Peru: Lima

Lima and the city within the city

Machu Piccu, Lake Titicaca, Alpacas, Incas, and the Andes - Peru seems to be paradise for nature lovers and adventurers. The huge Andean country is also known for its special culinary diversity. Specialties here include Pisco Sour, a protein-rich grape distillate, guinea pig, baked or fried, and Alpaca - not only in the form of fluffy sweaters, but also as a well-cooked steak on the plate. Let's see how we like our next destination.

The flight here consists of turbulence after turbulence. Sebastian loves it and lets himself be rocked to sleep, Lisa sits anxiously in the row of seats behind. Unfortunately, sitting together was not possible on Viva Colombia. But Lisa has a very nice seat neighbor who has just as much fear of flying as she does. With every turbulence, he takes out a small pouch from his backpack, which contains various pictures of angels and saints, and starts to pray. Whether with or without the help of angels, we land in hazy Lima and Sebastian slowly awakens from his cozy nap. He is also happy about the 'quiet' flight. You can imagine Lisa's reaction.

After numerous very different accommodations, we treat ourselves to something familiar here in Lima: an Airbnb apartment. Although the fashion-making lawyer Tany and her cat Agatha also live here, most of the time we are alone and Agatha loves to have some company.

We live in the district of Miraflores. Not the cheapest option, but a very nicely renovated neighborhood with many small squares, parks, and pretty houses. We visit the huge supermarket 'Wong' and cook ourselves a delicious dinner: pasta with cheese sauce. Buenas noches.

The next morning, we set out to explore the city. We stroll along the Malecon, apparently the name for every seafront promenade in Central and South America, and wander through our neighborhood, Miraflores. From here, it is not far to Baranco, the bohemian district of the city. We don't want to miss that. When we arrive in Baranco, we follow the advice of LonelyPlanet and look for the Puente de los Suspiros to have lunch there. Unfortunately, we don't find a single authentic restaurant, only tourist traps with overpriced prices. No, thank you. A little off the main square, however, there is a nice little vegetarian restaurant where we settle down.

Lima, like every capital in South America, also has many exciting museums to offer. A special tip from Tany is the Museo Takama with its fascinating textile collection from indigenous peoples from all over Peru. This lovingly designed museum actually impresses us very much. But to get an even deeper insight into the history and art of the country, we also visit the Museo de Arte. The beautiful building is located in the midst of Lima's hectic and dirty center, where we fight our way through crowds of people and countless street stalls to the museum. And we are rewarded: admission is free today.

We return with Lima's large metro system. Contrary to what one might expect, it is not a subway, but buses. Of course, there are also, similar to Bogota, far too many people for far too few buses. But after only three overcrowded buses, we are finally allowed to board and head back to Miraflores.

After the hustle and bustle of the capital, we decide to take a trip to Ica in the desert. There are wineries and a small oasis in the midst of the sand dunes. Hopefully, a quiet place.