The Peruvian Drive-Through

Considering that most Peruvians don’t own their own cars but rely on public transportation, the title of this post might be a little misleading. Let me explain to you what the Peruvian drive-through looks like. Every morning, I am awakened by the sound of peddlars driving down our street selling their goods. Each horn represents a different good for sale. The bread man has a different horn than the churros man (who actually uses a loud speaker to let everyone know that the “rico churros” have arrived.) To me, these sounds just represent a hindrance to more sleep, so I couldn’t imagine that anybody in their right mind would get up and go outside to go buy bread in the early morning hours. Apparently, my neighbors can’t be bothered to get up and go down to buy anything either. One day, as I was leaving the house, I saw one of the bread vendors stopped. He was yelling to our neighbors upstairs as the transaction took place. I waited to see someone come out our front door. Instead, directly in front of my face appeared a plastic bag that was being lowered down from the third story window. The bread boy reached in, took out a few soles from the bag, and then put in some fresh bread. The bag then quickly disappeared back to where it came from. So, while Peruvians might not have cars to go to the drive through, the drive-through comes to them. I guess convenience is sought and appreciated in any culture!