Our Cool Trip to Lima and Peru

Finally, a Peru update … Our first day in Lima was spent mostly flying and sleeping. The hostel we stayed in was adequate, if noisy and a little adaption on our part as the Peruvian sewage system can’t handle toilet paper so it has to go in a bin. Our room was simple, and the ‘en-suite’ was in the corridor, much like a lockable cupboard with a shower built in.

Unfortunately, as Macchu Picchu has now re-opened prices are sky high to get there so we decided to do lots of tours around Lima instead. The company we booked with had a huge choice and as we booked so many tours they gave us a good discount and souveinirs.

Our fist tour was a city tour of Miraflores. We were on an open top bus and got shown the main sights, ancient ruins and a nice drive along the coast. We got dropped off next to the restaurants and bars and had all the restaurants competing with each other to get us to eat there, tempting us with free drinks. The park opposite has a market every night and has a few stalls, popcorn carts and food stalls.

Our next tour was around Lima. It took a while to get out of the city due to heavy traffic but we were soon in downtown Lima. We went past some beautiful buildings such as Congress and we stopped at the Peruvian Parliament.

The area was closed to traffic as the president of Guatemala was visiting so we had to walk the area, which actually made for a better tour. Everything was set around a park and was immaculately kept. The presidential building is based on Buckingham Palace. The cathedral and theatre were beautiful too.

We then walked to Iglesia de San Francisco. It was in its own courtyard with hundreds and hundreds of pigeons. The Cathedral has lots of old paintings and a section dedicated to the Passion of the Christ. We went downstairs to the catacombs where there were hundreds of bones in different sections. It was dark and a little bit creepy.

Back in the main building there was a dome ceiling that was made to look like the stars so that people could learn astronomy in secret, as back in Colonial times, it was forbidden.

We did a second tour around Lima, but this time at night. We went to a park which had lots of water fountains and a light show. The area was really nice with buildings lit up, statues and flowers. There was an enormous fountain which holds the Guinness world record for the tallest jet at 80m tall.

The water show used a wall of water and projected images of the country and shone lasers which moved to the music. There were lots of fountains including a tunnel one you could walk through which was all lit up in orange.

We were soon back on the bus and our next stop was the Sheraton for sandwiches, cake and juice. The Halls of Justice opposite looked amazing lit up at night with a red carpet rolled out at the front. Parliament square was closed again but luckily our bus was allowed around it. We went along the coast and saw a nice seafood restaurant built on rocks in the ocean, and also an underground shopping centre that was built into the face of the cliffs.

Our next tour was to Pachacamac. We headed out of town along the coast, then along the tallest bridge in the city and past the park with the kissing couple.

Every Valentine’s Day they hold a competition for the longest kiss (we could have won that). We then went down the Pan American Highway and stopped at a visitors centre for the wetlands which were the first protected site in Lima and provide 60% of the cities oxygen.

We eventually got to Pachacamac, an archeologically site which was the most important temple of the Andean coast for more than 1500 years. It is on the right side of the Lurin Valley, near the ocean and faces a group of small islands which some say look like a whale.

We drove around the site, seeing the different temples and then walked up the temple of the sun which is the tallest, most important and has amazing views over the ocean and an area where horses learn to dance.

The whole temple used to be covered in gold, until the Spanish raided it. We saw the area where they sacrificed women to the sun god when a major event happened such as an earthquake. Peruvians have uncovered over 100 bodies of the women who used to live in Mamacona, the temple of the moon which has 28 windows to represent the Luna calendar. The temple was built like a maze inside, so men couldn’t get in and those who did were castrated.

The women chosen for sacrifice were the prettiest, best at making textiles, singing, dancing and had royal blood. These women became the wives of the chief or were sacrificed. Women were chosen as they were considered more important than men, as they could bear children.

Most of the temples are made from adobe which is a mixture of egg whites, mud and seashells, so you can imagine it smells a bit! Some parts have been rebuilt. There was an earthquake a few years back which meant we couldn’t see a few bits due to safety. We went to the museum and saw artefacts, textiles and more information about the area. We also saw hummingbirds, alpacas and llamas outside.

We spent any time we weren’t on a tour discovering more about the the local area and trying to find the best priced souvenir shops. The restaurants in the area were we stayed are really good, and we enjoyed drinking the local drink; Inca Cola.

Inca Cola is a yellow liquid full of additives and sugar but it tastes good. We weren’t brave enough to try guinea pig, but we tried to experience as much of the local culture as we could. Kennedy Park was our central base, surrounded by shops and restaurants and was nice just to pass time when the sunshine was out.

Our last Peruvian tour was to Callao,, a port town around 30 minutes from Miraflores. We had a quick tour of the area showing us the bright coloured houses and some nice buildings.

We had toured the navy museum which I’m sure would be interesting if it was in English! But, the artefacts were impressive and they had a big collection of cannons and guns.

The next place we went showed us a short recruitment like video about the navy. We then boarded a submarine and went inside. It is very small and stuffy, lots of beds and not a lot of space. They did a recreation of what it would be like to go underwater and then we were finally allowed off. We went for lunch at the naval base, which had a swimming pool and bowling alley. We had a corn drink made from purple corn which had cinnamon and cloves in it – very tasty.

Our last stop was a fort where a pirate put on a show and there were some artifacts, busts and old uniforms. We went to the King’s castle, in the jails and round the labyrinth to the top. The views were fantastic. Sea both sides and the town in the middle.

Our trip to Lima and Peru was great. there’s loads to see and even more to do. We’d have loved to have seen Macchu Picchu but funds are dwindling and prices are sky high so needs must. We’re now preparing for our trip to the USA, beginning in Miami, Florida and then moving on to San Francisco, California, then Portland, Oregon beofre returning to Florida.

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