La celebración de la independencia del Perú en Andina

Celebration of the Independence Day of Peru at Andina

On Wednesday, July 28, Peruvians and friends of Peru came to Andina to celebrate the Independence of Peru. From history, we know that after 400 years of Spain’s presence in our lands, and several attempts from the Peruvians to become free, on July 28, 1821, the leader of the liberating army, Don José de San Martín, standing on a balcony in the main square of Lima, holding our red and white flag, proclaimed the Independence of Peru from Spain, with the following words:

“From this moment, Peru is free and independent,
By the general will of its people,
And by the justice of its cause that God defends.
Long live the Motherland!
Long live Peru!
Long live Independence!”

Remembering those words and the meaning that they have in our memories, at Andina we sang our national anthem and made a toast for Peru, with a shot of Pisco Sour, our national drink, wishing peace and prosperity to our country and a productive and happy life for all Peruvians.

OUR INDEPENDENCE DAY IN PERU
In each city of Peru, it was a tradition to celebrate our Independence Day, placing early in the morning our Bandera Nacional (national flag), on a balcony or at the door of our houses, whose walls were recently painted by municipal order. As children, we knew that we should honor our Independence Day, by beautifying our houses, and by presenting ourselves in a dignified manner which meant tidying our room, taking a shower and wearing a nice dress and polished shoes.

In Cajamarca, the town of my birth—as in every city of Peru—our official celebration started with a Misa de Campaña, a Mass open to the public held outside of the Cathedral, with the formal attendance of all the civil, military and religious authorities. Lengthy speeches followed, given by the mayor of the city, the commander of the local army post, our representative, etc. The final event was a military parade, which we loved to watch. Long rows of soldiers marched with pride and energy, the deep and dry sound of their boots hitting the pavement of the streets, the patriotic music that the military band played while the soldiers were marching. All this made us have goose bumps; in that moment, we really felt the most profound love of our country, and we were ready to defend it with our own lives! The parade finished with a display of military jeeps, and ambulances carrying doctors and nurses. The doctors dressed as soldiers wearing a red cross on their arms, while nurses were in a white uniform, blue cape, and hats adorning the red cross.

Of course after the official celebration, each extended family continued enjoying our Independence Day in the same way that past generations did: with good food and dancing without restrictions of age; grandparents danced with grandchildren, moms and dads with their children, cousins with cousins, aunts with nephews, uncles with nieces. It was the perfect occasion to learn to dance and practice, alternating with ¡Viva el Perú! (Long live Peru) chanted by old and young.

I think we still partake in these activities to reassure ourselves that our country counts with the protection of God and the defense of our army, in case of any danger of invasion by foreign countries, which might put at risk our freedom.

Personally now, as an adult, I see that my country is already invaded by foreign influences in fashion, music and ways to behave; not counting the proliferation of foreign business chains related with pharmacies, markets, telephones, and the constant presence of multinational companies that come attracted by our gold and copper. Seeing such a state of things, I wonder and question myself:  Is Peru really a free and an independent country?  So far I can’t find a clear answer. I hope and pray that all of those invasions won’t make Peru lose not only its freedom, but more importantly, its identity!

OUR INDEPENDENCE DAY AT ANDINA
On July 28, 2010, 189 years later after the historical date in 1821, we celebrated our Independence Day in Andina’s event space, Tupai, in the Peruvian style: with good food and good music.

The menu for the occasion included traditional dishes, such as our classic cebiche, anticuchos de corazón, palta rellena, seco a la norteña, adobo de cerdo. Our delicious lucuma was present in an ice cream and in a mousse.

But the highlight of the night was a musical performance from a Seattle-based Afro-Peruvian group called De Cajón Project. Monica Rojas, the group’s director, is a wonderful Peruvian artist, whose passion to make known everywhere the cultural heritage of the blacks in Peru, inspired her to form the group.

I think that that night’s performance fulfilled Monica’s vision. All of the guests immensly enjoyed her presentation! We became electrified with the rhythm of peculiar instruments that skillfully played; among which included the cajón (a wooden box), the huiro (small gourd), and a quijada de burro (donkey jaw). The vibrant  guitars and beautiful voices captivated us. Thanks to Monica and all of the members of De Cajón Project. You made us proud of our Afro-Peruvian Music! You made that night magical!

In the 16th century, Spain brought black slaves from Africa to its colony of Peru, in order to work in the sugar and the cotton plantations of the coastal area. The slaves brought their clever ways of cooking (making delicious food with simple ingredients) and their music, enriching our country in ways that the Spaniards never imagined.

Peru assimilated the Spaniards’ contributions, melding them with both our native influences, as well as those of Chinese, Japanese and European immigrant groups, making our food and music the way they are: diverse and unique!

To complement the celebration of our Independence we showed beautiful Andean paintings by our honorary guest, Señor Alberto Soriano, native of Cuzco, Peru. Well-regarded in Peru and in other South American countries, Señor Soriano also showed by invitation at the Onda Gallery, a local gallery.

With the presence of such a fine artist and fine performers, Andina was proud to celebrate the Independence of our country with the Peru’s best music, art, food and good people.

Proud of my country, I finish this article with: VIVA EL PERÚ! (Long live Peru!).

Mama Doris.

