Category: Latin America
A Return to Mexico City
Three years after our first visit, we returned to Mexico City for a long weekend with friends, trading sightseeing checklists for leisurely mornings, memorable meals, and a chance to experience the city through local eyes. Read more →
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A Day in Puebla: Layers of History, Culture, and Cuisine
A day trip from Mexico City brought us to Puebla, where we climbed ancient pyramids, explored colonial streets, and sampled five distinct moles in the city famous for this iconic Mexican dish. Read more →
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Dinner at Quintonil: A Celebration of Modern Mexican Cuisine
Some meals are memorable because of a single unforgettable dish. Others stand out because of the entire experience—the setting, the pacing, the people you share them with, and the feeling that you are somewhere truly special. Our dinner at Quintonil in Mexico City was one of those experiences. Three years after our first visit to… Read more →
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The Inca Trail and Beyond: A Pandemic-Era Journey in Peru
I was taking a writing class this past semester and decided to reach into the past to resurrect our trip to Peru and render it on the page as practice. The trip was just under three weeks long, but we managed to go from the Andes to the Pacific, seeing major highlights of the country.… Read more →
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A Taste of Lima: Peru’s Culinary Capital
If the week leading up to our arrival in Lima had been focused on history, archaeology, and hiking, with a sprinkling of food thrown, the next several days in Peru’s capital would be about nothing but the food. In San Francisco, my introduction to Peruvian food had been through La Mar, the first U.S.outpost of… Read more →
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Between Past and Present: A Stroll Through Cusco
After completing our Inca Trail hike to Machu Picchu and returning to Ollantaytambo by train, we hopped into a van arranged by Amazonas Explorer for the 50-mile drive to Cusco, where we would be spending the next two nights. Designated a World Heritage Site in 1983, Cusco was the capital of the Incan Empire until… Read more →
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Machu Picchu, Minus the Crowds: Hiking the Inca Trail During the Pandemic
INCA TRAIL HIKE Only a few hundred meters to go and we’d reach Warmiwañusqa, or Dead Woman’s Pass. At 13,828 feet above sea level, it would be the highest point of our hike. My breathing was labored, but steady, as my lungs sucked in as much oxygen as possible with each inhalation. I could feel… Read more →
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Urubamba: The Heart of Peru’s Sacred Valley
Before the Inca Trail, we spent days exploring Urubamba and the Sacred Valley — from the ruins of Pisac and Ollantaytambo to the salt flats of Maras, Moray and the colorful village of Punamarca. Read more →
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2022 Farewell From Mexico City
We recently returned from a year end trip to Mexico City, or CDMX (Cuidad de México). I’m not sure what rock I’ve been sleeping under but I was astonished at myself for not having put the city on my radar sooner. With its vibrant historic center, dynamic food scene and rich cultural heritage, we had… Read more →
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Mexico City Dining: Tacos to Tasting Menus
From low-key taquerias to high-end restaurants, we were really impressed with the variety and quality of Mexico City’s food scene. Aside from traditional Mexican fare, there were restaurants covering just about every cuisine. We saw were Chinese and Korean joints (however, since we live in San Francisco, Asian food was not on top of my… Read more →
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