Travel Tip 49
My top tip for understanding local culture
After five years in Cusco, I’ve learned a lot about local culture, but nowhere else have I spent so much time dedicated to learning about local culture. Everywhere else, I have a week or two to learn as much as I can. The best way is with a series of local guides.
A fourth of a cuy (guinea pig) served with potatoes and torrejas, fried egg batter with vegetables.
The local guides I’ve hired for day tours are the ones who taught me the most.
When I’m somewhere for a week or so, I like to hire multiple local guides: a new one each day. That way I get several perspectives on the same place. It’s best if I can hire a variety of people, to get different perspectives. Unfortunately, most guides I’ve found around the globe are young men, so it’s hard to get much variety in age and gender.
One thing I like about having a different guide every day is that if one guide didn’t explain something well, or couldn’t answer my question, I can ask the same question again the next day.
Food is a very important part of local culture for me, but as a vegetarian/pescatarian I don’t always want to try all the local dishes. I like asking guides what their favorite dishes are, and why. It gives me different perspectives on which dishes are important and why – without having to eat all of them.
I think this pineapple ceviche was meant to be shared between two or three people, but it was so good I ate it all.
Whether it’s food, music, clothes, holidays, or any other aspect of local culture, trained guides are the most likely to be able to answer my questions. They’re used to explaining things to foreigners in a way that most locals never have to try to explain their own culture.
This week’s tip is short because it’s Corpus Christi and I’ve been spending a lot of time in Cusco’s Plaza de Armas. The holiday season has begun and there are events and dances in the plaza every day through the end of June.
Statues of Cusco’s most important saints and virgins wait their turn to parade around the plaza.
Blog
The way Cusco celebrates Corpus Christi is so very Andean. This blog explains the Inca roots to many of Cusco’s traditions and has all the tips you need to enjoy this important holiday.
The tapas at Cicciolina are the best in Cusco.
Article
The ten best restaurants in Cusco
This was a very fun article to write. I ate my way through these restaurants and went back to a few just for more photos. Local culture is so often best understood through food.