hi all,
this is my first post.

in june my girldfriend and i are traveling to Peru and Machu Picchu. She is a very devout vegan and i am a recently converted raw foodist. so naturally i am unsure about our food selection in peru as i read that peruvian cuisine contains lots of meat. so i've been thinking about purchasing a dehydrator, which i've been meaning to buy anyway, and preparing some dehydrated fruit/veg/nut mixtures for fuel.

i'd love some insight into this if anyone has any, as what you may have done, or some suggestions, thank you all!

I'm sure there will be a good selection of tropical fruit...

Rob

--
Rob Hull - Funky Raw
My blog: [www.rawrob.com]

Yes. I have no doubt that you will find local fruits & vegetables. The fruits you can peel.....and the vegetables you can wash thoroughly in bottled water....if you are so inclined. I would not try to take food in/out of a foreign country....but you can certainly dehydrate items on a fan (between sheets of paper towels).......or use a dehydrator in country. Have fun!

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

I was there a few times 12 years ago my first time was on a Mango hunt second time looking for Lucama.

Being a vegan there is a breeze I had no problems just peel your fruits there is a great market in Cuzco not many Gringos go there they have fresh made juices all kinds of fruits and veggies avocados,olives nuts seeds and if your girlfreind likes cooked sweet potatoes there are all kinds.

There is always someone selling fruits on the street bananas ect.
You are not going to starve.

This is a big market sometimes 2 or 3 in every Peruvian town it is a good place to be all fruit or vegan.
You may be lucky and find some Cherimoyas.
Have a nice trip.

Love Peace and Happiness,

Cherimoya

i was in eastern peru a little over a year ago, and didn't have any problems as a cooked vegan.

there is a govinda's in aguas calientes as well as one in cusco that my friend and i stopped at a couple of times (although i'm still not sure if they are really krishna or if they are just capitalizing on dirty hippie backpackers).

the govinda's in puno was closed (i forget if it was closed when we showed up or if it was closed permanently) so we ended up eating in some random restaurant where i felt more at ease in terms of getting something that was legitimately vegan than i do at home (as long as you speak spanish).

i don't recall ever seeing a health food store in peru, or even a grocery store in aguas calientes. if you are spending the night in aguas calientes i would stock up on some fruit before you get on the train just to be safe. but if you are staying on the main tourist trail it shouldn't be that difficult to get something vegan or a salad in a regular restaurant.

we ended up taking a last minute jungle trip where i remember filling up on miniature bananas and oranges.

i always print out a list of vegetarian/vegan restaurants from vegdining and happycow before i go anywhere so i know i can find something to eat when i'm in a city with a sizable population.

[www.happycow.net]
[www.vegdining.com]

personally, i would/do bring some food from home just so it won't be a problem if i can't find something to eat and have to wait until i am able to find something. normally i stock up on some packaged bars, but i have also brought nuts and dehydrated fruit overseas and did not have a problem...i'm not sure if it is legal though.

I went to the Caribbean years ago for a week and ended up losing a lot of weight--there just seemed to be fruit everywhere, and it was all I incidentally ended up eating (with a little bit of bread). Just being in the sun and around all the fresh stuff made me not want to eat anything else... and I wasn't even vegetarian at the time. I just gorged on lush fruits for a week, and it was all lovely happenstance.

I'm sure there are lots of tropical delicacies to be explored--I'd be thrilled to scout for tropical fruit, especially when it's fresh and local! =D

I have nothing to add to this thread except that I am really jealous and I hope you guys have a fantastic trip and post lots of pics for us to drool over.

Especially pictures of exotic fruits! :O