ALL of them were slathered in a whipped cream frosting. Very rich...


They call her the "cake lady". She wears a blue, Jacobs Engineering servant uniform every day to work. She has a number of duties, but her primary duty is to make sure that every executive in the "Gerencia" has fresh coffee.
AGAIN....I have never seen this function in the U.S.  When I was 18 and out of high school, I worked for the Commander in Charge of Construction at the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station and was asked to make coffee on my first day...so I filled the perculator full every morning for a couple of days. Nobody asked me to make it again!

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Fred...the man of stone

I had fun in the Lima airport shopping for trinkets and stuffed llamas for the grandkids. Prices were very expensive so I will wait till I go to Cusco to shop for the toys and rugs and wall hangings and carved gourds and Peruvian silver and alpaca bedcovers and and and....
I met Fred in one of those shops. He was such a charmer that I couldn't resist taking a couple of photos! Fred will never complain about how many shops I go to or how long I browse, looking for just the right thing. I like Fred...he stoically waits....like any man who is wise with women. LOL!

On a clear day in Lima....

The sun over Lima rarely clears the fog long enough for one to get a decent phot of the Andes foothills. Double click on these photos to see its beauty!


Thursday, October 20, 2011

Halloween soup

We had a team meeting last night at the Golf Los Incas hotel restaurant.
Mi compadres and I, due to logistics, had decided yesterday to change hotels to avoid the morning traffice, since the "Golf" was only a 5 minute ride in the morning.
HOWEVER...after dinner last night, I decided that moving to the new hotel would be a BIG MISTAKE.
Why you ask?
I ordered crab soup for dinner last night....the cost was $40 Solis....about $15 USD.
Con copa de vino y un postre (with a tiny glass of wine and a piece of cheesecake) the total bill was $90 Solis.....about $32 USD.
This is what was delivered to the table.... It contained slices of "Pulpa" (octopus), two scallops, two shrimps, and a lot of octopus ink. YUM....NOT!


Wednesday, October 19, 2011

The A-Team

Please allow me to introduce part of my Lima team...more to join later.

Back Row: from the left
Leonardo Cabezas (PCM- Santiago),
Luis Ceroni (Functional Cost System SME - Santiago),
Morgan Zhao (Jr. Cost - Tucson)
Front Row:
Bill Ferguson (Lead Cost/Alt. PCM),
Misha Centeno (Cost - Tucson)

We all met for dinner at the mall under the mountain by the sea...called Larcomar.

When you are walking along the Avenida by the sea, you can not see the mall down below. It is hidden from view and only accessable by a set of stairs that looks like you would walk down into the sea.
Here are a couple of pics of the night scene. If you look close, you will see the big cross across the bay on a mountain named "Chorrillos," which is named after an Incan battle against Pissaro at a small stream at the base of the mountain.




Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Peruvian Cure for Alzheimers

The Peruvians have a saying...
If a person with Alzheimers will eat the rocoto pepper, they will remember where and when they ate it the next day!
I tasted the rocoto last night in my Peruvian vegetable and fruit curry. This pepper registers 200,000 - 300,000 scoville units....it is HOT!
The rocoto is one amazing pepper. It has thick walls like a bell pepper, but is very hot...similar to a habanero. It has been cultivated in Bolivia and Peru for thousands of years. Rocoto (aka Locoto in Bolivia) is Capsicum pubescens (hairy pepper). It is amongst the oldest of domesticated peppers.
It is said that the burning sensation from capsaicin is addictive.
The reason is that during the eating of chiles, a chemical in the chile pepper called Capsaicin, irritates the trigeminal cells. These are pain receptor cells located throughout the mouth, the nose and the throat. When your body's nerves feel the pain induced by the chemical on these cells, they immediately start to transmit pain messages to your brain. Your brain receives these signals and responds by automatically releasing endorphins (the body's natural painkiller). These endorphins kick in and act as a painkiller and at the same time, create a temporary feeling of euphoria, giving the chile pepper eater, a natural high. As some may know by tasting several jalapenos, this heat level can vary from pod to pod, as the result of growth condition and genetics. Each pod has its own "personality".
I would like to try the rocoto relleno...but I am afraid of the "mañana" !
The rocoto is also the only pepper in the world that will grow in a cold climate. It has black seeds instead of white...unlike all other peppers.