The power of Small Wines

Maintain perspective with wines under $25

KEN COLLURA, WINE DIRECTOR

I have this memory from when I was a teenager. I had developed an insatiable appetite for Mandarin oranges. You know the kind; the ones that come in a can covered in sweet syrup. I would pop them open and devour one after the other. Then one day, after about four of these cans, I became quite ill, somewhat hallucinogenic, in fact. At the end of this orange-induced trip, I vowed to change my ways, and up until today I’ve never ingested another Mandarin orange.

The moral of the story is simple. Things of perceived brilliance can become tiresome if abused, or too much of a good thing probably isn’t so good. To put this logic into vinous terms: As tasty as Gaja Barbaresco is, I wouldn’t advise pouring it on your pancakes.

I’m pretty visible to the public, so I hear stories all the time. Acquaintances and customers rave, “I’ve got two cases of 2001 Domaine This in storage, and three boxes of the 99-point 2005 Château That. I just bought futures on the one that Parker gave 98 points to, you know, that 2009 blend from the Over-Priced and Highly-Publicized Wine Cellars.”

This blather is all grizzle to me. A three-toed sloth can find a claw to peck out an order on the Internet for Mouton-Rothschild. All that’s needed are those magnificent ratings and some cash in the bank. When I hear people chortling about how many great bottles they’ve had recently, it occurs to me that perspective has been lost.

If one drinks great wine on a daily basis, these wines cease to be special. Even greatness can become commonplace in the face of redundancy. As an example, think about what it’s like being the night watchman at the Louvre.

Do I drink the great ones myself? Every now and then. But what I really crave, what I search for with the same enthusiasm as a Piedmontese pig rooting around for truffles in the forest, are Small Wines.

Small Wines usually retail for $25 and under and are rarely reviewed or discussed in the press. In fact, it’s mainly only those similarly afflicted that seem to pay attention to them. They can be Cabernet Franc or Chenin blanc from the France’s Loire Valley; Petite Sirah from California; garnacha from Spain; malbec from Argentina; carménère from Chile; blends from the Rhône Valley and the south of France; Auxerrois and riesling from Oregon; barbera from Italy. What self-respecting wine snob would ever be caught dead with this stuff in his glass? E-mail me at ken@andinarestaurant.com if you’d like some recommendations, and good luck in finding a few gems. If you do, don’t go wild and buy everything. Try to save a few bottles for me.

Mistura and the fate of Peruvian cuisine

NINA LARY

“This is Mistura, a feast where we gather together around our pots and fires to celebrate our differences, surprise ourselves with our creativity, render homage to tradition, and place our actions for culture and biodiversity,” says Gastón Acurio, Peru’s prodigal chef and president of the Mistura, Peru’s annual gastronomic fair.

Last year over 300,000 people attended from across the globe. And this September 7-12, chefs, rural cooks and farmers come together with scholars, street vendors, eaters, lovers and restauranteurs at Lima’s Parque de la Exposición for a week-long explosion of eating, education and conversation.

In its third year, Mistura is riding the current wave of global obssession with Peruvian cuisine. Right now Peru is hot: sexy, not spicy. International media buzz has been building ever since a 2004 article in The Economist declared it “one of the world’s dozen or so great cuisines.” Publications from Food and Wine to Time, have written about the country’s food and culture in the past two years. Yet most of the coverage rakes over the same few topics: the virtues of Lima’s cebicherías, Gastón Acurio and Sacred Valley food, stopping occasionally for quaint photo ops at colorful Andean markets.

It would seem the Peruvian Amazon has disappeared into the great mountains to its west and Northern Andean regions like Cajamarca hardly make a peep. The majority of the media’s love affair with Peru focuses on easy-to-digest exportable images of Peruvian dishes and concepts, much like the Tourist Authority of Thailand’s international attempt to market Pad Thai as the “national” dish. The success of which is evidenced by walking into any Thai joint in the United States.

In articles such as one on the popular website: enperublog.com, it’s clear that most of the coverage runs shallow. “Since 2006,” writes author Stuart Starr, ” Peruvians have learned to take great pride in their cuisine.” Peruvian cuisine has evolved over thousands of years to encompass influence from Spain, China, Japan and Italy. In 2006, the rest of the world may have stood to attention, but Peruvians have always taken pride in their bounty and technique.

Mistura is an astronomical event. The edible portion alone includes: anticucho, tamale, juane and cebiche vendors, restaurants from across the globe sampling their best dishes, a bread boutique with over 40 varieties of Peruvian bread crafted by master bakers, and the most popular—cocinas rusticas (rustic kitchens), where rural cooks recreate rustic cooking techniques generally used only in the countryside or traditional communities. Pachamanca, clay oven cooking, and caja china are some of Peru’s most ancient cooking methods and just witnessing them moves viewers toward heightened cultural awareness.

This gustatory bonanza aims to bring a deeper comprehension of the cuisines, cultural practices and ethical discussions from across Peru through lectures, awards, cooking contests and a series of round table discussions such as Nikkei Passion, Peruvian cuisine translated in the United States and an inside look at El Bulli. Mistura lets attendees feel, see, hear and taste the richness and depth of Peruvian cuisine firsthand instead of reading another 1,500 words on cebiche.