My birthday yesterday. Hangover today. Can’t sleep. Can’t think. Might cry.
OK, so it’s not that bad, but hangovers really do wipe me out these days. I used to shrug them off with relative ease, but since moving to Tarapoto my recovery time has really gone downhill and the entire “day-after” gets wasted in heavy-eyed oblivion. Why? Well…
Getting Old?
Firstly, I’ve probably just about reached that point where I can say ridiculously obvious things like “I’m not as young as I used to be.” But I’m only 32, so age alone can’t account for the wretched state in which I currently find myself.
Peruvian Drinking Culture
Here’s the thing: I don’t drink much these days, at least nowhere near as much as I did in the UK. Being British, I naturally (genetically) found myself “binge drinking” at the weekend. Not every weekend, but most of them.
Peruvians consume a lot of beer, without doubt, but they don’t consistently drink just to get drunk (there are exceptions, obviously). So, I have become a more moderate drinker, the type of “lightweight” so often derided in British public houses. That’s a good thing, right? Yes, but when I do get properly drunk, like last night, I really feel the effects the next day.
The Damnable Jungle Heat
These particularly brutal hangovers are then made one billion times worse by Tarapoto’s savage heat. Alcohol-induced dehydration is a killer here, and even if you drink eight glasses of water before going to bed you’ll still wake up feeling as wretched as a pile of sun-bleached bones in a Bedouin’s back yard. Worse still, sleeping all day (the standard escape from serious hangovers) is difficult and uncomfortable when the sun is at its strongest.
Seriously, don’t underestimate the vicious nature of Tarapoto hangovers. If you’ve got something planned for the next day, do yourself a favour and stick to the jungle fruit juices – save the two Pisco sours and eight bottles of Pilsen for a later date.
- For more Peruvian alcohol shenanigans, head over to HowtoPeru and place your vote on the Best Peru Beer Poll.
I don’t think this is what it is in your case, but as the years passed, it has gotten to where one bottle of good Peruvian beer (or any alcol) will make me feel junk. Probaly it’s allergies.
You know, like,
#1 “I’m allergic to chicha.”
#2 “Oh, really?”
$1 “Yeah…after 9 or 10 drinks I get dizzy and fall down…”
Yeah, I know what you mean; sometimes one beer can make me feel a bit weird!
I did wonder if low quality beer was the problem. This forced me to experiment with a whole range of different Peruvian alcoholic beverages in an attempt to find a hangover-free source of alcohol. Sadly, all my attempts failed.
Happy birthday!but sorry to hear that you got “smashed” and that Tarapoto hangovers seem a bit too much for you to endure. My solution? Just stop drinking! But if that’s not realistic, just pace yourself and stop before you get drunk.This regrettably may be impossible if you hang around too many hardened Peruvian drinkers who, unfortunately seem, as a group, seem to have very little control over their drinking habits when faced with a nice big bottle of Pilsen or a pisco sour staring at them. In any event, good luck and happy birthday.
Thanks Vincent! To be honest, I really can’t blame any Peruvian drinking companions for my occasional hangovers. I’m a very willing drinker when I get started – there’s a tipping point somewhere along the line where I just keep on going (luckily, I’m fairly jovial when I get drunk!).
I actually think that the Peruvians are nowhere near as bad as the British in terms of getting absolutely smashed. I guess there’s a financial element involved, but getting dreadfully drunk seems to be a British tradition. Saturday night in the UK is like something out of a disaster movie – bar brawls, bad language and mini-skirted women stumbling around in their high heels.
Cheers!
I’m a Brit, and I have to agree with you. You may have to swing all the way over to the other extreme, and become like the peruvian matrons who can restrict themselves to one thimbleful of brindis.
I wish I had restricted myself to one thimbleful on New Year’s Eve…
Well my friend it is the time to bring this out of the archives and revive it.
Dot and I wish you a Happy Birthday!
I remember the 12 bottle Pilsen night at the Stonwasi.
How about the rum and passion fruit tang night.
Please tell if you have yet mastered the dreaded Peruvian Hangover? Or is it still being researched? That could be someone’s thesis.
Anyhow, Dot and I plan on tipping a few (more) to you this evening!
Cheers,
H
I’m turning 40, but still get smashed once a month, but now it is something I have to plan, because the next day I can no longer just shrug it off and need to sleep in an extra 4 hours or so. I was in Lima last year and went out to some discotecas with this lovely Peruana, I got slightly smashed and she seemed a little surprised, so not sure if it is something Peruvians typically do. I am heading back to Peru in a few weeks and will visit the selva cities, so thanks for the site and information.