A 3 hours flight later, here we are in South America. Lima, Perú. This country makes me dream, just the name sounds poetic and full of adventures.
The flight was very straightforward and laid-back. By that, I mean that we didn´t have to remove our shoes, throw away lighters, matches, liquids and water bottles, that we were not questioned endlessly by immigration service and that we had real cutlery on board. No paranoia here and it was very nice to fly without feeling like potential terrorists.
Both San José and Panamá City were pretty run-down and dirty, and the architecture was very plain. Lima is nicer than I remembered, with a lot of colonial buildings and – gosh – traffic police. Which means we can cross the street without paying God. Isn´t it awesome!
Meanwhile, Lima is also really cheap. We are staying in a basic hostel with shared bathroom and we only pay $12. A nice meal in a Chinese restaurant (I owned it to Feng…) was $8 for the two of us, including drinks. Internet is 30 cents per hour… Food in Costa Rica was very expensive by our standards and it wasn´t much better in Panamá. Bu in Lima, there are tons of Chinese restaurants and cheap eats, including a brand new supermarket with a comida por kilo buffet.
We discussed where to go quite a lot. The logical way would be to head to Cuzco (the city the closest to Macchu Picchu). But we were there in 2002 and it is really expensive to 1) fly to Cuzco from Lima 2) take the train from Cuzco to Macchu Picchu. I think we will pass for now because we just don´t want to spend at least $500 each to get there. Instead, we are taking the Pacific road and heading to Arequipa, in the South of the country.
We enjoyed Lima these last few days. We walked around the historical center and went to Miraflores, the newer (and posher) suburb. The beaches are not that nice (nothing compared to Costa Rica) but it was fun. Southern hemisphere… here we are!
Great pictures, nice looking place. I’m still convinced you miss the snow and friendly cold weather 😀
Lima looks like a great place!
I love the ‘Hill over Lima’ shot, especially with the houses gradually creeping up the hill.
I really like the architecture…was it left by Spaniards?
Nice photos, as always.
A friend of mine has just come back from Peru. It was quite stunning to see snow capped peaks and palm trees in the same photo! Hope you enjoy!
Zhu…Wonderful pics…Im swept away by them. Sply I love the chicken bus 🙂
By gods girl, you are living my dream life! Hope you get to Cuzco and the big M. Have a great 2009, sounds like you have started of well. Nothing interesting going on in the rest of the world, that you want to know about anyway! x
I am so jealous and drooling over your pictures and travels right now, I would love love love to go to Peru. Have the amazing time that I wish I were having!
I haven’t stopped by your blog in ages, and always have to wrack my brain to type the URL in enough for my computer to remember it.
Looks like you’re avoiding the OC Transpo strike, in style.
It looks fabulous and again I am stricken by the colors! I think that if the prices are reasonable I would kick back and stay there a few days and really get to know the area 🙂 Thank you for taking us along on your trip.
Ooooh just love those colonial architecture! Be sure to visit the charming colonial town of Cuzco and the ruins of Machu Picchu, which I’m sure you probably will due to the fact that you’ve come till this far!
You’ve sold me on Peru. Beautiful scenery and affordable accommodations and food. You really can’t ask for much else now can you?
Holà amigos 😉
I’m so glad that you extended the trip; that means that we also will share a bit of it !
Very cool, what I’m seeing of Peru !
Then, when you can find places that are both scenic and cheaper to stay in, that IS a plus.$500 a pice to continue on to Cuzco is costly, and since you already have been there, it’s not like you are losing out.
Keep on enjoying.
Grosses bises
Local Chicken Bus?? 😛
That’s cute.
The brightly colored buses and cars look good! The photo of the Miraflores beach is fantastic. How about some details on the food in Peru? This is the one cuisine I am dying to try out!
Good thing you guys didn’t go to Cuzco again. If you’ve already been there, why visit again? Better see the places you haven’t seen yet. I would love to go to Lima, I only have been to the airport, I never even went to the city.
@Froggywoogie – Of course I do. But I will get over it, I hope 😆
@Agnes – It´s a nice first city of South America, for sure. Very colorful and just chaotic enough, but not too much.
@Adem – It´s quite amazing actually. I have never seen anyone quite like that!
@Bluefish – Most of it, yes. But Lima has been rebuilt quite a few times.
@Liz – The weather is a bit crazy here, but so is the geography! Lima is in the desert, yet by the sea…!
@CM-Chap – Probably not to ride them though!
@beaverboosh – Nah, we have been to Macchu Picchu before and it´s expensive to get there. We have other plans for now… 😉
@Soleil – Sorry, didn´t mean to brag! But I am truly enjoying this trip.
@Saskboy – I know, I can´t believe I missed a Canadian strike! I left a day before it started actually and I can´t believe it keeps on going. I would have been in trouble actually… Hope it ends soon!
@DianeCA – Prices are great, for sure! The color are amazing. Like in China, everywhere you look is like wow!
@kyh – We will skip Macchu Picchu this time because it´s so expensive to get there, and we have been there before in 2002. But we will go in other places… should be nice too.
@silverneurotic – Not much actually! Well, maybe something different than rice and chicken for diner, that would be great.
@barbara – I love yout comments and your enthousiasm, I feel like I´m sharing with a friend! Thank you Barabara. Yes, we should be traveling for another couple of months (yes, that much!) and I´m sure many adventures lay ahead.
@Baoru – Gotta love them to ride for hours!
@Shantanu – Well, I am preparing a post on the food, but to be honest, it´s pretty basic most of the time. Like in Central America, rice, beans and chicken… nice cakes though, there are a lot of bakeries.
@Linguist-in-Waiting – Lima is cool, it changed a lot since 2002 actually. Nice place to hang out, very relaxed, especially inthe center. The beaches are not great though, mostly black sand and lots of sharks (no kidding).
Hi Zhu,
Awesome! Lima is my kind of city! I loved the photos as well, you remain a true artist :)!
I am so glad that you are doing well, darling! And I may admit that I miss you :)!
Have fun always!
Cheers
Last weekend someone I met while snowshoeing said that she didn’t like travelling for long periods of time because everything started to blend together, and the moments of joy during the trip were getting diluted by the end of it.
Especially in Spanish-speaking countries where you encounter similar or the same words/names over and over, do you find yourself losing track at all? Or have you developed a special mnemonic device to commit everything to memory? [If you have, please share it! 🙂 ]
I highly enjoyed reading this post, keep on making such exciting posts.
Very interesting post. I has passed more that 35 years when I last time visited in Lima. According to Your photos there are changeas in cityscape.
Merci beaucoup pour ce post.
Lima did change a lot… I visited in 2002 and again in 2009 and I could see the difference! So I can imagine how hard it must be for you to recognize the city after 35 years.