LAPT8 Peru, Day 1b: Peruvian Perambulation

Gearing up here for another day of blogging from the Latin American Poker Tour Peru Main Event, where 129 players are returning, survivors from what ended up a 366-entry field who will be vying for pieces of the $807,396 prize pool.

Was a long one yesterday, but fairly smooth and mostly stress-free. I even managed to enjoy three full meals, which afterwards I realized was kind of a rarity on reporting days.

At one point during the early evening Reinaldo and I took a break to enjoy a long walk around downtown Miraflores where preparations are in full force for the big parade that will start at 3 p.m. today.

The parade is part of the Fiestas Patrias that includes a few different national holidays, including Peru’s independence day (July 28). For the entire month Peruvian flags are flying everywhere, outside every building and in every office window.

They’ve blocked off the park and set up bleachers, as I believe there will be more than 100,000 spectators watching the parade which will last several hours. That sign above points parade-goers to the port-a-pottys and where lost children can be found.

Ought to be quite a spectacle, and I plan to get out there to get a look once it kicks off. Otherwise I’ll be inside the Atlantic City casino reporting from Day 2 -- check over at the PokerStars blog to follow along.

LAPT8 Peru, Day 1a: Safe Blogging

While the field wasn’t huge -- 134 entries (including those who re-entered) -- the first Day 1 flight of the Latin American Poker Tour Peru Main Event was still a busy one, with a lot to cover and keep us all occupied as they played down to just 52 players, one for every card in the deck.

Had some fun during the day with the picture at left, which I tweeted along with a report that we’d had 0.5 days of blogging without an accident. You can never be too safe, especially when posting.

Speaking of cards, I enjoyed chatting with the gregarious Canadian player Shakeeb Kazemipur early in the day. He won in Panama at the last LAPT stop (which I had missed), so I chatted with him about the experience. It was his first LAPT event, and he was understandably full of enthusiasm about the tour after such a successful first try.

Speaking of LAPT debuts, a little later I talked briefly with the Scottish player David Vamplew who was making his (not counting LAPT Bahamas). He’d won a satellite online and viewed Peru as a potentially interesting-seeming postscript to his Vegas summer. Had a good start yesterday, too, finishing with a top five stack and not too far behind Day 1a chip leader Raul Alvarez of Peru.

We skipped out during the dinner break to have a not-too-remarkable chicken meal a short walk away from the casino. Good to get out, though, which I think we’ll do again tonight to get a look at the Saturday night scene downtown. Preparations are being made for a big parade tomorrow marking the Peruvian independence day, called the Wong Parade in light of Fiestas Patrias.

They’ve already started blocking off some of the streets and have set up bleachers downtown for it, and I think it’ll be quite a spectacle. Might have to sneak out during the afternoon to see some of it.

Heading back over to the Atlantic City casino here in Miraflores. Check the PokerStars blog throughout the day for more from Lima.