Exploring downtown with Eddie!

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A good friend from USC, Eddie, is visiting family in Lima so we met up to go exploring and decided it would also be a day for a "food tour." We went to the two main plazas (Plaza de San Martin & Plaza de Armas), a few churches (Santo Domingo, Convento de San Francisco, Casa de San Martin de Porres), and a park (Parque de la Muralla) See pictures for more descriptions. We took a tour of the Saint Francis Convent and Catacombs - my favorite part was probably the library filled with tons of old books.


New foods that I tried - turrón (super sweet dessert made of layers of cookies and honey with sprinkles and candies on top), sweet potato chips, empanada de pollo, and rocoto relleno (sort of like a stuffed bell pepper, filled with and surrounded by beef, beans, tomatoes, cheese, potatoes).

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Photos

Iglesia Nuestra Señora de la Merced
Built in 1535

Jirón de la Unión
The main street connecting the two main plazas downtown. It used to be the place to go for the very wealthy people but now there are people of all classes. The famous saying about the street goes: 'El Perú es Lima, Lima es el Jirón de la Unión, el Jirón de la Unión es el Palais Concert y el Palais Concert soy yo'... Several people have told me this saying when we walked down the street. It means "Peru is Lima, Lima is Jiron de la Union (the street), Jiron de la Union is Palais Concert (an old cafe/bar for the rich people), and the Palais Concert is me" ... I think the significance is something like saying "This is the place to be in Peru and I am here so I'm a a true Peruvian." ... maybe?

Plaza Mayor de Lima (o Plaza de Armas)
The main public square in Lima. On the right, you can see the Cathedral and on the left is half of the government palace.

Iglesia y Convento de San Francisco
Below the church are the catacombs where 25,000 people were buried between 1500s-1800s. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take pictures during any part of the tour.

Old wall
This is what's left of the old wall that used to surround Lima (about 5 sq km?). The wall was built in the 1600s and torn down in 1872.

Turrón
This is a very typical dessert in Lima. Pastelería San Martín is supposedly famous for this dessert. Very good but VERY rich and sweet!

Pisco Sour!
Everyone had been telling me that I need to try a Pisco Sour (Pisco is a Peruvian brandy) so I finally did --- good, but too strong for me. I'll stick with my Amaretto Sours at home :)

Comments

[Kim Dykas]

Exploring Lima
Monica, I love your pictures! So glad you were able to meet up with Eddie and explore Lima. The churches look beautiful in the pics but I'm sure they're even more gorgeous in person. My mouth is watering after your descriptions of the new food you tried. Sounds like a great day! Love you!

[Grandma]

What a marvelous experience
Hi Monica Another once-in-a-lifetime (or maybe not) experience you are having. It must have been great to see the city with someone who really knows it. Still hot and dry here. I was in St L Thur for an appt, at St John's med bldg, couldn't find my car when I was finished; I knew exactly where I had parked--but didn't realize there are 2 garages there so, of course, I was wandering around in the wrong one! I finally called your Mom to rescue me. The good news- I got to have lunch with her and Tim and Jennifer; the bad news--I'm now the butt of a lot of new family jokes! I'll be looking for the next blog. Love you lots, Grandma