Our first stop! Our flight into Lima ended up being a little late so we didn’t land until about 10:30 PM, the immigration line was stupid packed, and the Uber process was overwhelming. All of those things, along with the fact that we were just wrapping our brains around our choice to travel for a year, made for a little overwhelming start. Luckily we got right into our AirBnb with the help of a friendly doorman and got a full night of sleep after a long day of traveling.
Day 1 - The first true day of our new lifestyle. The number one priority was water because you are advised to not drink or brush your teeth with the Lima water. There was a large supermarket a few blocks down from us which was convenient. It actually caught us off guard how much this supermarket had. And when you have everything at your disposal then you want it all, but we stuck with bread, meat, cheese and water
In the afternoon we took a walk along the coast on the boardwalk that is within walking distance of Miraflores. It was a bit foggy but still offered a gorgeous view. You will find a series of parks along the boardwalk including the famous ‘Parque del Amor’ or Love Park which houses the famous ‘El Beso’ statue of lovers.
Also along the boardwalk, you will find the famous Larcomar shopping center which is housed essentially inside of cliffs. We didn’t have a lot of wiggle room to go on a first day shopping bender, so we just did a walkthrough and took off. For our meal we went to Homemade which our AirBnb host suggested. Awesome little spot.
To round out the day we hung out in the park by our apartment that quickly became Caitlin’s favorite place because of the…. Cats. Not like your nasty cats you might imagine but really nice and healthy looking cats. One walkthrough of the park and Caitlin counted 44 and that was just in our line of sight. They have food bowls throughout the park and since there are a lot of cats, that means not a lot of birds :).
Day 2 - Unfortunately our morning started off on an almost catastrophic note when Caitlin dropped mascara on her new shirt but we prevailed. Following a wardrobe change, we set off on a free (tips encouraged) walking tour of the historical district. The tour highlighted the following areas:
The Plaza Mayor or Plaza de Armas of Lima is the birthplace of the city of Lima as well as the core of the city. It’s surrounded by the Government Palace, Cathedral of Lima, Archbishop's Palace of Lima, the Municipal Palace, and the Palace of the Union. (Picture)
Basílica y Convento de San Francisco de Lima
Historical Center of Lima
Overall the tour was fine. We only paid in a tip so we can’t complain. Following this we made our way to one of the oldest restaurants in Lima which every Peruvian president has made a point to visit.
The surrounding area of the historical area is a tad bit shady, so we made our way back to Miraflores once we saw everything. That night we went to a local watering hole (Nuevo Mundo) to enjoy some drinks, appetizer, and even some NBA basketball that was requested by an American couple.
Day 3 - On our last full day in Lima we decided to spend it in the Barranco district and it proved to be a great decision. Based on the number of pictures taken, I can safely say this was Caitlin’s favorite district in Lima. Some of the highlights:
There are murals everywhere in this district, very nice and elaborate ones at that. You could spend a couple of hours just wandering and finding new ones.
CEVICHE! I finally got my hands on the famous dish and it didn’t disappoint. We also ordered lomo saltado, which had been heavily advertised at almost every restaurant we had been to in Lima. As it turns out it’s kind of like pot roast, with fries on top and a side of rice—also very tasty! The location was named Canta Rana, was highly recommended, and we 100% agree with those suggestions.
To end the day, we went to one of the coolest bars we’ve ever been to in a converted mansion called Ayahuasca (a drink with effects hallucinogens). Here we tried our FIRST Pisco Sour.
Next Up - Peru Hop bus that makes its way to Cusco.