One week in Lima - language school, old town, and a little bit of everyday life

In Lima, we will stay in an Airbnb for one week on the border between the two trendy neighborhoods of Lima: Miraflores and Barranco. From now on, we have to hit the books every day because we are taking a one-week language course to improve our Spanish. The language school is called 'El Sol' and we highly recommend it. In our small class of seven students, there are two French, two Turkish, and one Japanese. Later on, we would discover that Jesse from Japan is a Peruvian celebrity since he was the first tourist allowed to enter Machu Picchu alone after the pandemic (although he couldn't leave the place for 7 months). Our goal at the language school is mainly to improve grammar and learn how to talk about the past. After one week, we would say: 'goal achieved!'

In the rest of our time during the week, we spend our afternoons living something like everyday life: shopping, cooking, doing laundry, homework, talking on the phone, and spending time with friends. We explore the neighborhoods of Miraflores, Barranco, and the historic center of Lima a little more. In the old town of Lima, there is a beautiful Plaza Mayor with the city church, the government palace (Palacio de Gobierno), the town hall, and the archbishop's residence. All of them are beautiful, old buildings (rebuilt after the earthquakes) from colonial times. Unfortunately, we cannot enter them at the moment, but we can take a tour of the Franciscan monastery and the catacombs underneath it.

And, of course, we eat delicious Peruvian food again (ceviche, lomo saltado, potatoes with huancaina sauce, caldo de gallina, tallarines, chaufa, and so on). But we also love to cook for ourselves in our small apartment.

To end the week, we go to a wonderful Turkish restaurant with our class, where Emir from our course works, and spend the evening at the trendy Ayahuasca Bar and a club in Barranco.

On Sunday, October 16, 2022, we take the bus to Ica.