Finally in Lima

Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Lima, Peru
Finally arrived in Lima at 5:30 this morning. After all of the drama about making the connection in Miami, the flight was uneventdul. We were lucky enough to have an empty middle seat and I was actually able to get a little sleep. Immigration and Customs were very similar to the process in the US, with one additional step. After handing my declaration to the Customs inspector, I was told to punch a button on the wall. It turned green and I was done, but if it had turned red, my luggage would have been opened and searched by hand.

We met four members of our group after baggage claim, but two were missing. Since they had been traveling from Washington, DC, I thought that they had probably missed their connection in Miami. Turned out that I was right, but they will be arriving this evening, so tomorrow our group will be complete.

Got to the hotel a little after 7 and had time for breakfast and a brief rest before having our briefing and our first Pisco Sour. Then we had a walking tour of the Miraflores area of Lima where we are staying. Moor hotel is about 6 blocks from the Pacific Ocean and there a many restaurants and shops as well as flower filled parks. Our walk took us by Kennedy Park (named for JFK) and a sanctuary for local cats. We ended our walk at a local restaurant where had a traditional Peruvian lunch. My first course was Papa a Huancaiana, a dish of boiled potato slices covered with a spicy cheese sauce and served at room temperature. It was delicious and s good start to my exploration of some of Peru's 4,000 kinds of Potatos.

After lunch we continued our city tour with a visit to the archeological museum to learn more about some of the pre-Incan cultures of Peru. Our next stop was downtown, to walk in the Main Plaza, see the Government Palace and cathedral , and visit the 16th Century Church and monastery of San Francisco. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage site, and some of the beautiful paintings and tile work are being restored. That was our final stop of the afternoon and it was time to end a very long day.

Because I have switched from a PC to and IPad for this trip,I am not able to upload my photos to blog, but I am posting them on Picasa web.

Photos & Videos

Comments

Bruce
2012-05-31

Marylea - will we be able to see your photos on Picasa web while you are still in Peru?

maryleabyrd
2012-06-01

I hope so. The problem is that for some reason my contact list is incomplete, but if you have the URL from prior trips you should be able to see them.

Dee H
2012-06-02

I am glad you are enjoying Lima; I have also been to the same places and I distinctly remember the Miraflores area. What surprised me most was the desert all around Lima. Stay safe!!!

2025-02-12

Comment code: Ask author if the code is blank