We didn’t really stay in Lima long enough for it to deserve its own post. Yet it doesn’t really fit with any of my other posts.
Lima
We don’t do things by halves. Our 6am flight from Cusco gave us 14 hours in Lima before our night bus to Huaraz. We were determined to make the most of it.
Cue the free walking tour.
We were not expecting much from Lima, so historic centre was a nice surprise. Especially the Plaza Mayor (or Plaza de Armas… all main squares in Peru are the plaza de armas. Except for in Lima where it’s the plaza mayor. However all locals know it as the plaza de armas anyway…)
Lima was the capital of the Viceroy of Peru, the centre of wealth and power of a huge swath of South America. The grand colonial buildings with ornate wooden balconies show it off. On one side of the square is the presidential palace and seat of government, looking every bit the part of a European royal palace. On another side the imposing cathedral adorned with many black vultures.
Churros in Peru are mostly different from the treat we know from Europe and the rest of South America. We had god’s own churros from a very religiousy looking establishment by the cathedral. Approved by the Virgin Mary herself, the manjar blanco churros were of course heavenly.
The metropolitano is a bus which runs on dedicated lanes in the centre of the main arterial routes in Lima. Much like a train or a metro it has dedicated stops with raised platforms, and an impressive underground station in the centro histórico. It’s a quick way to get around, especially in Lima’s notorious traffic. Being Sunday the traffic wasn’t bad, but we squeezed ourselves into the metropolitan on nonetheless, our destination was Barranco.
Barranco is on the coast due south of the centro histórico and is a well to do neighbourhood. Many visitors to Lima stay here rather than the historic centre, and it’s easy to see why with its walkable streets and street art. Blu is the best ice cream in Lima, at least the gentlemen next to us in the very long queue told us as much. The ice cream was indeed exceptional and a must visit for anyone in Lima. Out of our sample size of one, this was by far the best. The Muña and Lucuma flavours are especially sought after.
Miraflores is the best part of an hour’s walk north of Barranco and is, if anything, smarter than its seaside neighbour. Walking along the promenade after dark was no problem, we even had time to stop in some fancy art gallery shop places along the way to look at things we can’t afford.
Park Kennedy is the centre of Miraflores and most visitors to Lima will find themselves basing themselves near here. Why? Well the park is home to a hundred or more well looked after cats. All mostly tame and open to hours of petting, as long as it isn’t feeding time. It’s bizarre, it really is.
Cruz del Sur is the best intercity coach company in Peru (apparently – after trying their service once, we never rode with anyone else). For no cost they had held our bags all day at their station in Javier Prado. Yep that’s right they have their own bus station, the normal bus station is too unrefined for their first class passengers.
Bags are checked in much like an airline. When boarding the coach you get to shake the drivers hand, and then they video everyone on bird just for extra security. The seats are wide, recline all the way back, and are very comfy for a night’s sleep. Shame the road to Huaraz is too windy to sleep on.
- The infamous Binga-Karoi road
- Mana Pools: A bucket list location?
- Camping Among Lions: Chitake Springs Experience
- Chirundu: The worst border in the world
- The Wild Dogs of Jeki: Sunrise in Lower Zambezi
Small Holiday Big Dream 
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