Love notes from Siel is a weekly newsletter from Siel, who’s currently on a Remote Year trip around the world. If you love it, subscribe for free.
Dear friend —
I have two tips for not dying in Lima. One: Don’t drink the tap water — it’s got pathogens. Two: Don’t cross the street boldly — cars, not pedestrians, have the right of way.
The water rule’s been easy to follow — I’ve traveled to other places without potable tap water before. But the first few days, I almost killed myself crossing the street. One morning, I forgot and, at a crosswalk, just straight up stepped in front of a car. Honk! Honk! The driver was incensed, though to his credit, he refrained from running me over.
“Lo siento!” I yelped, then scampered across —
People here are generally kind though, and very patient when you attempt to speak Spanish. It’s a genial, friendly culture despite the fact that Lima is a big, sprawling city — close to ten million people spread over a thousand square miles. Right now, masks are required everywhere: single masks most places, double masks in highly-trafficked places like grocery stores, and double masks plus a face shield should you get on a train.
Which is why, after surviving the street crossing I popped into a Mifarma, a near-ubiquitous drugstore chain here. “Hola, como estas!” I said boldly, then when the guy behind the counter replied with a long sentence, added more meekly, “No comprendo, lo siento….”
Eventually he figured out I wanted disposable masks — and brought out a big box of 50. “Mucho?” I said, then, “Uno momento,” then after consulting Google Translate, “Menos?” He shook his head, 50 was the smallest box they had. But he pointed at a single reusable mask.
“Si!” I said. While he rang up the mask, I studied it. It was white with a big red stripe, plus the number 12 on the corner. “Por que doce?” I asked, feeling bold again: I’d just learned my Spanish numbers up to 100, thanks to Babbel. The man mimicked kicking a ball — the number seemed to have something to do with the Peruvian soccer team.
“Gracias!” As I left the shop I donned the mask over the one I was wearing and immediately felt more Peruvian. The day was overcast, as most days are in Lima, gray and cloudy, the fog never really burning off the beach. Fellow flaneurs brushed by in their puffy coats. I went to a grocery store and bought a gigantic bottle of agua, and at the checkout, figured out bolsa means bag —
Maybe by the end of my time in South America I’ll be able to write most of my love notes in Spanish.
Later that night, I met up with a friend of my sister’s who happened to be in Lima. On his suggestion we went to a Peruvian-Japanese fusion restaurant labeled $$$$ on the internet — YOLO, I thought, I should splurge at least once while in Lima! I ate maki rolls plus a seafood-plantain-rice skillet dish plus mariscos al fuego — oyster shells heaped with sauteed seafood, displayed around a little volcano-like fire.
The next day I logged onto Mint and learned the dollar cost of my meal: $22.41. My 10-minute Uber ride home: $2.44.
Which is to say, there’s a lot I love about Lima. Walkable neighborhoods, well-maintained parks, a path with gorgeous views running along the coastline. One unusually sunny Saturday, the pebbled beach brought out bikini-clad sunbathers, plus a long row of handsome would-be surf instructors calling out their services to passers-by.
Could I live here? The long rows of overcast days may be a bit too gloomy for me after decades of living in southern California. Plus, despite sticking to bottled water, my stomach has been not quite right for more than a week now, though not so not quite right as to be debilitating. Still, I’ve been loving the ceviche, and chifles, and chifa. Maybe my tummy will toughen up over time?
Love,
Siel
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How can we live better? Work less. “For too many of us, if we aren’t breaking our bodies, then we’re drowning in trivial email. This is not the purpose of a human life.”
How to leave QAnon. “What should the public health response be to those who buy into destructive, even violent, beliefs? Is there more we could be doing to help people who feel lost in a world that is so confusing and hard? Could it have been me, or you?”
How a Christian reform center punishes “wayward” girls. “For talking, Emma and several other girls were placed on ‘Relationship Restriction.’ Pairs of students who display ‘unhealthy behaviors’ are told to act as if the other were dead. They must stay several feet apart, and eye contact is forbidden.”