Enjoy!

Sunday, October 16, 2011

EARTHQUAKE.........TERREMOTO !

This morning at 7:31 I heard a loud pop/crack and the bed seemed to jump up.
"What was that?"
Five seconds later, the bed began to shake back and forth, like someone was at the foot pushing hard over and over. The whole seismic event lasted no more than five to 10 seconds. After the initial recognition, I remembered the advice of my new landlords about earthquakes and jumped out of bed to stand in the doorframe of the bathroom and waited for another wave. Fortunately, it was over...no aftershocks.

During afternoon tea yesterday with my new landlords who are retired German profesores, they told me about their experience with the sixth largest earthquake ever to be recorded by a seismograph....8.8 on the scale. Their bibliotecas (bookshelves) emptied their contents along with the dishes, pantries and the refrigerator, the paintings came down, the stackable washer/dryer toppled, the beds crossed the room, the furniture tipped over and they were thrashed back and forth like being in a dinghy in a hurricane. Wow...

Señora Wittelburger placed her hands on the dining table and showed me the difference between the points...
Slight shaking of the table.................3.0
Major shaking of the table................5.0
Things slowly rolling off the bureau....6.5

I would have categorized today's earthquake, as a newcomer, as a 4.0...later the news reported it as 4.8 between Valparaiso and Santiago...with the epicenter just north on the coast.

The Wittelburger's building was designed and built by the architects who designed the most recent tunnelways under Santiago and the surrounding mountains. After the quake, the architects came...not only to inspect the building, but also to see how their design withstood the large seismic event. According to my landlords, the entire four year old structure rode the earthquake well...with only a few cracks in some tiles and sheetrock. The primary emergency stairwell never moved during the quake...it stood solid. THIS is the place they told me to go in case we experience another of this magnitude.

However, the World Trade Center, where I work did not fair as well. It is ten years old, but was designed with expansion joints that would release during intense pressure. There is a foot of expansion joint space that connects the two towers. Those joints popped and the foot wide gap had to be filled afterwards. Now there is a noticeable rubber like substance in the joints on each floor.

This Chilean 2010 earthquake occurred off the coast near Valparaiso, just west of Santiago on February 10, 2010 at 3:34 in the morning. According to official sources, 525 people lost their lives, 25 people went missing and about 9% of the population lost their homes.

The 1960 Valdivia earthquake or Great Chilean Earthquake of Sunday, 22 May 1960 is to date the most powerful earthquake ever recorded on Earth, rating 9.5 on the moment magnitude scale. It occurred in the afternoon and the resulting tsunami affected southern Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, eastern New Zealand, southeast Australia, and the Aleutian Islands in Alaska.
The city of Valdiva in southern Chile was most affected. The epicenter caused localised tsunamis that severely battered the Chilean coast, with waves up to 25 metres (82 ft). The main tsunami raced across the Pacific and devastated Hilo, Hawaii. Waves as high as 10.7 metres (35 ft) were recorded 10,000 kilometres (6,200 mi) from the epicenter, and as far away as Japan and the Philippines.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Home Sweet Santiago!

Can you say PENTHOUSE!!
Yes, I rented a penthouse older apartment on the north side of Santiago very close to the office. Next week I sign the lease and begin to move in.
Here are a few views from the top...
 The Chilean's call this " The Cordillera..."
The Penthouse has retractable awnings to shade out the sun. The west and north side are all glass double paned doors, which bring in the breeze when the ozone is not too bad. From everywhere, you can see The Andes. There is a walking park down below that one can walk or bike for miles just within view....
I am hopeful that all the glass on the west side will help warm the apartment in winter. I have to find a way to construct some pop can air heaters....so my heating bill will be lower.
And who knows....maybe I can install some solar panels???
I am on the roof you know!




If you look closely, this photo is of the front gate of the American Embassy in Santiago. I could not ask for a safer place to be!






See the construction of the tallest tower in Chile in the background?
This construction zone is across the street from the World Trade Building where I work. The Penthouse is a 20 minute walk (mas o menos) to work on good weather days. I plan to hump it to the office once this building is complete because they are also constructing a six story shopping mall attached to this tower. The traffic is already horrendous...so trying to get out of the parking garage to enter traffic will be near impossible until 9:00 at night.

