We rounded out our China adventure with a trip into the beautiful countryside around Guilin and Yangshuo.  This area is located in south-central China, about a two hour flight west of Shanghai.  It's famous for its dramatic karst mountain peaks, beautiful rivers and the wide variety of outdoor activities available to visitors.  

Getting There
You can't fly directly to Yangshuo.  The fastest way to get there is to fly to Guilin and then take a 1.5 hour bus trip to Yangshuo. Our flight from Shanghai arrived late at night so we stayed in the city of Guilin for the evening and then took a mid-day bus the next day to the town of Yangshuo.  We were a little worried about communicating with the folks at the bus station since we were in a smaller Chinese town.  While they didn't speak English, they understood Yangshuo and Express.  All signage at the bus station was in Chinese characters so we would show our ticket to the attendants at the terminals and they would point us in the right direction.  The ride was on an older, beat up coach bus, but it got us there and it only cost us 22 yuan (about USD4).  

The bus dropped us off in the middle of Yangshuo.  We'd read a lot of reviews of this area, so we knew that the town of Yangshuo itself drew a lot of visitors and would be jammed packed with hawkers aggressively trying to sell everything under the sun.  We purposely chose a hotel outside of town so we stepped off the bus and walked a few steps to the cab stand to get out of the madness that was downtown Yangshuo! 

Phoenix Pagoda
We unknowingly scored huge with our choice of hotel here.  We booked a room at an inn called the Phoenix Pagoda Fonglou Retreat, knowing only that it was located about 15 minutes outside of Yangshuo and had received some good reviews online.  While the hotel room was very rustic, it was incredibly comfortable and peaceful. But the best part of this place was the service and the food.  The people who work here are warm, friendly and really take care of you.   

Upon arrival, we met the hotel's owner, a Taiwanese guy named Jerry who we got to know pretty well over the next few days.  Jerry has a really interesting background, speaks perfect English (he lived in the US for a few years while in the military), and is very enthusiastic and active.  He splits his time between overseeing the Asian arm of a global company, and running this hotel which he opened two years ago in his favorite spot in China - Yangshuo.  

After checking in and meeting Jerry, we went on a quick bike ride to orient ourselves.  The hotel has a variety of street bikes and mountain bikes guests can use.  We chose mountain bikes most of the time as there are some amazing off-road trails that you can explore, which take you through the countryside and small villages.  After our ride, we headed back to the hotel for an incredible meal of the local specialty - beer fish - as well as an amazing pumpkin dish and a side of spicy fried tofu.  Dinner is served on the hotel's beautiful roof deck.  After this home-cooked meal, we knew we'd be doing most of our eating at the hotel - this was the best food we'd had so far in China!  The chef loved us because we cleaned our plates at every meal.  Here are some of the things we had over the next couple of days.

Exploring Beautiful Yangshuo
For our first couple of days here, we were some of the only guests at the hotel.    We were incredibly lucky, because Jerry took us on different hikes and bike rides each morning to view the stunning scenery, and to explore the town and meet some of the local people.  Here are some of the things we saw over the next few days, both on our morning hikes with Jerry and while out exploring on our own.

After four nights in Yangshuo, we decided we could have easily spent more time here.  We highly recommend this area to anyone planning a trip to China, and above all, recommend the Phoenix Pagoda Fonglou Retreat and the incredible staff, food and hospitality there. 

After securing our Chinese visas in Hong Kong, we were off to visit the mainland! Our first stop was Beijing, where we'd stay for 5 nights.  We got a great rate on a room at the Park Plaza which is located in a very nice area of the city full of offices, upscale malls and a pedestrian shopping area.  We considered staying at one of the traditional locally-owned courtyard-style Chinese hotels, but opted to go with a more mainstream hotel because we really didn't know what to expect from the city and felt comfortable that at least the hotel had English-speaking staff and a concierge that could help us to get our bearings.  

Lucky Us
We were very lucky in Beijing.  My cousin, Antonio, works for a large tech company in Beijing and generously offered us use of his driver and his administrative assistant who is fluent in English.  He and his family were out of the country on vacation during our visit, so unfortunately we didn't have the chance to see them.  We also received a list of things to do in China from our friend CJ, who has spent a lot of time in this country.  It was incredibly helpful and saved us lots of planning time.  We gave our list to Antonio's admin who provided us with feedback and then set up our driver for the next few days.  Easy!  We'd initially thought of hiring a guide in China, but with Antonio's driver & admin, CJs recommendations and our guide book we felt comfortable without one. 

