Mini Sandias y Algodon Peruano (Peruvian Cotton)

We have been walking to, and visiting, several newly discovered stores not far from our apartment. One is called Vivanda and is known for having things other stores do not stock. It is more upscale than our local Tottus. We have found incredible mandarins, very large imported US navel oranges, Snickers bars, Godiva chocolate, M&M's, and even Fruit Loops.  In addition they have a wonderful bakery section though our dieting at present has kept us from sampling any of those treats.

Clockwise the store at night, the chocolate candy counter next to check out,
The bakery section and one of the wonderful cakes we'll try at the next party.

Corn Flakes and other American cereals. RA is filling a bag with mandarins.
They have a large section and variety of cheeses including yellow cheddar
and gouda which is sometimes more difficult to find.

Fresh vegetables fill the shelves and we have brought home something new to try. Being in Peru is about trying many new things. These small vegetables are called 'Mini Sandia' and are not native to Peru. They may have originated in Central America and Mexico and can be grown in the US and seeds are sold in many garden centers. They will end up on a vegetable tray RA is preparing for a Saturday afternoon get together with the upstairs neighbors and the other Norte Americano Missionaries from the Temple and Area Office.  However, they may end up with our scrambled eggs along with onions, tomatoes and shrooms that Adam does not like. The Mini Sandias can be put into salads, salsas, pickled like gherkins, and are reportedly "terrific in stir fries."  They are also known an 'mouse melons' among other names. These little fruits can be found at farmer's markets and are grown as heirloom vegetables.  It is about a 2 mile walk to Vivanda and we plan on walking there at least once a week. We leave in the morning, complete our shopping, and then ride back in a taxi with our groceries.

The Mini Sandia or Mouse Melons washed in Chlorox water
and rinsed for eating

The other stores we have found are in a neighboring community of Ate. Among them is clothing store called Creditex.  It is an outlet for an upscale Peruvian shirt and clothing manufacturer.  Unlike most every other store we have visited in Lima they have sizes to accommodate North Americans. Several New York clothing brands are represented along with Cutter and Buck and Cabelas. Prices have been very attractive. I have bought several of the aforementioned shirts from $3.00 to $13.00 each. They favorably compare to online prices in America from $65.00 to $105.00. Since we have been in Peru I have been looking for a source of Peruvian Pima Cotton shirts, deemed to be among the very best in the world.

The outlet store for Cutter and Buck clothing, Cabelas and other shirt makers.
The insert was a twill 100% Pima Cotton soft as silk shirt I bought for $13.00

This Peruvian Cotton just known as Pima Cotton in many other parts of the world compares to very fine Egyptian Cotton. After the arrival of the Europeans, cotton seeds from Peru were taken to the Caribbean where it would dominate local agricultural production and worked together with tobacco to encourage the British to increase the slave trade bringing workers from Africa. From the Caribbean cotton moved to the Carolinas and gave rise to Sea Island Cotton bringing slavery and the attendant human suffering to North America.

Apparently Peruvian Pima Cotton is still picked by hand which preserves
fibers and assures its softness.

In the early 1900's cotton seeds from Peru were planted in AZ and raised by Pima Indians working with the USDA, hence its name.  In the North of Peru and coastal regions of Ecuador cotton balls have been traced back by archaeologists to 4400 BCE. The fibers of this cotton are up to 40% longer and softer giving it a more silk like feel.  Cotton was used by the maritime cultures in Peru 6,000 to 7,000 years ago in making fish nets in addition to clothing and the recording and accounting system of mysterious writing system known as Quipu where different colors of cotton strings were tied together and branched apparently storing enormous amounts of information. There is to date no record of any other written language in pre-Columbian Peru.

Mostly cotton threads, not wool, were used in the making of this quipu.
Scholars and archaeologists have not deciphered this mysterious recording medium

Peru continues to be an impressive country for us with so much in natural resource, history, and potential.  It remains one of the very fastest growing economies in the world, only second to China last year. We await the results of the election this Sunday to see which way it will go in the future. It is an important election with two very clear alternatives for voters. A number of Peruvians believe one candidate, a former military commander and supporter of Venezuela's Hugh Chavez, will enact constitutional decrees to allow more than one term, essentially becoming a dictator. The other is the daughter of imprisoned Alberto Fujimori. The business community is largely behind Keiko Fujimori. There are concerns for the maintenance of the free market economy and continuation of international agreements and businesses in Peru.

We are not going anywhere this weekend as the Temple is closed in the afternoon on Saturday and no church meetings on Sunday's election day. We will continue our walks this weekend and discovery of things to do in our world in Lima Peru.