Lima in a Nutshell
5/10/2018 Learning and Discovery
OMG, I have never seen such a busy airport after midnight! Customs and Immigration lines off the chart! The absolutely slowest luggage carousel I've ever had the misfortune to witness! And the traffic throughout the airport! These people are definitely on a different schedule!
I discover, while waiting that I am - at a mere 5'2" - taller than most Peruvian women.
I also discover that these people make driving in NYC, DC and LA look like child's play.
It is almost 1:30 AM by the time I arrive (safely) in my hotel room in the Antigua Miraflores Hotel. I'd kiss the ground if I had the energy, but I decided to crash instead.
It was great to relax until our 10 AM meeting with our local tour guide, Erika, the next day. This hotel's restaurant had the best coffee I've ever tasted - and the most addictive iced cinnamon buns I've ever consumed. So I pretty much didn't care what the rest of the day brought my way because it just didn't get any better than that.
After breakfast I decided to take some photos of this incredibly eclectic hotel and its intriguing flora and fauna...
We discover, as Erika is taking our lunch order for El Divan Restaurant, that Peru grows approximately 3,000 kinds of potatoes because of its oceanic proximity (a 10-minute walk from our hotel); its Andean mountains; and incredibly humid but not rainy weather - especially in Lima.
The neighborhood buildings are shrouded in fog from the humidity as we begin our walking tour in Miraflores, heading to Parque Kennedy - a magnificent 240,000 square foot greenspace of gnarled tree trunks, palms, cashew trees and a myriad of colorful floral arrangements; the Roman Catholic temple Virgen Milagrosa Church (built in 1939); the Municipal Palace; and way too many stray cats and kittens.
The parque is named for President Kennedy who played a major role in Peru's Alliance for Progress, and on the plaque where his sculpture is located in the parque, it is also mentioned that Lima's sister city in the US is none other than Sarasota!
OMG, I have never seen such a busy airport after midnight! Customs and Immigration lines off the chart! The absolutely slowest luggage carousel I've ever had the misfortune to witness! And the traffic throughout the airport! These people are definitely on a different schedule!
I discover, while waiting that I am - at a mere 5'2" - taller than most Peruvian women.
I also discover that these people make driving in NYC, DC and LA look like child's play.
It is almost 1:30 AM by the time I arrive (safely) in my hotel room in the Antigua Miraflores Hotel. I'd kiss the ground if I had the energy, but I decided to crash instead.
It was great to relax until our 10 AM meeting with our local tour guide, Erika, the next day. This hotel's restaurant had the best coffee I've ever tasted - and the most addictive iced cinnamon buns I've ever consumed. So I pretty much didn't care what the rest of the day brought my way because it just didn't get any better than that.
After breakfast I decided to take some photos of this incredibly eclectic hotel and its intriguing flora and fauna...
We discover, as Erika is taking our lunch order for El Divan Restaurant, that Peru grows approximately 3,000 kinds of potatoes because of its oceanic proximity (a 10-minute walk from our hotel); its Andean mountains; and incredibly humid but not rainy weather - especially in Lima.
The neighborhood buildings are shrouded in fog from the humidity as we begin our walking tour in Miraflores, heading to Parque Kennedy - a magnificent 240,000 square foot greenspace of gnarled tree trunks, palms, cashew trees and a myriad of colorful floral arrangements; the Roman Catholic temple Virgen Milagrosa Church (built in 1939); the Municipal Palace; and way too many stray cats and kittens.
The parque is named for President Kennedy who played a major role in Peru's Alliance for Progress, and on the plaque where his sculpture is located in the parque, it is also mentioned that Lima's sister city in the US is none other than Sarasota!
The Municipal Palace
A procession celebrating the Lady of Fatima
at Virgen Milagrosa Church
I forgot to mention the money changers who are found on the streets and are available for changing
dollars to pons and vice versa.
(Seemed a bit shady to me, but they are legit).
I forgot to mention the money changers who are found on the streets and are available for changing
dollars to pons and vice versa.
(Seemed a bit shady to me, but they are legit).
After a tour of Parque Kennedy, we climbed aboard a tour bus and headed off to explore downtown Lima - definitely a lot older and rundown than the more expensive Miraflores neighborhood.
My favorite stop was Parque del Amor (Park of Love) along the Bay of Lima. Need I explain the reason for the name?
Victor Delfin's El Beso (the Kiss) sculpture dominates the park along with mosaic walls and colorful plantings.
Love the details of this sculpture
right to the man's toenails!
Our next stop, Huaca Pucilana, an immense adobe and clay pyramid built from 7 staggered platforms, is an active anthropological museum of remains from between 200 and 700 A.D. It was a ceremonial and administrative site in Lima's cultural development. Scientists are celebrating 37 years of excavation as of 2018.
Our last stop before lunch was the historic center of Lima, a UNESCO World Heritage Site designated in 1988.
Quick facts about historic Lima:
- founded by Spanish conquistadors in 1535
- Spain's wealthiest & largest city in the New World
- one of the 1st universities founded in South America (Universidad de San Marcos) in mid 16th century
- severely damaged by earthquake in mid 18th century
The Basilica and Convent of San Franciso
The Archbishop Palace (left)
The Basilica and the Convent of San Franciso (right)
Government Palace
The ornate incredibly beautiful balconies of Lima have resulted in naming Lima the City of Balconies.
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