First Impression
Our driver picked us up from the airport and we made the half-hour drive to the hotel with our eyes glued to the window, as we were so curious to finally see this famous Chinese city.  After we checked into the hotel, we spent the afternoon checking out the immediate area around the hotel.  It was very modern, and full of luxury malls and fancy car dealerships.  It reminded me of LA without the palm trees.  There were several businesses in the area, resulting in sidewalks full of well-suited young professionals and coffee shops on every block.  This was so far off from what we both expected. We thought it would look a little more like the streets of Sheung Wan in Hong Kong - densely packed narrow streets with old buildings, shops, cars, bikes and people. While there were a lot of people, it was very spacious, modern and organized.  Aside from the Chinese characters everywhere and the occasional Chinese-style architecture, this could have been a city in the US. 

The Great Wall of China
Our first full day was a busy one.  Our driver picked us up at 6:30am and took us to Mutianyu - one of the many sites along the wall.  It was about an hour and a half ride, and we arrived right after the site opened for the day, and before all the locals and  hawkers set up shop.   Initially we had planned to stop off at the Ming Tombs on the way back, but ended up scrapping this idea as it was a bit out of the way.  

When we arrived, we were among the first people to buy chair lift tickets that day. No one was there. We had the wall to ourselves and it was glorious!

We spent just under 3 hours on the wall, enjoying the picture perfect day. After about an hour, people started to trickle in.  After about 2 hours, the tour buses started to arrive and bigger groups began passing by.  Many of them were tourists from other parts of China that likely don't see a lot of western visitors.  As a result, we became part of the tourist attraction, and they would often ask us to pose for a picture. 

We were pretty psyched for the toboggan ride down the mountain.  The guy working the toboggan spoke a little English and chatted with us bit.  He noticed the Chinese characters on Chris' Team Barbier shirt which supposedly say something along the lines of Carpe Diem or You only live once.  He confirmed the translation was similar, although not quite the same.  He then wrote our names in Chinese characters on our hands. 

The ride down was a lot of fun.  We were both cautious at first, frequently using the brakes.  As we became more confident in our tobogganing abilities, we flew down the second half of the course.  

Olympic Park
On our way back from the wall, we stopped off to check out Beijing's Olympic Park, home to the games of the 2008 Olympiad.  We remembered some of the famous structures, such as the distinctive bird's nest stadium and aquacube where the swimming events were held.

Whoopsies: The beef costs how much?!?
Chris was dying to see what the Peking Duck tasted like in Peking, so we did a bit of research and ended up heading to DaDong, a famous roast duck joint near our hotel. To reach DaDong, you have to go into - you guessed it - a mall, and take the elevator up to the fifth floor.  We emerged into the restaurant, which was furnished with modern decor and a giant brick oven area in the middle with lots of ducks waiting to be roasted.  We showed up around 7 and the place was packed.  We had about a twenty-minute wait at the bar (as a side note, it seems that the practice of having a drink at the bar while waiting for one's table is a somewhat Western phenomenon, as we seemed to be the only ones doing this!).  We were seated and Chris, of course, ordered his long-awaited duck.  

The duck is served not by the portion, but by the duck.  Since I don't eat birds, this meant Chris would have an entire duck to himself.  I scoured the tome-like menu for some alternative choices and settled on an interestingly presented papaya salad, pumpkin soup and some beef cubes served with truffle and lime salt.  

Soon, the food began to trickle in.  The duck is carved table-side and is served with the traditional thin pancakes, sauce (in China they use a sauce made from fermented berries instead of plum sauce), and condiments such as julienned onion, radish, cucumbers and pureed garlic.  You are also given a bowl of large sugar crystals.  You are supposed to dip the pieces of duck skin in the sugar to give it a crispier texture and sweeter flavor.  (Traditionally, having roast duck in Peking meant eating only the skin, while the rest of the meat was used in other dishes, such as soups.  Today the dish is typically served with the meat as well).

True to his word, Chris ended up devouring the entire duck single-handedly.  I really enjoyed my food too!  The beef cubes were fabulous and the truffle and lime salt gave it a very interesting flavor. Chris even had to help me with the beef because I was so stuffed.   Together, we finished all but four or five of the beef cubes.   The waitress was shocked that we hadn't finished it off and asked if we were absolutely sure we didn't want the last of the beef.  But we could not do it!  We were surprised to find out that we were given complimentary desserts of tiny apples served in a sea of dry ice, and sweet rice pudding.  Yum.

