A paddle in the Pacific 1. Lima: Our first South American sunset was in Peru’s capital Lima, where on day one of our 6 month trip, I enjoyed my first ever paddle in the Pacific Ocean as the sun went down. We then walked up the path from the beach to Barranco – the arty area of town we were staying – to enjoy a cold one as the sun disappeared below the horizon on our first day away. The Peruvian…
Lima: Most visitors to Lima stay in either upmarket Miraflores or slightly bohemian Barranco. The old town is reportedly not very safe for tourists at night, although there are hostels and hotels there too. The Bridge of Sighs in Barranco near Barranco Backpackers We decided to stay in Barranco and loved the colourful buildings and relaxed atmosphere of the area. Miraflores was nice, but walking around the area you feel like you could be anywhere in the world, whereas Barranco felt…
Being a vegetarian in Peru was surprisingly easy. Peru is getting itself known as being a bit of a foodie destination and as well as the Alpaca steaks that James enjoyed along the way, this also means that there are an increasing number of (varying quality) vegetarian restaurants. We ate very well in Lima. Following the recommendations of Neverending Voyage and Indefinite Adventure, we made a beeline for Almazen, where we enjoyed sampling a range of different types of potatoes,…
1. Enjoy a sundowner in Barranco near the Bridge of Sighs It may have been that we particularly enjoyed this beer as it came at the end of a very long day. We’d arrived into Lima at 7am, got to the hostal and then pretty much went straight back out again. So this relaxing beer at the end of a long and hot day was very welcome and this was a beautiful backdrop. 2. Visit the Museo de la Nacion…
On the coast south of Lima, there are a number of sights and activities, which collectively have become known as the Gringo trail. I hadn’t actually realized this when I was planning our trip. However, looking at what there was to see and do between Lima and Cusco (from where we are booked on an Inca Trail tour, starting on 23rd March), I unknowingly managed to map out a perfect Gringo Trail route. So much for trying to get off…
On our second day in Lima, we headed to the Centro Historico to take in the sights of the old town. We started in the main square, with its very impressive Cathedral and Government buildings. In the square and surrounding streets there are also a range of other imposing buildings from the Spanish colonial era, many sporting a typical Lima-style balconies. In recent years, the mayor of Lima has established an ‘adopt a balcony’ scheme, encouraging businesses and individuals to…
After promising James that as we were going away for a long time, we would not need to rush round to make sure we had seen everything; our first few days away have been pretty hectic. Lima was quite hot and is quite spread out and so getting about took longer than I had thought. This combined with the heat made getting around quite tiring. We only nearly fell out once though, which is pretty good going. We stayed in…