 This is an art sculpture in front of the World Trade Center. Do you see the yellow, well-appendaged, naked man running the loop?








Wonder what this is supposed to mean?
Art....

Lima...The City of Buses

This Sunday, October 16, 2011, I travel back to Peru for seven days. Here are a few photos I took on my last trip....
Everywhere there are buses...driving to and fro at all hours of the day...and night! I was astounded by their numbers. Traffic does not move...it crawls as the buses wedge themselves into our lane. They remind me of worker ants...large and imposing, carrying leaves four times their size.
All of them are unregulated regarding emissions...so the fumes from these millions of buses fill the air.
Notice the bluish color of the air....cough cough cough....
You can see the "traffic lites" attempting to direct traffic and cover their mouth at the same time.

This Policia saluted as a captain trotted by on a horse.










Need to go to Arequipa late at night? They have a bus for you!
But if you thought you would be riding alone...you would be wrong...

This is a photo of the business district while I walked, trying not to breathe, from the hotel to the client office. You can see that there is not much wind to make the flag stand at attention. An occasional breeze would make it ruffle...so I stood there a bit waiting to catch this next photo.



















Here is the last photo I made of the foothills of the Andes before the police asked me not to photograph their mountains. After the ride through the city, I am now wondering if all those clouds are not as a result of the ocean air.... See for yourself!

Arepitas de maiz...

Finally....something from home...yet so far away. This post is dedicated to my grandmother, whom I miss with all my heart. She would cook these to accompany fresh picked collards grown in her garden and touched by the first frost. I can see her standing in the kitchen now....ahh...the smell and taste of this arepita so far from home...brings back my childhood.
At home we call this "hot water cornbread" or sometimes cornpone.
I decided to try one of these familiar looking items today when I went to the little cafeteria by the office to have my daily serving of hot soup for lunch. The variety of soup changes daily, but the preparation is the same....a puree of many different things.
Yesterday I had a lovely concoction of butternut squash and today was carne con verduras (beef and vegetables). All of it was pureed....with a sprinkle of cheese and croutons on top. Delicious... Hits the spot when it is cold outside and I am tired...
The Euro-Chilean woman at the counter who is my age has been very friendly. I like her and she is starting to talk to me in the little English she knows. Sometimes when the sun is shining, I will sit in the sun at one of these tables, which are typically everywhere and jammed with people enjoying their almuerzo (lunch)...just to watch the people come out of the subway stop.
I will eat these more often now, as I sit in the sun, and remember....
Thank you Grandmother...you instilled your love of travel in me and I carry it everywhere I go.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Profesor Silvio...Ole'

To all my friends and family, I am pleased to introduce my wonderful Spanish teacher, Profesor Silvio Costa!

He is the best instructor...he patient, firm, funny, and has a unique ability to twist one's brain into thinking Spanish...not just repeating words.
I am a very lucky student....and he was very patient with me today as I took his picture. Yet, I learned to say the ABCDarios o Alphabetos.
Tomorrow I will be tested, I am sure. HOMEWORK tonight!

Monday, October 3, 2011

Scenes from Parque Arauco

Parque Arauco! It is an outdoor and indoor mall....lots of outdoor cafes, gelaterias, coffee shops, entertainment, and indoor upscale department stores similar to Saks, Lord & Taylor, etc...
Across the street is a HomeCenter...just like Home Depot. Only the Chileans call it Homey Center....since every vowel is pronounced!

Each weekend either the organ grinder or the accordian man plays at the outdoor mall. The music is quite entertaining and is part of the culture. Sometimes the parrot sings....Chilean Karaoke!

Here I am overlooking the lower level from an upper outdoor Korean Fusion Cafe. If you look close in this photo, you can see a sphinx in the background. There is a King Tut "mock" exhibit at the mall that replicates the tour exhibit....  I want to go in there just to see what they are displaying.
AND YES!!!
THEY EVEN HAVE "THE JACK"! 
YEAH! 
So now I can have my double meat hamburger, no lettuce,
no onion, extra tomato, extra pickle when I am feeling
homesick. Lots of shopping done that day...but I ended up buying only a couple of things...and nothing for me.
I found I actually needed a few space aliens to keep me company!
Wonder who I could give these to? Hmmmmm.....let me think.....