It was finally time to ask for the check and we were dealt a shocking blow by the final tally.  There was one line item for 880 Yuan that we didn't recognize (it was all in Chinese characters).  880 Yuan converts to about 150 USD, and this comprised the vast majority of the overall bill.  It turned out to be our beef cubes.  We could not believe any beef could cost so much and asked to see the menu again to confirm.  Sure enough, there it was.  Clearly, I did the conversion incorrectly in my head when ordering and must have had a decimal in the wrong place (I was thinking $15 or so).   Now it seemed to all make sense to the waitstaff, who previously mistook us for high-rollers when we didn't finish every morsel of this expensive dish!

We later looked into my foolish mistake and ascertained that we had ordered Wagyu beef  (also known as Kobe beef in Japan).  While I was familiar with Kobe beef, I had never heard of the term Wagyu, thus had no idea to double check the price.  This is the most expensive beef in the world because the cows are genetically predisposed to marbling, which keeps the meat from getting tough.  Supposedly, the cows are also given nothing but beer to drink and receive regular massages while listening to classical music.  I must say the beef was tasty, but also by far the most expensive dish I've ever ordered in my life.  I guess these are the pitfalls of switching currencies every few days.  It was an expensive lesson learned, and I will be heavily scrutinizing all menu prices henceforth!

We spent the night digesting our pricey beef and getting ready for our next day's adventures at the Temple of Heaven and Forbidden City...

Icelanders are known for many things, chief among them, their healthy appetite for some of earths most adorable creatures.  Here are a but a few:

Puffin and pony were too bold a leap for us to make, so instead we decided to start small with earth's largest animal - whale.

Minke whale is widely available in Reykjavik restaurants.  We had a really great seafood dinner in Iceland, anchored by the dish shown below.

The whale was blackened outside and raw inside.  It was served with potatoes, mini corn on the cobs, corn meal puree and some random pieces of popcorn.  The combination worked very well.  The meat was red, akin to a fresh tuna steak, but with a totally different taste.  It was unlike anything we'd eaten before.  But it was sensational.  If you find yourself in Iceland (or Japan, where I hear it's also available), definitely give it a try.  

Africa presents a veritable paradise for the sampler of exotic meats.  Here are some of the creatures I enjoyed whilst there:

Shown below is a plate featuring many of the above, courtesy of Momma Africa in Cape Town.  From right to left, crocodile with peanut sauce, springbok, ostrich kebab, kudu, and a sausage made of a combo of kudu and springbok.  The concoction on the left is a mash made from corn meal called pap n' wors, with tomato sauce atop.   

Verdicts?  

Starting on the right:  I've had alligator on several occasions which, to me, has been virtually indiscernible from chicken.  I expected something similar from its reptilian cousin.  In fact, the croc had a taste all its own.  It was interesting, but I found the peanut relish, depicted above as the orangeish heap on top of the meat, to be the best part.  The peanut relish actually added a bit to it, but the meat itself did not do much for me.  

The sausage had lots of malay spice in it, and that is primarily what gave it flavor.  It was quite tasty, but not sure it had much to do with the meat. 

I've also had ostrich before, and knew pretty much what to expect.  It is a fine beef alternative, and one which I will continue to eat with pleasure, but also not terribly unusual.

Which brings us to the highlights: kudu and springbok.  Both of these deer cousins tasted more beef-like than deer-like to us.  Given their red meatiness, Eva actually sampled these with me!  Between the two, our favorite was easily the springbok.  It tasted like an exceptional cut of steak.  Extremely flavorful, tender, and perfectly cooked.  The kudu was a strong second, but not quite as tender a cut of meat as the springbok.

We also tasted wildebeest at Ryan's Kitchen in Franshhoek, which was another tasty beef-like meat.  It was a tender medallion prepared with pancetta and a sauce made from a local stout beer and honey.  It was a solid protein, but the award for the meat itself still goes to the springbok (though Ryan's preparation put Momma's to shame).

Finally, we are left with the McDonald's of the bush, the omnipresent impala.  Ryan, the chef at Tanda Tula (not to be confused with Ryan of Ryan's Kitchen), made this into a stew, which was then cooked over charcoal.  The stew itself was excellent, although I am not sure whether it was the impala or Ryan's culinary magic.  It may well be one of those multipurpose meats that can be enjoyed in a wide variety of preparations.  

