Blogs from Lima, Peru, South America - page 8

Buenos Dias aus Lima Der frühe Vogel fängt den Wurm- deshalb begann der Tag auch schon gegen 7 .30 Uhr mit einem starken Kaffee im Hotel. Danach fuhren wir mit dem Taxi zu einer Shoppingcenter mit grandiosem MeeresBlick ( larcomar im Stadtteil miraflores) Sonne-Strand-Sonnenbrand. Das Wetter ist herrlich- angenehme 20 Grad jedoch darf man die "la sol" nicht unterschätzen. Burger Time: Zum MITTAGESSEN mussten wir einfach ins Hard Rock Café fahren wo wir uns ziemlich viele Kalorien auf die Hüften gemampft haben. Dragoman Meeting Jamima und Mike (unsere Tourleader) erklärten den bunten Haufen an Menschen den Ablauf der nächsten Tage und organisierten ein nettes Abendessen als Tour Beginn. Morgen startet unser Tag um 04:20 mit dem Beladen des Buses und dann geht es los nach Paracas zu den Ballestas Inseln und dann geht's zum Sandboarding und ... read more

So long family-style living in our sweet Miraflores home, and hello Hostel life! At times it could be confused with "hostile life", but we've been pretty lucky so far, meeting lots of folks from all over. It was so nice emerging from the smoggy Lima air - it was so dirty at times that when we washed our clothes the water was a disturbing colour. Throw in some bird guano accidents and we were almost ready to ditch our clothes and start fresh. When Nancy traveled in the UK a while back she took a Hop On-Hop Off type bus and loved it. At the spanish school we stumbled across Peru Hop, a similar bus tour company that is geared towards backpacking travelers looking to see all the sites but with flexibility to stay as long ... read more

Another horror bus ride terminated at 5.30am after a few hours sleep we headed into the faccinating colonial heart of world heritage listed Arequipa. This place is just as attractive as Cusco, is much larger and is better value for money. Tourist numbers are also much lower here which is refreshing when visiting the city's major attractions. Arequipa the white city is at least 500 years old and sits in the shadow of the perfect cone shaped 5822 metre El MistI volcano. The old town is centred around the Plaza de Armas and features a huge cathedral built from volcanic sillar and the slightly smaller Iglesia de La Compania an interesting Jesuit church. Our first stop was an atm followed by one of the second story restaurants that dominate the Western side of Plaza de Armas, ... read more

So Lima is the capital of Peru, and has around 10 million people. Despite this, the only form of public transportation is bus or taxi. A subway is on the horizon for 2021 but you can imagine the traffic issues they have. The roads are average in places and cars often drive on the wrong side of the road, forming their own lanes or trying to make up time in the traffic. Pedestrians do get walk signs however some drivers ignore them which makes crossing the road interesting! I'm staying in Miraflores, one of the safest districts which is 3 districts away from lima district where the old town and many attractions are. I took a half day city tour today and while driving from Miraflores to Lima I noticed an innovative use of the centre ... read more

Getting into Lima, turns out my timing for once was really good. After an easy five hour ride from the desert, I showed up the night before Peru's Independence day. This of course meant that the streets were alive with celebration and good times. I wasn't really planning on staying here very long as I've had my fill of big cities and I really just want to make my way North to Ecuador, so I was glad to have a little bonus excitement whist in the city. Of course within fifteen minutes or so of dropping my bags off at the hostel, I set out wandering and was adopted by a group of Peruvians reveling in their holiday and they were more than happy to let me join. Waking up the next morning with a mild ... read more