CAFE DOS X 3
This is my favorite place in Cusco. It's a charming little cafe about 3 blocks from Plaza de Armas. (Marquez 271- Cusco, email: dosx3@hotmail.com tel: 232661)

I first saw it on my way to school- it's less than a block from Centro de Idiomas. I think it was about a week before I finally stopped in. When I did, I was rewarded with a charming and peaceful haven from what has been a pretty hard world for me.

The walls are a deep red, with some warm Van Gogh gold behind the counter. There are three booths and three simple cafe tables. The photographs on the wall are black and white, tastefully and artfully done in a rather Med. style but of Cusco. There is a glass hutch with Herschfield-esque drawings of famous Peruvian writers. Behind the counter, the owner is an older gentleman with kind eyes and a slow but warm smile. he reminded me so much of an Italian professor I knew that I wondered if he was Italian- he's not. Cusqueńo since the day he was born.

The offerings are simple, fresh and lovely. You can come in for a sandwich, coffee, tea...or ice-cream. Although the rest of the cafe looks very Italian, the portions of ice-cream are not. The final selling point? He always plays jazz. In Peru this is a rarity...and so very nice to discover. I'm thankful for the peaceful afternoons I've spent in Cafe Dos X 3. If you are planning on traveling in Peru- I'm sure you will go to Machu Pichu and therefore will stay in Cusco...stop in, have an ice-cream sunday and remember me to the owner. Enjoy!