So there you have my recap of some of the more interesting animals we ate in Africa.  Some were tastier than others, but all were a wild adventure.

Note: Photos of springbok and crocodile courtesy of Google Images. All other images are from our travels.

After a few days in Cape Town, we drove out to South Africa's famous winelands.  We've been to a few other well-known wine regions including Napa/Sonoma/Healdsburg in California and Marlborough in New Zealand.  While these regions are both stunning, we liked South Africa's Winelands the best because of their unique landscape, friendly locals, phenomenal red wines and amazing (and affordable!) food.  

Similar to California's wine region, the Winelands consist of a number of small towns.  The biggest is Stellenbosch, which is full of great wineries, but the town center is pretty crowded with tourists, students and people who work in the area. The next largest town is Franschhoek  which consists of beautiful vineyards, a small town and some of the world's best restauarants. Then there are smaller towns like Paarl, where the town itself is nothing to write home about, but the vineyards are very pretty. 

Our brother-in-law, Jerry, is a chef and long time wine connoisseur, so he had some connections with a few wineries in South Africa. Thanks to said connections, we had a nice list of places to visit! We also ventured out on our own and made some great discoveries.  

We did a lot in just 3 days so for this entry, we will list our favorites.  In case you don't know us, we should note that we are, by no means, food & wine experts.  We are, however, fortunate in that we have very similar tastes in wine, so we tended to favor the same wines during our Winelands tour.  Some have even suggested that we had less sophisticated palates (ahem...cork dork at New Zealand's Serasin winery).   We just like what we like.  As a preface to the following, we should mention that we only made it to about eight wineries, and tasted 3-8 wines at each place.  Therefore, we are by no means qualified to issue the following awards.  However, we will do so anyway.  So without further ado, here are our Wineland Awards:

Best Red Wines:

First place: Boekenhoutskloof's flagship Syrah shown in the picture below (seven chairs on the label).  We wanted to buy a bottle, but they only sell it by the case and, sadly, do not ship to the US. We tasted this on our 3rd day in the Winelands and it was easily the best red we had during our visit. 
  
Second place: a tie between Choloclate Block (also a Boekenhoutskloof wine - it's second-tier offering) and Mont Rochelle's 2007 Syrah.  We tasted the Mont Rochelle at dinner at Ryan's Kitchen the first night and loved it so we went to the vineyard the next day and picked up a bottle.  It is really a shame (or maybe a blessing) that none of these places ship to Massachusetts! 

Best White Wines:

First place: Grand Provence Sauvignon Blanc.  Normally we enjoy Sauvy's from New Zealand, and this wine was very close to one of our favorites (as it happens, the one our unsophisticated palates were ridiculed for enjoying, so take this one for what it's worth!)  It turns out they use grapes from the coastal region, similar to those in New Zealand, while others source their Sauvy grapes farther inland.  These other local attempts at Sauvignon Blancs fell a bit short for us.

Second place:  Hamilton Russell Chardonnay.  Typically we do not like Chardonnays due to their heft and full, buttery taste.  This wine, however, was lighter and crisp with a great flavor.  They use clay barrels in combination with oak, which gives it this taste.

Best Pinotage:

Pinotage is a red wine variety produced exclusively in South Africa.  We tried several of these at various wineries, but really only cared for one of them, the Pinotage produced at Neil Ellis winery.  Apparently, about 80% of the Pinotage grapes burned last summer due to excessive heat, so it may be a while before production levels are restored.

Best View:

First place:  The beautiful view from Tokara, which is perched atop a hill on the main route between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek.  The bright colors and diagonal lines of the vineyard contrasted with the blue sky.

Second place: Delaire Graff's main outdoor patio. The owners of this vineyard also own a diamond business and have poured a lot of money into this place. It's decadent.  The wines were not our favorite, but we really enjoyed the stunning view of the fall leaves and colorful gardens surrounding the property. 

