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LocalTake a 72-hour vegan voyage through , Bolivia—where high altitude, culture, and great converge. by JEN SOTOLONGO Food photo: Jen Sotolongo Food

62 VegNews JANUARY+FEBRUARY 2017 eering out the car window and culled from the regional bounty. over the edge of the road—down Begin your 72-hour La Paz adventure into the deep gorge that houses La at a local marketplace and then soar high PPaz—you can’t help but feel butterflies above the city on public transport. Be sure fluttering in your stomach. The Bolivian to leave room to feast on all the regional city of nearly 800,000 sits 13,300 feet vegan specialties. above sea level—a sprawling metropolis clinging to steep hillsides. Temperatures Day 1: Market mania can vary by as much as 50 degrees from With its unique —nestled in a top to bottom, but the palpable energy between the , Titicaca, NEW remains constant. Prepare yourself: La and the Bolivian rainforest—La Paz is loud, colorful, and—to be fair—a Paz offers an abundance of year-round bit chaotic, in the most charming way. local produce, much of it organic. If native 100% Pure Represented by more than 36 different to Bolivia, it is grown without GMOs as New Vegan Lipsticks native groups (indigenous people dictated by 2012’s Law of Mother Earth. constitute more than 60 percent of the Whereas other American countries population), Bolivia is simultaneously export their goods, Bolivia preserves its dynamic and rooted in a traditional natural resources, and the markets boast a way of life. One of ’s vast variety of heirloom . still-underdeveloped countries, it has Start your first day by exploring on foot, lagged behind neighboring beginning at the open-air Mercado Robert and on the creation of tourism Rodriguez—the largest food market in the infrastructure. In recent years, however, city—to experience Bolivia’s edible bounty the country has evolved into a desirable firsthand. Though open every day, buying destination for travelers, with La Paz and selling hits a fever pitch on Saturdays seeing a 40-percent increase in visitors when block upon block bulges with stalls between 2014 and 2015. Overall, the offering towers of tropical produce in every lack of development—coupled with the color of the rainbow. Expect to see tubs preservation of cultural heritage—means packed to the brim with butter that the city is still largely untouched by ground from nuts plucked in a nearby international tourists. jungle, and towers of spices hand-ground Don’t expect to lounge in the lap on the spot. of luxury in La Paz. It is at once gritty, Running the show are the cholitas— rugged, and beautiful—the ideal local women dressed colorfully in the destination for the audacious traveler traditional costume of pleated skirts, leg seeking intimate interaction with locals, warmers decorated with patterns, deep cultural immersion, and traditional bright sweaters, and thick braids spanning foods made with plant-based ingredients the length of their backs. Some arrive as

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VEGNEWS.COM VegNews 63 vegvacation early as 4am to prepare for the market’s Handicraft markets merge with Day 2: Take flight 5am opening, and it’s not uncommon Mercado Rodriguez on the side streets, In the residential neighborhood, to spot a sleepy cholita napping exhibiting the vibrant and intricate yellow and green cable cars glide silently among her wares. often hand-woven by the mamitas overhead, ferrying passengers to the “Que quiere?” they ask quietly as you themselves. Cholitas spin yarn or weave neighboring district. Opened in 2014, pass by while ogling pyramids of avocados patterns right on the sidewalk, in deep the Mí Teleférico cable car system has done the size of softballs, with flesh so creamy meditation as their fingers fly over the wonders to alleviate street congestion and it spreads like butter. One can be yours for looms like concert pianists. Stacks of neatly ease the burden of an overcrowded public about a . folded fabrics stand several feet high, a transit system. Rows of bins display the 200 varieties colorful delight to the eyes. For a bird’s-eye view of the city, walk to of potatoes native to the region, including On one end, Mercado Rodriguez the nearest Mí Teleférico station and soar the bright orange and purple sweet eventually morphs into the lively Witches’ over the cliffs and jagged rocks of La Paz for ones that resemble witches’ fingers. The Market, where the superstitious Aymara the 20-minute ride to Zona Sur. For less than bins also boast chuños—freeze-dried people sell a variety of herbs and folk one dollar for the one-way journey, you spuds displayed like precious gems, remedies to appease the spirits, while can marvel in awe at the homes clinging and the hairy, -like yuca sliced in Yatiri (witch doctors) pitter around with precariously to the mountainside, and at half to show off its blinding white flesh. their pouches and dark offering the serpentine roads that carve through Wandering the foodie’s dreamscape takes fortune-telling services. the city like a labyrinth as the tram plunges you past mounds of grains like millet, If the market has left you with sensory deeper into the canyon. The wealthy flock , and its cousin, kañiwa. Save overload, the time is right to step into to this chic neighborhood brimming with room in your travel bag for the luxury Namas Té, a cozy vegetarian restaurant cafés that serve real coffee (only Nescafé superfoods available at a fraction of the ensconced among the market vendors is available in most establishments) and price you’d pay in the — and auto repair shops. Namás Té offers a upscale boutiques. It’s here that you’ll among them Brazil nuts, cashews, wide range of comfort foods ranging from also discover Red Monkey Patio, the almonds, maca, and chia seeds. international cuisine to traditional Bolivian first restaurant in La Paz to use the word meals, veganized. Order the four-course “vegan,” and which is, in fact, 100-percent vegan menu of the day for a taste of typical plant-based. Bolivian fare like sajta, customarily made The popular lunch spot serves simple with chicken. This meat-free meal starts dishes made with ingredients grown either Hungry in with crispy quinoa patties topped with in the restaurant’s garden or sourced slivered red onion and diced tomato, locally. The Forbidden Black Rice Burger La Paz? accompanied by the dried and starchy ($7) comes topped with grilled tomatoes Want to eat like the locals, but do it chuño—a steal for less than $5. The and velvety cream cheese, while the vegan? Here are some of our favorite intention behind the restaurant has always colorful Tofu Pesto Sandwich ($7) is served eats from the Bolivian city. been to provide affordable, healthy food with bright-green cilantro sauce—a sharp Api to everyone, and the majority of diners are visual contrast to the tofu, which has been resident Paceños, or La Paz residents. stained an intense shade of orange from the A deep-purple, hot beverage made from maiz morado (), this staple beverage is spiced Saucy mushroom sandwich at Red with cinnamon and cloves, and Monkey Patio (left) and nap time reminiscent of mulled wine. at La Senda Verde wild-animal rescue (right) Sandwich de Palta This simple avocado sandwich is a typical snack for Paceños; be sure to ask for it sin queso y mayonesa (without cheese and mayo).

