Posted March 20, 2018 by travelaroundthegalaxy south america

Lima, Peru

The first stop on our South America adventure was Peru. This meant that we would be flying into Lima to begin the festivities. The city is a big sprawling mess, a hectic mix of modern and historic, a loud and in your face attack on the senses. It’s awesome! We gave ourselves 3 days / 2 nights in Lima. This was obviously not long enough to even scratch the surface of a city as big and diverse as Lima, but we made the best of it. We sampled some of the best that Lima has to offer.

We stayed on the edge of Miraflores (the more upscale and trendy seaside neighbourhood) and used this as our home base. Using the Metro-Bus, we easily traveled into the historic center of Lima, spending an entire day exploring the Plaza de Armas, visiting crazy markets, and wandering around the old city. The city preseves it’s history quite well, and many of the historic buildings have been converted into the modern-day use. It was impossible to see everything in one day.

What makes Lima, Peru so amazing?

Lima is a pretty interesting mix. It’s hard to put your finger on exactly what makes the city so great.

As one of the biggest cities in the Americas (with just under 10 million people living inside the city limits) it has a lot going on. It has many distinct neighborhoods and regions within the city itself. Probably the best part of Lima was the food, as we can’t remember a meal that didn’t wow the sense.

On our first night in the city, while walking back towards the bus to our hotel, we stumbled upon a large park near the National Football Stadium, which had a water and light show. It’s one of those things we never expected to see, but as the light faded for the night, we were treated to a choreographed water and light show. The city is full of surprises.

This open air event had illuminated fountains shooting water, the nearby lights set us up for some amazing pictures. The final highlight of this was a projected storytelling show, which culminated in the evening.

Where is Lima, Peru and how do you get there?

Lima is located right on the Pacific Ocean and is the countries largest city. It is also really easy to get to, as the airport is one of the major hubs serving cities in Canada, the USA, and Europe. It also has flights connecting to all other cities on the continent.

The center of the city has many historic buildings, especially around the Plaza de Armas, but what we loved about Lima was that it was also very modern. We stayed in one of the new parts of town, with malls and modern buildings, it felt like a different city. Fortunately, it is also home to some of the best restaurants and bars in the city and we ate a lot of really amazing food, including several very good Ceviche.

Miraflores is the more upscale neighborhood of Lima, situated directly on the coast, with tall apartments overlooking the Atlantic Oceans.

*Huaca Pucllana Adobe Pyramid structure in Miraflores. 2017.*

We even found a pre-historic adobe pyramid being excavated in the heart of a residential neighborhood called Huaca Pucllana. This still being excavated city was once home to the “Lima Culture” which pre-dates the Wari Wari and Inca and was built between 200-700 AD.

The “ruins” are starkly contrasted against the modern city of Lima, fighting against the growth of the city. It now covers just a tiny fraction of what the city once was. Much like the rest of Lima, the past is part of the future.

There was a lot that we didn’t have time for, but we would go back in a heartbeat. Lima was the definition of cool. We can’t wait to go back!