Best Dinner:

We ate at a place called Ryan's Kitchen in Franshhoek. Supposedly you can't get a table at this place in the high season, but this time of year, you can walk in.  It was our good fortune.  While the menu was very interesting we opted for the fixed menu chosen by the chef, which ended up consisting of the following:

• Amuse-bouche:  Beet mousse with crispy mushroom crumbles served in a miniature pail
  
• 1st Course: Tuna tartare in a tunnel made of frozen vegetable puree with seaweed gelatin cubes, aubergine and some sort of dust that made the tuna effervescent
  
• 2nd Course: Minced lamb in a thin pancake / crepe with chopped nuts, white pepper meringue and roasted red pepper 
  
• 3rd Course: Wildebeest medallions on a bed of minced green beans with duck fat french fry cubes
  
• Dessert: Guava souffle with caramel ice cream and some sort of chocolate concoction with pumpkin seed oil ice cream. The guava souffle was one of my all time favorite desserts!
  

This was our favorite/most interesting meal from South Africa.  We also had dinner at The Common Room which was not nearly as creative or delicious.

Most Relaxing:

We had lunch at La Motte winery.  This winery is owned by the same family that owns (or owned) large stakes in a number of famous luxury brands, such as Cartier. The wine estate is expansive and beautiful, and there was a great spot for lunch where we spent a few hours eating, exploring the grounds and of course, sampling the wine.  Here are a few photos:

Best Decor:

Part of the fun of visiting all of these wineries is seeing how each has chosen to decorate its facilities and wine tasting area.  Each is different based on the owner's personal style and tastes.  While it's tough to choose, for us, first place goes to the tasting room at Grand Provence, which was certainly not the most elaborately decorated place we visited, but had great style.

Best Lodging:

This isn't really an award because we only stayed at one place in the Winelands, but we thought it was worth mentioning because it was wonderful!  We stayed at a guesthouse called Fransvliet outside of Franschhoek.  It consists of 4 lovely cottages situated in the garden with a great view of the vines and the mountains.  The manager, Victor, was incredibly hospitable and the owner, Shirley, was very friendly. Shirley owned a cooking school in Johannesburg for many years and recently decided to retire to Franschhoek.  Victor also worked with her at the cooking school, and moved his family to Franschhoek to manage the property. 

The rooms are massive and nicely decorated by Shirley's daughter who is an interior designer. The bathroom is huge, with a claw foot tub, heated floors, and wonderful bath products (I loved the lotion!). Each room has a wood burning stove and two complimentary bottles of wine - a perfect combination for a cool winter's night.  

Another thing worth calling out is the breakfast. The amazing breakfast!!! We ate at gourmet breakfast in the main  house every single morning. Here is a sample of our menu:

-A fantastic juice made from ginger, lime, apple and pear
-Yogurt with fresh warmed berries from the orchard outside
-Cappuccino and fresh breads & pastries
-Eggs with portabello mushrooms and bacon

If you ever make it out to the Winelands, definitely stay here!

Best Bartender:

We stopped into Tokara primarily to see the grounds and the view, but ended up having a tasting and spent probably an hour talking to the bartender who helped us out.  He was very young, maybe early 20's, but very passionate and knowledgeable about wine. He talked about wines from different regions - inside and out of South Africa. We think he may be a winemaker some time soon!

Best Wildlife:

Here are a few more local oddities that should be quickly addressed:

1. Chicharrones

This is a stall at the central market in Puno, Peru.  The person in the photo is shopping for chicharrones - fried pork rinds.  And shown in the picture is one of dozens of massive bags of pork rinds on hand in this stall alone (one of many in the chicharrones section of the market).
These are consumed everywhere in Peru, and also in Colombia.   

While in the US, the chicharrones shown above are the type most familiar to us, here in Peru, the term is used to describe any type of fried pork.  A typical preparation is to deep-fry pork chunks and serve with lots of oil, potatoes and a citrus-based seasoning.  I had this type in a sandwich from a stand in Cusco, complemented with some lettuce, tomato, onion, potato sticks and a mayo-based seasoned sauce.  

It can also refer to fried chunks of pork fat, which is served as a component of a larger dish.  As an example, one afternoon in Bogota, I had a lunch which consisted of a mix of seasoned ground beef, beans, plantains, avocado, a fried egg and topped off with a nice juicy chunk of fried pork fat. It was awesome.

2.  Inca Kola

Inca Kola is sold and consumed everywhere in Peru.  It's their Coke.  Wherever you go, you will find Peruvian families sitting around a table sharing a 4 or 5 liter bottle of the stuff.  I took this one out of our minibar the day before we left Peru as I had somehow not yet managed to sample the stuff (though I had heard warnings from several other visitors that I was bound to hate it).  

In case it is not apparent in the above photo, it was pretty awful.  Imagine drinking liquified bubble gum, only sweeter.  The appearance leaves a bit to be desired as well.  

