Let's start with the weather, coz that's easy: it's always the same. Well, more or less, of course. We're in the "rainy" season now, but don't think it's like monsoons. Periodic showers, usually in the late afternoon or evening, and an occasional thunderstorm. December is the "coldest" month, with the overall average temp around 58 and then in the warmest month (July) the average overall temp is around 59. Basically, it's low to mid 50s overnight and low to mid 60s during the day. Depending on cloud cover, and breeze, it can feel warmer or cooler, but it's basically spring all year round. BIG plus for me who hates the heat.
And because of the eternal spring, Strawberries are dirt cheap. We've probably eaten more strawberries here in the past 3+ weeks than in the past year. About $2 for a quart. Cherries are much more reasonable, as well.
And boy, do they love their chicken! A good chunk of the local fast food places just offer various raosted chicken plates with various sides (potatoes, rice, beans, salad), and even the nicer places have a lot of chicken options. Fine by me! In fact, they have way more KFC here than McDonald's. WAY more. Speaking of fast food, they also have a good chunk of other American places, too. So far we've seen Burger King, Carl's Jr., Krispy Kreme, Chili's, TGI Fridays, Taco Bell, Cinnabon, etc. etc. etc.
My favorite local place is a small chain called DonCho Chocho y choclo, where I had a yummy bowl filled with plantain (okay, not a fan of THAT), roasted pork, roasted potatoes, some local beans I forget the name of, and Peruvian corn (yummy!) All covered in a semi-spicy homemade sauce that tastes like a cross between guacamole and ranch with a kick. HUGE portions that I got nearly 3 meals out of for 5 bucks. Needless to say, local places are cheaper than the American imports.
And there are a SHIT. TON. of places to eat. Tons of fast food, tons of mid-range places, TONS of small mom&pop 3-4 table restaurants like in Mexico, etc. We're always passing places that I think, "Oooh, this looks good, we need to try this!" Alas, can only afford to eat at the mid-range/nicer places once a month. That sets us back about $20 total for the two of us.
As for groceries, prices are similar to Mexico. Like Mexico, they label products that are high in sugar, fat, or salt. UNLIKE Mexico, those labels are on the side or back of packaging, and also unlike Mexico, they have a "medium" label. In fact, they have a "medium sugar" version of Coke here which I've never seen before. Alas, we have yet to find Dr. Pepper. Yet. Lol
Finally - esp. here in the Centro Historico - there are lots of roaming vendors selling small bags of fruits, small bags of nuts, ice cream, etc. (e.g., you can get a bag of 6 apples for a dollar). Needless to say, we're both eating healthier here, on the whole, and have both lost weight.