Overall, a great place to shop....but only if you can afford the prices!


Sunday, October 2, 2011

Green Lemon!

This is the best lemon ever...and NO...it is NOT a lime.

Over dinner with the client this past week, he ordered a few cut up lemons to show me what they were like. The taste was beyond believable....so I squeezed some in my soup, on my food, and in my wine. Delicioso fabuloso!
I took this one home in my pocket to save some seeds for planting when I get into my apartment. They will grow here in Santiago, but no further south.
In Peru, this citrus is know as Limon Cevichera...as it is the primary citrus used in their popular ceviche....a seafood dish that is cooked in lemon juice. Excellente!
In Chile, this lemon is known as Limon Pica....and the Chileans use it in their popular drink they stole from Peru known as Pisco Sour. I have had the Pisco Sour...very different. It is made with whipped egg whites, limon cevichera, some kind of Peruvian liquor and a dash of Angosturas on top. Very nice...but it can kick your #@$$!
Come enjoy a Pisco Sour with me!

The Flags

TEXAS...my TEXAS!
How could I not love Chile? It is the part of Texas that I could never have, but now I can!

CHILE....my CHILE



Welcome to Lima, Peru!

Hola! Mi llamo Ferdinando... 
Allow me to introduce my Incan taxi driver that took me to many sites in Lima after work one day. He is a "horn" player...and can play many contatas on the taxi horn as he squeezes us into places that I couldn't believe we could fit.
Between all the horns, the police traffic whistles (no traffic lights), and the "calming music" on the taxi radio...it was a feast of images and sounds! Can't wait to go back....

Please see the pics of the taxi tour below. Lima never sees the sun. It is always in a coastal cloud and the relative temperature remains approximately 60-75 degrees. There are miliary everywhere....all watching patiently. I was asked to NOT to take pictures of a very nice view of the mountains. HUH? Nothing out there but a lot of dirt...but one must comply if you are in another's country. So...I made pics from the taxi!  And sometimes, I jumped out and ran to the corner when we were at a stop light.
NEXT TIME....I take a bike... We passed by many archeaological museums, art museums, incan shops, etc...  I HAVE TO SEE THEM ALL! 
I will be going to Lima every 18 days. Lots of opportunity!
Here is a pic of the Andes from Lima...the camera will not "see through" the clouds...  I will be going to the mine site into these clouds up to 4700 Meters...and will have to sleep with oxygen in the nose, because without it, the human body body struggles to breathe. Heck...you struggle to breathe in Lima because they have no emission controls on any vehicle. The CO2 level is so high that you wonder if your fingernails will turn blue before the end of the day....
Notice the bus at the front of the traffic light. There are THOUSANDS of dilapadated buses in many shapes and sizes on all the streets. They are jammed with people carrying all kinds of stuff...I even saw children sitting on top of their parents shoulders who were seated. The buses are owned by the government....and sometimes carry garbage as well. There are also buses that have destinations painted on the sides...which are the long distance ones that move people from state to state.
McDonalds at the Round About...
 This is a picture of a flowered "round about" where the traffic swirls around a central round median and then spills into many streets as you go round. They have lots of them here in Lima...
Would you care to have pappas fritas con eso?
This is the Palacio de Governmente....
Scene from the coffee shop on the plaza...another military hero.  You will notice...NO SUN.
My boss and I stopped to have coffee in a little shop on this beautiful plaza so that I could plug in my camera battery. The coffee was so thick it seemed like I was drinking grounds...and there is NO MILK to cut it with. They use a product called Parmalat....a "boxed" milk that requires no refrigeration.
Horses are used a lot in Lima. You will see military on 17 hand thoroughbreds....all walking the streets. These are military polo players...
This is the Blue Cathedral of the Nuns...a jump and run shot as the sun set in downtown Lima....
This the big Cathedral on the Plaza of the Government. It is said that the bones of Pissaro are buried in the catacombes below. They call them "Cata-cumbes."
As you can see below, the architecture of old Lima is beautiful...but most of Lima is VERY POOR....very much like Nuevo Laredo, Mexico...
More to come....as I make my way through Peru!