Jugos or Batidos Sold just about everywhere, fresh fruit juices and smoothies should be ordered sin leche and con agua purificada (without milk and with purified water). Photos courtesy Red Monkey Patio and La Senda Verde and La Senda Photos courtesy Monkey Patio Red

64 VegNews JANUARY+FEBRUARY 2017 marinating spices. For dessert, don’t miss what is quite possibly the best chocolate mousse in the ; a thick and silky raw blend made with macadamia Cómo se dice? nuts, cacao butter, coconut milk, and Learn these words and phrases to raw cacao powder procured from nearby navigate La Paz like a pro. organic chocolate producers. On Sundays, Red Monkey’s chef Pablo I am vegan opens to Cocina Consciente, Yo soy vegano/a the commercial kitchen in his family home, serving a 10-course fixed-price Do you have soy milk? lunch. Book a reservation and plan Tiene leche de soya? Sunday around a $12.50 feast, featuring dishes like black sesame crêpes filled I don’t eat meat/dairy/eggs with tofu; teriyaki green beans grilled to No como carne (beef), pollo perfection alongside a dollop of avocado (chicken), cerdo (pork), pescado cream; or toothsome lentil and walnut (fish) productos lácteos (dairy), ni taco “meat” artfully arranged atop a huevos (eggs) single brilliant purple radicchio leaf.

Day 3: Mas food + fun arrives, a server appears tableside, raw With its close proximity to the ingredients in hand, ready to explain the , La Paz offers outdoor food’s origins and the ways it is used in adventure for adrenaline junkies eager each dish. to escape the urban bustle. The nearby The bright and purple Beets Yungas region is home to what has been Three Ways is not just visually-pleasing, dubbed “The Death Road” or “El Camino but a delight to the palate, much like de la Muerte,” daring some 25,000 the innovative quinoa cheese dancing thrill-seekers each year to brave the in tomato sauce. While the restaurant steep drops and bomb down the narrow is exclusively vegan, you won’t see the 43-mile road on two wheels. Local tour “v” word anywhere. Ali Pacha aims to company Gravity Bolivia offers daredevils educate guests about the social and a day of adventure on bikes, environmental responsibility of our food beginning with a cruise down from choices without putting a label on dietary the snow-capped peaks and into the boxes that may feel exclusive. For food- sweltering jungle in just 40 miles, oriented herbivores, a meal here is the culminating with a pasta buffet lunch perfect cap on a La Paz vacation. with vegan sauce and plenty of steamed As the cultural hub of Bolivia, La Paz veggies. A shower at La Senda Verde, a might be off the tourist trail now, but it wild-animal refuge that cares for victims won’t be for long. With its proximity to of illegal trafficking, is a powerful post- , , and the ride experience. —the world’s largest salt Nothing pairs better with physical flat—it’s the perfect place to stay and outdoor activity than beer, and at La savor the flavors of this picturesque and Paz’s Sol y Luna, thirsty adventurers biodiverse region. Pack your sense of can swill a variety of local craft brews adventure and your walking shoes, and like the vegan Saya or Stier. If your pint prepare to be dazzled. The rawness and and games of pool have revved up your fortitude that drive the city will convince appetite, take a stroll past the Palacio you to plan a return visit before you’ve Quemado (the president’s residence) to even left. Ali Pacha, where diners can choose from a five- or seven-course vegan menu ($20 Jen Sotolongo (instagram.com/ and $29, respectively). Chef Sebastian’s longhaultrekkers) is a writer from Portland, culinary creativity rivals what you’d find OR who is currently cycle-touring South at a swanky New York restaurant, but America with her partner and their Australian at a fraction of the price. As each plate Shepherd dog.

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