TWO hundred Peruvians and their Irish friends gathered in Dublin to celebrate their nation’s independence day nearly 10,000km from home.

The revellers, who represented around a fifth of Peruvian expats in Ireland, gave a rendition of their national anthem and toasted their “fiestas patrias”.

The Peruvian war of independence from Spain began in 1811 and culminated in a proclamation of independence by Jose de San Martin on July 28, 1821.

Yesterday’s event in Terenure College was held two days early so it could be attended by as many people as possible.

There was a ceremonial mass to begin with, followed by children’s games, ‘cuy tombola’ (guinea pig lottery game) and dancing.

Cocktail

Families brought a buffet of Peruvian food and the drink of choice was a Pisco Sour – a traditional cocktail made of pisco (grape liquor), lime juice, egg white and syrup.

One of the organisers, Gianmarco Alvarado Columbus, has been living in Dublin for two years.

“The idea is to keep our traditions alive for the next generation in Ireland and to introduce our Peruvian culture, food and music to the Irish people for one day a year,” he said.

Gianmarco said that cultural diversity is a feature of life in Peru, and this was reflected in Dublin yesterday.

“Peru is divided in three regions – we have the coast, the highlands and the jungle, so we are a very multi-cultural and diverse country.

“We are now all here in Ireland together as one big Peruvian-Irish family,” he said.

Online Editors