Peru: Days 25-28, Lima and final thoughts on Peru

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I took another Cruz del Sur bus from Nazca to Lima, arriving at around midnight at the bus terminal nearest Miraflores. I quickly got a taxi but was stymied because there are apparently four, FOUR, Casa Andina hotels in the Miraflores area. After missing on the first stop, the second stop, Casa Andina Select, was the winner. I checked in and made it up to my very nice room. Unfortunately the hotel, while comfortable and in a good location, did not deliver based on the cost. It was by far the most expensive hotel I stayed in during my entire trip and I kept paying for things. The water was not only not complimentary, it was as expensive as those found at Machu Picchu. The internet was not only not complimentary, it was as expensive as any other place I had stayed in any country, if not more so. The restaurant staff at breakfast time (which was complimentary) was great, but I guess they had third string at dinner time as both times it was questionable, including once where I walked out.

But I digress… aside from some gripes I had about the hotel, which was probably exaggerated by my fatigue at the end of my trip, I had a nice relaxing last few days in Lima. After a semi-decent hour long massage, I relaxed in my room for a bit. I wanted to get in on the well known culinary scene, but some of the better restaurants require reservations weeks if not months in advance - no, seriously. Plus it was on the weekend and I was sure Saturday night would be busy and it turns out many places are closed on Sunday. Bummer. Instead, on Saturday afternoon, I decided to walk past some good restaurants I identified and try my luck. I hit on the first attempt at Saqra. This a nice little restaurant with an outdoor patio, where I sat to enjoy the nice day. I ordered a ceviche and then a fish dish with a special bbq sauce as well as a pisko sour. So, it was a good first meal with very nice staff.

I made my way to Larcomar where I watched a movie and did some minor shopping. The next day was more of the same, except I visited the neighboring markets where I did some souvenir shopping for my family. I decided to try the restaurant at my hotel, where I was promptly seated and then waited by myself for fifteen minutes before walking out. I wound up at a neighboring restaurant, again outdoor patio seating for the nice night air. After that dinner, I went across the street to a bakery for a piece of chocolate cake.

My last day I packed up and left my luggage at the front desk before heading back to Larcomar. On the way, I passed by a fish restaurant and decided to hop in where I had a ceviche in a sauce. You know, the ceviche is good and it is one of the iconic dishes of Lima, but it really is not for me. I can see how people love it though. I saw another movie before heading back to my hotel for dinner - second attempt. I had chicken wings which were ok and a brownie for dessert as well as three pisko sours. THREE. Good lord, Alexis. After having only enough drinks I can count on one hand for the whole month, I more than made up for it on my last night. My taxi picked me up for the airport, where I easily checked in and passed through customs. I had an hour to wait for my flight and sat down in a chair near my gate, but not in my gate. I woke with a start and realized it was the last call for the flight! I was the last person on the plane. Yes, I'm sure the pisko sours had something to do with it, but it was also 2am and I was exhausted! But I made my flight and slept the whole way to Atlanta. Adios Peru!

Final thugs on Peru:

1. It is an extremely touristic country. Everything seems to be based on tourists. This means that you have really transportation and can get around fairly easily, but it also means that there is a lot of selling! It was borderline annoying - some places it was hard to walk without being accosted by multiple people trying to sell you worthless trinkets or pictures.

2. There is so much to do and see it is incredible. I was there for a month and pretty active and I think I could have easily spent two months there. The natural beauty is everywhere as is the archaeological history.

3. Peruvian people are helpful and even knowledgeable but not overly friendly. They are not unfriendly by any means, but while tourists drive their economy, and while they try to sell you everything, they still mostly keep to themselves.

4. There seems to still be some corruption. We talked politics with one of the guides and he says that no candidate for the upcoming presidential election has not been involved in some kind of corruption scandal. (Yes, we also talked about the American election, but that's more of people with extreme ideas). Money is also apparently heavily copied - I was stopped a few times as people checked my S./20 bills (~$6.50) - once they pointed it out to me, it was easy to see they were fake, even though it was annoying. So check the bills when you go to places like the markets.

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Final thoughts
Our best massage was in Arequipa. Sounds like you had a great month. Thanks for sharing.

[silvernomads]

Great Read Alexis
Enjoyed reading your blogs of Peru and glad you enjoyed your trip - it's a really mystic place so full of character.