Lima
September 19, 2019
First impressions
We spend our first day walking through the old part of Lima. Since we got up early, thanks to the jet lag, we experience a still awakening city. A short cab ride away from the hotel, our walk takes us through the Plaza San Martin, where the city’s first, but now fading, Gran Hotel Bolivar stands. We then stroll through the Jirón de la Union, once the heart of the aristocratic city life. Once beautiful buildings now host modern shoe shops and cafes. We arrive at the Plaza de Armas surrounded by ancient buildings including the Cathedral and the Palacio Arzobispal with its Moorish balconies.
The Plaza is already bustling with Peruvians in traditional clothing. We find out later that there is a procession where various regions of Peru are represented. We continue our visit via the Monasterio de San Francisco and the Catacombs, which apparently are the second biggest in the world. The tour of the catacombs with a few Dutch tourists is informative although the guide may not have been as knowledgable as expected. On the way out, we stop at a specialist coffee shop for a welcome warm cappuccino and chocolate cake for Lorri, and the healthy option, a carrot cake, for B! As we savour our coffee and cakes, a Dutch family who was with us at the catacombs arrives and we enjoy a nice conversation with this well traveled family before continuing our walk through the centre of Lima. Our visit brings us back through the Plaza San Martin and further to the Museo de Arte, which hosts a large collection of pre-Columbian and modern art. In the evening we enjoy a well deserved Pisco sour… followed by a simple, but tasty octopus dinner.
