Lima, Peru

  Lima, Peru
Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Lima, Peru
A 12 hour flight on Delta brought us from LA via Atlanta to Lima. I have to say Delta are fine for an internal US flight, however if our international flight down to Peru was anything to go by, I'd steer well clear in the future. The seats were so cramped I couldn't get my legs under the seat in front of me, the food was the worst I've every experienced on a flight and there was not a drop of alcohol in sight! (Sorry to moan!) I'm certainly not looking forward to the flight back to LA!

Peru Guides, Jessica and Pablo

Once landed we cleared customs without event and were really please to see Jessica, the lady who we had booked the trip with over the internet, had actually come to meet us at the airport. She came with us in the taxi to our hotel, gees what an experience that was, cars flying all over the road in all directions! We had built up a bit of an e-mail relationship and she just wanted to meet us, all the more impressive considering it was after midnight by the time we got to the hotel. Now we had braced ourselves for culture shock, but surprise number two! Instead of being put up in the main hotel we had been given a penthouse suite with views of Lima and the Pacific Ocean. The place had three bedrooms, a laundry, kitchen, sitting and dining area, two bathrooms and even a study area with a computer linked to the internet. We'd best not get too used to this I have a feeling the hotels in the mountains will bring us down to earth a bit! Jessica works for the travel company on a part time basis and is a teacher for special needs kids the rest of the time. Jessica is a lovely lady who really is an excellent ambassador to her home country, thank you Jessica. 

Pacific Ocean

Lima is the capital city of Peru and has a population of around 8 million people, this represents one third of the country's total population. Although Lima is not far from the equator the climate is not that hot. The city is covered with sea mist and cloud for nine months of the year, with stable temperature 20C in the day time and 16C at night. The sun does show its self for three months of the year from January to March when temperatures climb to about 27C. Lima doesn't receive much rain at all and is mainly surrounded by semi-desert.

The next day after we had had breakfast we went for a walk along the seafront, the area of Miraflores is an upmarket area of Lima where 80% of the cities hotels are located. It feels very safe to walk around the main drag being Avenue Larco which is lined with various shops and businesses. We trekked along a few side streets and through some parks to get a feel for the place. We stopped by a super market to pick up some bits for lunch and dinner. We thought we might as well make the most of having a full kitchen as we'd be relying on eating out once we left Lima. We nearly fell over when the cashier rang up the items and asked for the grand sum of 16 Sol, equivalent to £3.22! We would most certainly have had to pay about £20 for the same items at home. Oh well we are a bit over budget so that will help! Finding the hotel again was a bit of a challenge, after a while, wondering if we were going the right way, I popped into a hotel to ask the way, only to find we were literally 200ft from the hotel! 

In the afternoon we went for a tour of the city, we passed more lovely parks, they have planned well to leave some nice open spaces, which are well landscaped. One of particular mention is the Olive Grove Park, situated in the affluent suburb San Isadro. This was once a Hacienda with a huge olive grove. It was handed over to the people of Lima and now serves a shady retreat to while way the time. Just now the olive trees are laden with fruit, not sure who gets to pick them?  Surrounding this park are huge mansions, some in the mock Tudor style, which although beautiful look a little out of place here.

Plaza de Armas, Lima

The historic district of Lima (Barrio Chino) is most impressive. The colonial Plaza de Armas is probably the most impressive open area and is certainly the most important. It was here that the first brick was laid to found Lima. Impressive buildings surround all four sides, including La Catedral de Lima, which although badly damaged in past earth quakes has been restored and is still amazing. On another side is the Presidential Palace, guarded by armed tanks and on another side is the famous Gran Bolivar Hotel, built in 1924 it is still a style icon. The hotel is famous for serving the best Pisco Sour cocktail in Peru, it has had some famous guests including Ernest Hemmingway and Ava Gardener. The fountain in the centre is made from bronze and is the oldest structure in the Plaza. For one day at the end of July the fountain is filled with Pisco Sour and enjoyed by Lima public to celebrate the public holiday that is, National Day.

Gold Inka mask

There are many museums in Lima; we managed to visit the Museo Banco Central de Reserva del Peru. In here you will see works of art mainly pottery and gold which date back to 200 AD. The Inca's are probably the best known of the past inhabitants but their rein was actually short in comparison to other peoples who were just as intelligent. The gold artefacts are housed in a huge high security vault. There are some amazing items such as crowns, ceremonial daggers, massive ear rings, burial jewellery and much more. 

Saint Francis Monastery

Saint Francis Monastery is also well worth a visit. This impressive 17th century monastery still stands undamaged despite the numerous earth quakes. Many are drawn here by the morbid fascination of the catacombs. These were used as the cemetery for the whole city until 1810. Corpses were placed one on top of the other 15 deep. Once decayed, these bones were either thrown into a well or sorted and stored elsewhere. During our visit we saw bones sorted by body part in large compartments. One particular well holds the bones arranged in circular patterns.  Of course rich people, who gave a sizable contribution to the Monastery, were given their own personal graves. Burial chambers can be still be seen full of bones hundreds of years old. On a less gruesome note! There are some great fresco's to be viewed which surround the cloisters of the primary court yard. There are two other court yards but these are out of bounds to visitors as this area is still home to the resident monks. 

If shopping floats your boat! Then there are plenty of retail opportunities from the Indian market for art and crafts to the modern Larco Mar shopping and entertainment centre.