Definitely not Kosher for Passover

The flight from Cusco back to Lima and the overnight bus from Lima to Huaraz were uneventful. I left Cusco on the second day of Passover. The previous night I heard there was a seder in Cusco with over 500 attendees (mostly Israelis I presume).

Ben and Libby Skolnik, my friends working in the Peace Corps, graciously met me at the Huaraz bus station at 6AM. I have known Ben since nursery school and Libby, his wife, for several years. We spent most of the day buying groceries and preparing for our 3-day trek in the Cordillera Blanca (¨White Mountain Range¨) just outside of Huaraz. Huaraz is a city of 80,000 people, 8 hours north of Lima. It is a bustling jumping off point for trekers interested in hiking in the Cordillera, a compact mountain range with 20 peaks over 18,000 feet.

The highlight of the day was being invited by a pastry chef, one of Ben and Libby´s friends, to learn how to bake bread in his bakery. Edgar showed us how to properly mix the sugar and yeast, how coffee can be used as a coloring and flavoring agent, and explained how altitude (10,000 feet) affects the bread´s baking time. We chowed on a lot of chocolate croissants, cheese breads, spicy chicken empanadas and hot fresh buns.

Check out our final product! Edgar gave us two loaves and sold the rest.