Tranquilo

Last Saturday's ritual was repeated today, with a relatively lazy morning punctuated by K entering a 'flash fiction' writing competition online. The event is timed and requires being connected to the internet at the specified hour. This is no mean feat in our bungalow's remote location, where the phone signal comes and goes, and requires my waving the phone about outside in the vain attempt to connect for long enough for K to submit her story by the deadline.

Taking in the view on the way to town

After this, we walked into town for lunch at a small vegetarian stall in the Mercado San Blas. We had lunch at what we take to be Govinda Lila's stall, but they are packed so closely together as to be indistinguishable from one another, and we ate cheek-by-jowl with the other patrons. Whatever the stall was called, it offered a vegetarian menu, comprising a simple but tasty soup of pasta (fideo) and potato, followed by lentils and rice with fried egg and a salad. With a herbal tea, this set us back 5 soles each.

Lentejas

Having economised on lunch, we bought a few supplies from the market and dropped by Norton Rat's (a ridiculous name) - a British-style pub complete with four dartboards and a tiny ledge balcony overlooking the Plaza de Armas, on which a few stools give patrons the opportunity to people watch while they sup their pint. A pint of Pale Ale went down rather nicely while looking out over the centre of Cusco.

We left Norton Rat's for a wander in the sunshine followed by the cosy confines of La Bodega 138, which offered a wider range of Peruvian beer, better WiFi and shelter from the intense sun. There, while K begged me to share the obscenely good tiramisu with her, I selected a couple of beers from the long list.

La pared de cervezas

Maddock's Volcanic Red Ale proved itself to be an excellent example of the style, with a big malt body and a hint of spice. The intriguing Magdalena Muerticita (a double IPA) was sadly over carbonated and shot out of the bottle as soon as opened. The waitress nodded knowingly as I coaxed the foam into two glasses. "Hay mucha espuma," she commiserated.

Roasted yuca

Back at home again, we had a supper of roasted yuca with guacamole, Andean cheese, and bread, sat in front of the fire and a film.