Central Lima
We have one last full day in Lima and the plan is to spend it in the old part of the city, where most of the colonial buildings were constructed after the Spanish arrived. It turns out to be just a few blocks from our hotel, so after breakfast we load up and head out. The difference between this part of the city and Miraflores is evident almost immediately, as the streets are more crowded with locals and the sidewalks lined with street carts. One of the famous foods here is ceviche (raw fish marinated in lime juice), so it has been on our “must do” list. How then could we turn down the opportunity to not only try uncooked meat, but to do so from a dingy box on wheels. A+ to Sammy for staring botulism in the face and not flinching.
A few blocks further is the main square, Plaza de Armas. On one side is the Presidential Palace, and by sheer coincidence, we arrive as they are going through the daily changing of the guard. Adjacent to that is the Archbishop’s Palace, where after a quick look a the church, we are approached by a man selling paintings (his back story is that he teaches art to kids in Lima, and of course, has a good friend in Seattle). As he is flipping through his portfolio of original works, poker-face Sam gives him a big thumbs up whenever he sees a picture with a llama, and comments how the prices are pretty cheap. Not surprisingly, we end up with a painting of Machu Picchu that contains llamas, but for only twice what we probably needed to pay.
Just off the square is a restaurant recommended in our guide book, so we stop there for lunch, including some less sketchy ceviche, yuca fries, and fantastic rice pudding for dessert. It is definitely the best food we have had so far, and probably a spot we would come back to if we were staying in Lima longer.
Like Asia with all of its temples, it is easy to get “churched out” here, but one I did want to see if the Monastery of San Francisco, primarily because you get to walk through the catacombs and see the 70,000 people that are buried there. The rest of the tour is very engaging though and includes a room full of priceless painting by Peter Paul Rubens that you can walk right up (no sheet of plexiglass or ropes 5 feet from the wall), and a stunning library with over 25,000 texts going back over 500 years.
For the rest of the afternoon, we just wander around town, checking out the various markets and trying different snacks here and there (note the ever present Inca Kola). It’s crowded, noisy, and admittedly a little infectious, but after a few hours we are ready to get back to the hotel and relax. Tomorrow we are off to Cusco.
