The beautiful Plaza Armas
We arrived in Lima just as planned. Having only four weeks left before Ali and I go our separate ways, we thought now would be a good time to iron out our itinerary for the remainder of our travels in South America. We booked our flights to Iquitos for the 5th of June which left us with a good amount of time to explore the capital before heading further north into Colombia.
I experienced acute culture shock when we first arrived here in Miraflores. I wasn’t expecting such a western-like civilization with all the standard luxuries like shopping malls, posh bars, and even the odd Starbucks dotted here and there. Miraflores is a suburb north of the city and is slightly more developed and up-market than the rest of Lima. I see it as a sort of sub-city for the wealthy. Our hostel is located on one of the main arterial roads that run through the suburb and the instant you step out onto the street you are surrounded by a hive of activity. This rush of excitement, after spending a long period of time in small cities and rural plains, was very shortly followed by an immense feeling of anguish. It seems the less time I spend in such developed places the more I appreciate the smaller, fewer things in life. In a way, it almost feels like too much of what we have in the west is sinful. I’m not turning into a hippie or anything like that (I can assure you it won’t take me long to adjust once I return to my normal lifestyle), but I can’t help but feel a little uncomfortable about our culture. I know its all relative and maybe I’ve just acquired a different level of appreciation for what I have, but it just doesn’t seem fair. I should probably change the subject now. Good coffee makes me ramble and apparently this stuff is great! I’m drinking 100% Arabica from Villa Rica in Peru.
So, with only four days to go before the big election there is an evident buzz around the city which can’t be ignored. The front page of every newspaper is dominated with images of both candidates for presidency and has long been the topic of discussion. The Peruvians certainly don’t mind being asked about their preference and so Ali and I have enjoyed listening to the various opinions of locals as we travel throughout the country. There are two candidates for presidency; a crazy military man who wants to shoot homosexuals and evict half the law-abiding population (just because they may not be entirely of Peruvian origin) and a past president who was convicted of stealing ridiculous amounts of money from the government (but has since apologized and promised not to make the same mistake again). Not surprisingly, half the people we asked said they weren’t going to vote for either.
One of the few interesting buildings in Lima
Downtown Lima had its nice parts but the majority of our time here has been pretty neutral. The Plaza Armas (which, in case you’re wondering, ‘armas’ means ‘mayor’ and the square is where the government building is situated. Hence the reason why there is a Plaza Armas in almost every big city in South America) is one of the nicest places to linger in the city as the whole square is surrounded by a mish mash of architecture from various different periods and is very well landscaped. However, it’s fair to say that the rest of the city is fairly drab by comparison. Several other squares are dotted throughout the city which are pleasant but in order to get to them you have to walk along very uninspiring streets lined with unattractive buildings. In Miraflores Ali and I took advantage of the cheap movie theatre which was located directly across the street from our hostel and watched The DaVinci Code. The movie was in English with Spanish subtitles and we both really enjoyed it (except Ali wasn’t happy about the fact that they didn’t have sweet popcorn). I think the best part of our time here in Lima was the really nice Japanese-Peruvian restaurant we had the pleasure of visiting on our first night. It was a small place with a very comfortable modern interior. We ate very well for less than $9 which included sushi, tempura, huge maki rolls and an interesting martini called “Kamikaze” (they just so happened to be 2 for 1 on Thursday’s so we couldn’t resist). The food was great and probably the cheapest sushi we’ve ever had.
As you might have guessed, as usual I’m sitting in a café drinking coffee and scribbling down my final thoughts. Ali is back at the hostel chilling out and preparing for our departure on Monday morning. We are flying to Iquitos to meet our friend Gerard for a boat trip up the Amazon and want to make sure we have everything we need. We started taking our Malaria tablets a couple of days ago (just in case) and I have made contact with a friend in Bogota so that we will have a place to stay when we get there. I think I’m ready to leave Lima now and am looking forward to a change in scenery. Well, it’s Saturday night. Maybe a few drinks are in order. “La cuenta por favor.”
