Oh Peru! Part 4: Roasted Guinea Pigs and Skulls in the kitchen in the Quaint Village of Ollyantambo

We were invited into the home of one of the residents of Ollantaytambo, a town and an Inca archaeological site in Southern Peru. Ollantaytambo dates from the late 15th century and has some of the oldest continuously occupied dwellings in South America. Locals in traditional dress amble along the narrow, cobbled streets flanked by ancient stone walls and the ever-present backdrop of the mountains that straddle Peru’s sacred valley. Impressive Inka ruins stand high as a reminder of the times pre-conquistador whilst the buzz and colour of the bustling markets hums in the village below…  Jaiya made friends with every stray dog we encounter. The strays are remarkably healthy in Peru (a nice change from Panama and Columbia…)

We had seen the roasted guinea pigs impaled on sticks as we whizzed passed the street vendors on the drive the previous night. We knew that cuy (pronounced ‘kwee’) has been a traditional Peruvian meal for some 5000 years and each area seems to have a specialty way of cooking them. As we stepped into the one-room (with mezzanine) family home we found 6-8 guinea pigs running around on the floor, feeding off the veggie scraps from the meal preparation (and awaiting their turn to become the meal) They roast them whole, including skin, eyes and teeth… apparently they are quite delicious but we couldn’t quite bring ourselves to try…

The kitchen area of the home also had an intriguing shrine complete with ancestral skulls, a shrivelled condor head and feet and other offerings to long gone relatives. …The teenager sitting texting on the bed texting on his phone was friendly but seemed rather perplexed and bemused at our interest in both the squeaking guinea pigs and his grand fathers skull.

As we drove through the sacred valley we wondered about the street ‘tiendas’ that displayed red plastic bags on the end of long bamboo poles. Our driver pointed excitedly at one saying “The Chicha is ready! The Chicha is ready!” It turns out that Chicha is a corn based beer traditionally made by using saliva to activate the fermentation process…. We understand that except for some remote, mountainous places in Peru, the traditional method has now been replaced by malted barley…

Spit or no spit, the process takes some time and the bamboo poles that hang the red plastic signalling “The Chicha is ready!” is much awaited by the villagers returning home from the fields in the late afternoon…   

Coming soon: The tourist mecca of Machu Picchu and the arty town of Cusco