For a city known in parts of the world as one of the most dangerous, Lima was fantastic. We arrived at the airport at 8 PM. At the recommendation of our hostel, we found a taximan from the company "Taxi Green" and told him the address of our hostel. After figuring out where we were going, he asked if we were from Barcelona. When I told him we were from the U.S., he was very surprised and complimented our Spanish (Jay's too!). So... that's promising, right?
He was a very nice man and it was really nice to talk to him. Actually, he did most of the talking, giving us tons and tons of advice on where to go in Peru. Unperturbed by the fact that we are spreading our 4 months among 9-10 countries, he suggested that we go to Lima, Cajamarca, Trujillo, Chiclayo, Piura, Tumbes, Arequipa, Nasca, Pisco, Ica, Puno, and especially to Cusco, his favorite city.
Ah, and a quick note about airport customs. When filling our our declaration sheets, it stated (in addition to the regular $10,000 limit, electronics, and alcohol stuff) that any foreign beverage with the name "Pisco" on it will be confiscated. HA! I know that Chile and Peru have a rivalry about who invented the delicious brandy, but that was pretty unexpected.
We finally arrived at our Hostel (Albergue Miraflores House). They served us free piscolas (Peruvian Pisco - a type of brandy- with lemon juice and coca cola), gave us maps of the city, and arranged for bus tickets to Trujillo for the next night. The common room had musical instruments, a television with lots of DVDs, and a computer with an internet connection. The computer was almost always in use and, as our room was right next to the main room, we were worried that it would be very noisy. However, everyone went to their rooms by midnight and it was very quiet... plus we had the guitars (Jay) and internet to ourselves.
In the morning we went for a jog along the coast in Miraflores (the neighborhood where our hostel was). We got views of the water covered in fog and seaside parks during our run.
After showering, we went to the center of Lima. We saw the Plaza San Martin, the Plaza Mayor, San Francisco church, and Santo Domingo convent, to name a few.
It was a really great day and, above all, our hostel was fantastic. We want to return to see more of Lima and much more of Miraflores, and if we stay the night again, we'll definitely return to the same hostel. As I right this, we're on the bus to Trujillo...More updates to come!
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