3.  Churros with guava cream

As shown in Eva's previous post, we had this dessert one day after lunch.  Churros are, of course, widely consumed in much of the Spanish-speaking world.  Typically these sticks of deep-fried, sugar-coated goodness are served alone or with a chocolate sauce (very common in Spain). In this case, there was a bit of a twist, and the sauce consisted of some sort of guava-cream concoction.  While we have had many interesting, creative desserts along the trip so far, I thought this one was worth particular mention.  We all thought it was one of the best desserts we've had!

Stay tuned for the next episode, where we'll delve into African game.  We've only been here two days and already have lots of material...

In Aguas Calientes, the small town at the base of Machu Picchu, we were drawn into a local bar by the live music wafting out into the street.  The band consisted of five local gents with flowing Inca manes going to town on the omnipresent pan flute to the delight of a full house of tourists and locals alike.  With Machu Picchu only a short distance away, it was indeed magical.  Amidst this backdrop, what better place, we thought, to sample the alpaca?

Alpaca holds a place of distinction as a staple food in Inca culture.  It is lauded by those in the know for its leanness, lack of cholesterol, and most of all for its distinctive flavor.  

The menu at this particular restaurant featured at least ten different preparations of alpaca.  For me, the best way to try it out was to keep it simple, corrupting its natural flavor as little as possible.  I therefore selected the grilled alpaca steak with avocado and a side of potatoes.  I placed my order and received a satisfied nod from the Inca waiter, who apparently respected my choice of fare.  Eva, who unfortunately does not boast the same lead-lined digestive system that will allow me to continue to post these entries during our trip, ordered a ham sandwich, which received a somewhat less enthusiastic response.  

Here is what showed up a little while later.  As a disclaimer, the dish shown here is being visually short-changed by the harsh phosphorescence of an old cell phone camera.  In that place and time, it looked tasty.

Unfortunately, it tasted about how it looks in the bad cell phone photo.  The meat did not resemble any I had previously tasted.  The closest comparable that I've had is probably venison, although even that is a stretch.  It's really a dish all its own.

While the leanness claims were certainly accurate, overall, I would rank the taste lower on the list of the creatures I've consumed over the years, though still a perfectly edible form of sustinance.   (The dubious honor of last place has been held by the lowly camel since 2007, and from my perspective its throne is quite safe.)  Perhaps the cut of meat or the preparation was not the best, or maybe the lustrous Inca manes of the guys on stage and their pan flute siren song simply overshadowed this humble meat.   While I am not in a huge hurry to order another alpaca dish, I would certainly be willing to give it another try in a different time and place.  However, on this day, it was the alpaca who got the last laugh.

Something about these seems a little wrong, but they still invoke a good chuckle.

Another typical example will advertise the cuy and include a picture like this:

I find this one interesting from a marketing perspective.  For example, it's interesting to think that there's some segment of the population that sees it and gets hungrier.

However, the most common examples feature a photo of the cooked cuy prepared in the traditional fashion - something along these lines:

This type I find sort of intriguing.  I actually find the tomato hat to be a nice touch, adding a bit of playfulness to an already weird meal.  I knew it was only a matter of time before my own dish of cuy arrived, and eagerly awaited this masterful presentation.

Alas, however, when I finally did place my cuy order, it showed up like this:

Unfortunately, we waited until our last night in Peru to sample the cuy, and were running low on Peruvian cash.  Turns out the #1 local cuy joint in Cusco does not take credit cards, so we had to resort to the touristy spot.  To my dismay, this also meant no tomato hat.  Still, I was also a bit relieved, as I had absolutely no idea how to butcher a whole cuy.

This particular cuy happened to be classed up a bit with some rosemary seasoning, and was then charcoal roasted while brushed with sort of a sweet and sour sauce, adding a nice crisp char to the surfaces.  I am told there is only one way to eat cuy, and that is chicken wing style.  No fork or knife required.  Turns out it was good advice, as eating cuy is a pretty time consuming process.

So how does guinea pig taste?  Ironically, a lot like pork.  Actually, it's an incredibly tasty dish.  The flavor sort of reminded me of the Asian style baby back pork ribs authored by my dad and savored by anyone who's attended one of our BC tailgates.  Would I have it again?  Without a doubt.

Up next:  alpaca, chicharones, Inca Kola and a variety of tropical fruits