Hola y chau, Lima.

In the sixth grade I did a civics report on Peru. All I remember from that civics report is that the capital is Lima pronounced Leeema not Lyyyyma, and where in the world Peru is located. Now I am here. Neat.

Our one and only day in Lima was very fruitful. After a hearty breakfast at our charming hotel we ventured into a taxi and headed downtown.

Casa Andina in the heart of Miraflores

We had been warned to only take yellow cabs and negotiate the cost ahead of time... Being the adventuresome types that we are, we opted for a white (gasp!!) taxi instead, but confirmed the price first and reached our destination just fine.

(At the risk of jinxing myself I have to say... I feel like the Lonely Planet books were written mostly for people who grew up in a small town and are on their first expedition out of said small town, and slightly for people who drink their way through backpacking trips in other countries. They try to instill the fear of God about thefts and taxis and solo travelers but I have lived in or near large cities all my life, and am conscious of myself and my belongings all the time - careful but not to the point where it's debilitating to whatever experience I am having, local or foreign. That's really all you need to do. And here's the antijinx: If crime is going to happen it could
just as easily happen in Portland. Worst case here is probably the same as worst case there... I wear the same clothes for a few days while I sort out the results of any unfortunate encounters.)

Anyway. The Plaza de Armas (Plaza Mayor) did not disappoint from a photographic perspective.

La Catedral de Lima was impressive from the outside, particularly the strategic perches of pigeons on top of saints' heads (aka my new favorite way to photograph statues); we did
not pay the fee to go in.

Instead we wandered around the plaza and up the side streets full of merchandise (reminded me a lot of Av Florida in Buenas Aires)...

... and into a small name-unknown church to admire the stained glass and carvings, then we walked up to pigeon-riddled Monasterio de San Francisco for a tour of its catacombs where about 70,000 were buried between 1600-1850ish.

The bones have been sorted into bins by body part (for some reason?) but it was still appropriately creepy-yet-interesting. We also saw a bat-infested dome (only heard the bats,
did not see them) and a fascinating Harry Potter-ish library upstairs with books dating from the 1600s in all different languages... Powells may be bigger but it pales in comparison to this awe-inspiring little alcove o'literature.

Afterward we took an entertaining ride in Miguel's taxi back to Miraflores (he was quite the chatterbox, much to our enjoyment) and found a nice spot near Parque Kennedy, named for those Boston brothers but also referred to as Parque Central, for lunch and people
watching.

street artists in Parque Kennedy

We visited and quickly escaped "pizza street" - a scene right out of tourist Italy where they basically push you into their restaurant - and found a more quiet cafe instead. After lunch we made our way down to the beach where the cliffs made a dramatic dropoff (and I got "We Both Go Down Together" stuck in my head for hours).

Spent a little while watching some surfers and a cool bird...

not me

also not me

... and went back up the hill where we got some good photos of (and from) Parque de Amor above the cliffs.

paragliders and the namesake statue of the park

Later we headed back through Parque Kennedy to watch people and cats in a bizarre evening ritual - in a small ampitheater in the park, they set up a microphone, loudspeakers and DJ area and someone sings to music while people from the crowd come down and take turns dancing.

More fascinating than the dancing was the sheer volume of people watching, many of whom looked like "regulars," and the park's cats who wandered through the crowd of people in search of food and/or attention.

We stopped by a large Inca craft market on the way back to the hotel, it was a much pushier atmosphere than Otavalo. (No, I still didn't buy you anything.) Dinner was the birthday girl's choice and she chose well - Bircher Benner, probably the only place in Lima with a gluten-"meat" version of the Peruvian comida typica (lomo saltado) and excellent chicha morada (a sweet but very clean and refreshing drink made from purple corn). A bit more meandering through the park on the way back (they were still dancing! and through another craft market) and then to bed for our early departure in the morning.

At the end of the day we were satisfied with our sightseeing accomplishments but ready to get the hell out of the city and into the mountains. I picked the right travel partner for this phase of the journey, for sure... :)