Eating and Shopping

South America » Peru » Lima » Lima » Miraflores
September 9th 2009

Published: September 10th 2009

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Chalaca68

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At the Inkarri's new courtyard

That’s pretty much all we did on Saturday 08/29/09. We woke up in Cuzco, had breakfast at the Inkarri, checked out, and headed to the airport for our noon flight. Going through security, they found a set of pliers/tools/blades in my purse (I had totally forgotten I had them—Why did I have a tool in my bag? Was I planning on fixing and Inca building?). I apologized and said I was sorry but Security insisted that I had to leave it behind. Bummer. Then, the LAN airline staff told Ben that his carry-on was too big and it would have to go as checked luggage. Seizing the opportunity, I asked someone from the staff if he could come with me over to Security to retrieve my “deadly weapon” to be put in Ben’s bag, which was slated to go in cargo. The Security guy stood his ground, requiring someone from LAN to sign a form, ensuring 100% that the item was going into checked luggage; the airline staff wouldn’t do that but they called their Airport Manager, who talked to the guys in Security and was able to get my “weapon” and place it in Ben’s bag. Yaaaaayyy. I hate to

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lose my tools. I was very thankful to LAN’s Airport Manager. We arrived in Lima, were picked up by the pre-arranged taxi, and arrived at the condo in Miraflores. This one was VERY nice, with hardwood floors and two balconies. We ended up here because some guys who were staying at the condo that I had originally reserved wanted to extend their stay, so the owner and the agency set us up at the condo where we stayed initially and then this one, which was actually nicer than the one I had reserved; because of the snafu, the owner also gave us a $100 discount on our stay. Cool!

We headed out to have lunch, returning to Rincon Chami (where we had had the strong Sangria). Ben and I shared a Cebiche and Papa a la Huancaina (Boiled Potatoes in Huancaina sauce); Cathy had Spaghetti in Pesto Sauce, Ben had a Breaded steak sandwich with fries, and I had a ½ and ½ of Patita con Mani and Cau Cau. To drink, we had a pitcher of Chicha morada. Total bill: S/. 64 (about $22). Sigh! We’ll miss eating in Lima! Since most establishments in Peru’s large cities accept

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dollars, we paid in a combination of dollars and soles, as we had done in other places. Just ask what their rate is that day, so you can calculate how much to put down and how much to leave for the tip (which can also be in dollars or soles).

Happy and full, we headed over to the Artesanales (Handicraft Markets) for some shopping. We bought souvenirs for family, friends, and co-workers. Ben also bought a few ceramics and paintings for his home and I got a large painting for mine. Our hands were full of bags! We took a taxi to the condo, dropped the stuff off and went out to get some ice cream before heading over to Monica’s to retrieve our suitcases. We got to Monica’s and were chatting and munching on yellow potato chips (a variety not available in the US) and then called a cab, which took more than an hour to show up. We had decided to get together with Beto and Monica (and kids) the next morning for some traditional Peruvian/Limeño Sunday breakfast. We finally got to the condo around 2am and quickly got in bed. They would come pick us up