Horse Show and Lunch at Dpaso Mamacona

Peru has a very strong equestrian tradition. Horses arrived to Peru during the Spanish conquest, and particular breeding practices gave rise to the Paso, or Peruvian Smooth-Gait Horse. The most distinctive feature of the horse is the way it walks. Peruvian breeders wanted horses that were comfortable to ride and easy to control So in their breeding decisions, they focused on maintaining horses with good temperament and a smooth gait. Therefore, on of the most distinctive characteristics of this horse is that it does not trot. It has a four-beat gait that is very smooth and comfortable. This weekend we went to a show featuring the Peruvian Paso, and it was great fun!

Peruvian horses are famous, and equestrian pursuits are very important here. In fact, this very morning the national equestrian competition in Peru just wrapped up in Lima not far from the site of the show we saw yesterday. Given the Peruvian Paso's fame, it is somewhat surprising that we have not learned more to this point in our travels. But, the most important horse regions in Peru are to the south, and you have to get a bit out of the city in the Lima region to have any horse-related experiences.

I happened to learn recently, however, about a fairly straightforward way to learn about the Peruvian Paso and hopefully have a fun day as well - a visit to the Dpaso Mamacona for an afternoon horse show and buffet lunch. We figured out it was only about a 45 minute cab ride from our apartment (which costs only a little over $10 believe it or not), and we figured the Little Lady was old enough to enjoy the show, so we decided to take the plunge. Tickets were available online via teleticket.com.pe. The cost was less than $30 per adult, with the LL being free. Included was a buffet lunch, performances of several traditional dances from all over Peru during lunch, and a 45 minute show featuring paso horses and dancing after lunch. It was easy to find our way there with Uber, and not hard to catch an Uber back to Miraflores after it was over. So it was really pretty easy on the whole to make this happen.

Following our typical gringo nature, we arrived substantially early. The tickets said the event begins at 1, so we arrived at about 12:20 since traffic can be unpredictable and we did not want to miss the show. We were the second table seated, behind one table of foreign tourists from another country who were even more punctual than us. It turns out the buffet opened at 1. The buffet was good. The food was not great, but it was more than adequate given the price, and we have frankly been spoiled by the quality of the meals we've been eating. So I'm probably a harsher critic on the food than many would be. A good variety of the Peruvian classics were present - arroz con pollo, seco de res, aji de gallina, lomo saltado, fish ceviche, fish escabeche, causa, and much more. Drinks were available for purchase. Every 30 minutes starting at 1:30 there was a brief dance presentation.

Then, at 3:00 we went outside for the horse portion of the show. Four horses were involved along with four riders and at least two dancers. It seemed like all the participants were from the family that owns the business. This family has been doing these shows for a few years now, and the show has actually been declared a national treasure of Peru. It was amazing to see what they could do with the horses. They basically danced. One portion had a man and a woman each riding a horse essentially dancing with each other while riding. It was amazing and beautiful. I'm including several pictures below.

This would be a great addition to any visit to Lima if you have an afternoon free. It could easily be combined with a visit to the Pachacamac ruins, one of the largest pre-Incan archaeological complexes in Peru. That is a massive complex that we decided to skip this time since were feared the Little Lady might become too exhausted walking around the 8 square km site. But with adults, it would be no trouble to do Pachacamac and the Dpaso show in a day. The show we attended happens every day for lunch and most days for breakfast. There are also other options, but most of those only run on Sunday and appear to be mostly available via organized tour.