Living in Peru : your everyday companion

Essay and photos by Rodney L. Dodig

There is so much to do and see in Lima that it can be hard to narrow down what to experience on a visit here. I have made an effort to learn as much about the history of Lima as possible so that I can share this and the stories I have heard when I have visitors. Days three and four of my friend’s six-day stay in Lima were a variety of things of which can interest visitors to Peru's capital city.

Read part one here.

On the morning of day three we headed into Miraflores to Café Z for breakfast. This place has the best omelets I have had in Peru to date. The café itself is a haven for the bohemian crowd and at any time you will find a nice mixture of the international crowd and local Peruvians. Here we met up with JP, another friend, and headed over to Huaca Pucllana.

Ruins and Peruvian artisans
This huaca is considered one of the important centers for the Lima Culture and should be visited by anyone visiting Lima. Restoration and preservation continue on this site and the 10 sol entrance fee with free guide (although you should tip them) is a bargain and there is also a nice gift shop on site. The pyramidal structure is impressive and many important archaeological finds have been made here. It is only one of many huacas throughout Lima that deserve your attention.

From the huaca we walked up to the Inca Market so my friends could purchase souvenirs for their family and friends back home. The prices at this series of markets on Av. Petit Thouars seem very reasonable to me and — if it is your forte — the vendors will bargain with you. My friends wandered through the dozens of stalls selecting appropriate gifts. These markets are amazing in their wide variety of goods for sale. Each stall is an explosion of color that assails the eye and draws you in for closer examinations.

The zoo and a cheap meal
After they had tired of shopping we headed into the district of Lince to have lunch at a menu place. Small restaurants offer menus where you can get lunch for anywhere from 5 to 15 Soles ($2-5). These lunches include an appetizer or salad, a main course and juice as a drink. The one I had selected for us offered lunches at a range of prices depending on the main course you wanted. Ours ended up being around 6.50 soles and none of us left hungry. The menu restaurants are another experience a person should try to get a feel for life in Peru.

After lunch we headed to the Parque Leyendas where Lima’s Zoo is located and the remains of one the largest pre-Columbian cities in Peru. Here besides the animals you can visit a collection of magnificent huacas built and improved on by a large variety of cultures. The zoo itself contains a nice collection of animals from around the world plus two areas devoted to wildlife found here in Peru’s wide ranging ecosystems.

My personal favorite is the area devoted to the jungle. Here they have monkeys, sloths, birds and big cats along with many other species. The area is planted with bamboo and it’s like walking through the actual jungle. Unfortunately I was not able to show them the entire Zoo, it could be an entire day by itself, as we had arrived a little later than I planned. Having suitably worn them out, we headed back for a good night’s sleep so we would be fresh for day four.

Food along the malecón
Day four would be slightly more relaxed than the previous days. Anyone receiving visitors should be obliged to introduce them to the friends they have made here in Peru and that is just what I did. I arranged for a nice lunch at a gelateria in Miraflores where a couple of my friends who were free that day met us for sandwiches and a drink. From there we headed over to another small restaurant on Av. Larco called Mezze. It’s a great place to stop as you are walking towards Lima’s coast  for a coffee and dessert.

After enjoying our sweet treat here we headed to the Malecon (the road and walkway at the top of the cliffs running along the ocean) for a walk along the cliffs. The views from here of the bay are spectacular a walk here is another of the many musts in Lima. We passed through the Parque de Amor and went as far as the light house with our cameras in hand before heading back to end up at one of the nicest malls I have ever been in, Larcomar. Here we headed down to a place called Mangos which has an open terrace on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific to watch the beautiful sunset. After drinks and a couple of appetizers, good conversation and seeing the stunning sunset; we headed back to the apartment to rest up for the next day.

In part three, I finish my tour of Lima and surrounding area and my friend heads home. Look for it next week.

Read more about travel by Rodney Dodig. Click here to see his blog and read his fiction at Peruvian Writer's Group.

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2 Comments

# don in tulsa says :
16 June, 2010 [ 02:28 ]

i'm enjoying your story. my wife is from Lima and we came for a visit 2 years ago. we found the same mall that you talk about and the restaurant called mangos. the view from the open terrace was very beautiful. i'm hoping you took your guests to the brizas del titicaca for the traditional dances.

# Kathia Obert says :
17 June, 2010 [ 06:09 ]

I often visit Lima, as I am from there but live in Florida. When I go to Lima I love to eat at LA ROSA NAUTICA is the restaurant that is round, on an inlet to the ocean. You can see it when you look down the cliff in Larcomar. They have the best food! a little expensive, but with dollars is affordable. Also don't forget to take them to Barranco, it is so quaint. I love reading your story, makes me want to go visit soon. 

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