Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth Is

Sure, if your spending a week or two vacationing in Miraflores, you may get a glimpse of how much further your dollar will go in Lima, Peru ... but it is truly just that, a glimpse.

If you consider you can get a meal from BK for about 13 soles (about $5 US) or a fresh burger from a local stand (loaded with fries, a fried egg and a slice of ham) for $1.29 you can instantly see the  difference made by buying locally.

This also translates into what it actually costs if you eat at home.

Prior to our arrival we were told that the family (2 adults, 3 kids) spends an average of 20 soles per day on food. That's $7.37 per day or roughly  $222 per month. And that's not necessarily because they are on a tight budget, that's just how it is.That's about a week and a half for our family of three, being budget conscious back home.

It's about where you shop, and where you shop for what.

We've been trying to help out and do the bulk of the shopping chores. Each time we learn something new. A run to Metro (the big local grocery chain, think Albertsons or Stop & Shop) is usually how we roll. We don't drive and they offer free cabs (if you can catch one) to the plaza, and it costs about $1.65 for the return trip.  While the prices are very favorable compared to what we are used to, they are far from the best deals to be had. Uncle J. likes to fill us in on our miss-steps along the way, and the criticism is very welcome. Here are some examples, and while I know they are not all food, the price comparison should be eye opening.

•  We bought 4 peeled carrots for 3.5 soles ($1.29)- the closest thing we could find the the baby carrots we buy back home. Uncle J. joked we could get 2 kilos of fresh carrots for that price - which means it's safe to assume we could get one kilo (2.2lbs) at the local market.
• We purchased 3 kitchen towels at Metro for  for 14 soles ($5.20) ... they are one sole ($0.37) each at the local market.
• We also purchased 10 trash bags for about $1.30 (great deal right?) Now we get them from a street vendor 10 for one sole (37 cents)

While the dollar amounts  don't seem like much, the percentages are amazing. It's 3X more for trash bags at the supermarket!

Not to bag on Metro. It is still our go to for weekly shopping (for now). Today Rosa the new housekeeper will be bringing Lynds to one of the bigger local markets (in a slightly sketchier area of town - but Rosa can handle herself) to teach her the ins and outs. I'll do my best to report back ... language barrier and all.

Electric Shower Heads?

Plumbing just isn't done the same way in Peru as it is back home. (see Peruvian Bathrooms) But it's not just the toilets. The showers have their own thing going on too.

Namely, the electric shower heads. Yup; Electric, Shower, Head. Doesn't sound very safe does it? To me it you may as well be saying "Bathtub Hairdryers". The good news is I wasn't even aware of the situation until it was too late. I had already mastered getting the shower to a temperature I could deal with, so I was already somewhat comfortable in there before I learned why the shower head looked so funky.

Read more about another's similar experience in Cusco here.

The good thing is that the shower head only heats water as it passes through, eliminating the need for a big ol' water heater tank, saving energy - much like any other hot water on demand system. Also, since the water is heated at the shower, flushing doesn't interrupt the shower...

But .. having two showers going at the same time can cause problems. In my head I had mistakenly thought that since the systems were independent  of one another .... I was only half right.

Innocently enough, I took our 5 year old for a shower last night, unaware that his grandfather was in another shower in the house. When the water went cold on our soapy little boy, it still took a while for me to get to the bottom of what happened, as I have yet to learn Spanish to any functioning degree.

Long story short, we (I) blew a fuse when we (I) turned on the second shower. This left my 70 year old father in law (only 3 weeks removed from major surgery) to complete his shower with cold water, in the dark ... and my soapy 5 year old wrapped in towels and eventually dressed in sweats till we came up with a solution. Every breaker in the house has been switched on and off multiple times - and there is still only electricity in about half the house. An electrician will be coming tomorrow.

I will note this - the whole family really teamed up to find a solution. Doc (the grandfather) and Uncle J. quickly assembled a network of extension cords all along keeping in mind that I work online  very early in the morning. Here I was having a minor hissy fit over a minor inconvenience, and all they wanted to do was to help me. One of the biggest "fruits" I'm reaping from my time in Peru is definitely about family. Everyone has each other's backs - and this is just one tiny example.

(Domestic) Help is on the Way!

So, we've hired a housekeeper. It may sound frivolous, but it's actually quite common here and not very expensive. With the number of people here (4 full time adults, 1 full time kid and 3 part time kids - and another family of four coming in a month or two) having some help is a necessity.

Keeping up with laundry and dishes alone (no dishwashers, no dryers) is no small feat. Lynds has been doing pretty much all the laundry, and while everyone tries to pitch in on the dishes it usually falls in Uncle J's lap. Add all that to a pretty big house (even by US Standards) with hardwood floors lots of beds to make, etc etc and it's no small task even for a full time person.

Rosa will be with us, from what I gather, from 8am to 5 pm Monday through Saturday. She doesn't cook, but she is very willing to learn. She wants to share a few meals with us, see what we eat and how we like it prepared before taking a crack at it. If I understand correctly, she is originally from the mountains of Peru, and I imagine what her family eats at mealtime is very different from how we eat.

Rosa's children (11 &14) will also be coming to the house when they finish their classes each day. I'm sure this will help her out a little, and with all the kids here in the afternoon it should be fun. Our little boy (5) is thrilled to have all  his cousins around each day - a big change where it was mostly the three of us back in Vegas.

Most of all this should take quite a bit of pressure off of Lynds. I think it's been a little tough coming back to her childhood home after 9 years to see what it looks like after not having a "woman's touch" for quite a while. Between finishing up her online classes, putting in 40 hrs a week and keeping up with the house - she's whipped.

Welcome, Rosa!

Dinner. It's What's for Lunch.

Another adjustment I've had to make is the big midday meal. We typically put together a simple breakfast - eggs, bread, yogurt ... and of course coffee - at least for me. I typically stick with the coffee and bread in the morning and head right to work. But ... lunch is a big deal, 3 course meal of meat, beans, rice, fresh bread, salad, vegetables and/or soup (sometimes all) typically occurring anywhere between 2pm and 4pm - usually after all the kids return from school. It's usually prepared by my brother-in-law, who makes time to be home when his kids get out of school, although we may be bringing in a new recruit to help with the household chores (more on that later... hopefully) so he can get his work schedule squared away.

anticuchos Photo Credit: http://miamidepartamentos.wordpress.com/

I would love to pitch in, but 1) I don't cook nearly as well as he does and 2) I don't have a grasp on any dishes that are even remotely Peruvian, which might send the whole house out of whack. 3) I've been so looking forward to the new food experiences that my pizza or meatloaf just don't excite me.

Late in the evening a small sandwich & some fresh fruit or something like that rounds out the meal schedule.

I'll tell you what, I need to really rethink my eating habits. Trying to get to 3pm on nothing but coffee and bread is a bigger adjustment than I had originally thought. By the afternoon meal, I'm famished. That said, even though I don't speak Spanish, it's a really nice break in the day to gather around the table with a big family, and share a meal without bedtime looming for our 5 year old.

Informal Spanish Speaking Group in Lima for Gringos and Others

I found a thread today at ExpatPeru.com (a darn good resource if you ask me) that talks about a "coffee group" that meets at a local Starbucks (yup, they have Starbucks here) on Monday afternoons. While I was initially interested in talking with some, at least somewhat, like-minded people, in English, what got my attention is that they have a little informal conversational Spanish lesson scheduled for an  hour before the actual meet.

 http://www.expatperu.com/expatforums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13651

Now I don't expect to actually learn any Spanish, but it seems like a great opportunity to picks some folks' brains about what kinds of things are imperative that I know. As it stands right now I don't actually speak enough Spanish to catch a cab to the actual meeting, so I'll need a chaperone.

Dollars in Peru

One thing I did remember from our first short trip to Peru was that any of the chain stores would accept dollars as payment. When we left the states, we made sure we had ample cash on us to handle whatever we would need at the airports, customs, etc - knowing whatever we had left over could easily be used to buy groceries until we had a chance to get our hands on some soles.

What I didn't remember is that when you use dollars, they need to be in absolute perfect condition. I has three one-hundred dollar bills that nobody would touch. Not the grocery store, not Western Union, not even the banks. Seriously, in a country where the average person makes $400/month no one would go anywhere near my cash, that was actually handed to me by a bank teller in the U.S.

Our only recourse was to take it to a bank that specializes in such things in downtown Lima. The catch? Easy. The exchange rate is 2.7 to 1 ... this "bank" gave us 2.2  - so it cost us about $50 just to cash the bills. We turned $300 into $250 just like that.

The lesson here is that before you head of to Peru, make sure to get nice, clean, crisp, (no rips or tears) greenback from your bank.

Internet Access in Lima

After convincing the powers that be that "Sure, I can do my job just as easily from Peru" (I work online), I must admit, I was just a little nervous. Sure, from what I read online getting the same 4MB speed in Lima from the cable company was just as easy as getting (DSL) in Vegas (10MB is also available here ... which it is NOT in Vegas).

My girl's family had it set up and running when we got here. I honestly have noticed no difference from back home. Also we purchased a prepaid 3g USB wireless card from Claro for those times we will be out and about. The 3g is really good here to, just slightly nocicble that it's slower. My only other 3g experience was with  my Android phone - and that was painful, so this was a nice surprise.

Thing to note - even for a prepaid usb wireless dongle you are going to need some paperwork - you need to present your "Tourist Card" which, from what I have read was stamped and handed to us when they stamped our passports. No clue where that thing is, so we had her brother buy them with his Peruvian driver's license.

Also note you will need the Tourist Card or your passport to use your credit card, at least at the big chain stores. Sodimac, Tottus etc. it's almost easier to carry cash.