Peru: An Introduction to Lima

Nature has played a large role in our trip so far. However, we chose Peru to experience culture, history, and adventure. During our stay in this wonderful country, we learned about pre-Columbian and Incan cultures and had an unforgettable, intense jungle experience. We were also reminded that things do not always appear as they seem and that sometimes going with the flow or changing plans altogether is necessary.

Our first stop in Peru was in the capital city, Lima. We arrived at the airport quite late at night. We were expecting a shuttle driver to be waiting for us but nobody was there holding a placard with our name on it. We signed into the airport's free wifi to check messages from the hotel. Unfortunately, a single, cold email in the inbox told us that a driver was not coming. Feelings of dread and despair were about to set in but we tried to keep calm and think things through. Having travelled to many places that warn you about illegal cabs, we had to find a trusted company. Thankfully, Lima airport has a service where sanctioned taxi drivers inside the terminal take you to a counter where you request your destination, pay the cashier, and then proceed to the car with the driver. It saves having to exchange cash and/or being taken on a longer, more expensive ride.

Mural outside the airport

We felt good about having a safe ride and attempted to converse in Spanish with our driver. While we can understand a lot, we still have trouble speaking and often get our past and future tenses wrong. This leaves us in a perpetual state of living in the moment. My internal translator operates a bit like an old manual typewriter. My ears listen as the line is typed, but it is only when I hear the ding and carriage return that my brain starts the process of translating what I heard in Spanish into something I can understand in English. I once had a man in Mexico ask if there was something wrong with me because I spoke so slowly. It was not a compliment, but I have perservered and now tell people I speak slowly because I am still learning. They are usually very understanding and help teach new words and phrases. As it turned out, our driver was extremely professional and very friendly. He kindly spoke slower so we could follow his Spanish and he provided some useful information about the city. For instance, 12 million people live there, making up over 30% of the country’s population. There are 43 districts within the greater urban area, each with its own municipal government and mayor. In short, it’s huge and we had less than 2 days to figure out what we wanted to see. It was obvious that we had to spend our time wisely.

Back to our late night cab ride. The driver turned down a very long, dark street. There were no people to be seen but there was a lot of graffiti and many of the buildings looked as though they needed some love and attention. Our first impressions of the neighbourhood were not good, and there is no better time than late at night and when you are dog tired to start questioning the choices you have made. When we pulled up in front of the hotel, we truly wondered if we had made a mistake. There was just a plain door under a sign with the hotel’s name. No big entrance, just a door straight off the street. The taxi driver assured us we were at the right place and encouraged us to vacate the cab. With a nervous laugh, we hauled our luggage to the door, rang the bell, and tentatively stepped inside. The lobby was simple and the desk clerk was friendly but, unlike our kind driver, she laughed at our use of outdated (or old fashioned) Spanish terms. She asked what time we wanted breakfast and gave us directions up to our room. There was no elevator and we had to make two trips to get all of our luggage , and our very tired selves up the stairs.

The room technically looked as it did online but there were a few “not as advertised” features. First, there was a random step to get up into the room and then another step to go down into the bedroom. Oddly, there were stairs to go back up into the bathroom. in addition to the odd configuration, the remote controls for the tv and air conditioner were kept at the front desk and there was a very old jacuzzi tub whose outer casings were falling apart. To top it all off, the floor was strangely sticky. The ambiance was slightly enhanced by two huge hearts etched into the bathroom mirror and there was an extra switch on the wall to provide mood lighting, assumably for when the tub was in use. It was not up to our usual expectations but we were exhausted and did not have another option.

The next morning, there was a knock at the door. Amazingly, our breakfast was brought right up to the room. This was not normal and we thought that the kitchen staff must have been kept very busy if everyone was getting their breakfast delivered. We soon found out that we were the only guests in the entire building. Again, we wondered if our hotel selection process needed some work. However, our first look out the window in daylight proved that things were not as grim as we had thought the night before. As we ate our breakfast (coffee, scrambled eggs, and rolls with jam), we discovered that the hotel was actually located across from several apartment buildings and that we were in a residential area. Things were looking up. The sun was shining, the street dogs were barking, and we were ready to see what our part of Lima had to offer.

Our first look at the neighbourhood in daylight.

The search for laundry services began. Google is not entirely accurate in South America. In fact, it often wants to point you back to a city North America, often in Florida. This is not helpful when you are in a massive, south American city and have no idea what direction you are facing much less what the streets are called. The search ultimately pointed us to 3 different laundrettes within 4 blocks of our hotel. As predicted, they either did not exist or were not open. Our dirty clothes, in shopping bags, had the luxury of being taken for a tour of the neighbourhood before heading back to the hotel. Feeling defeated, we tried one more time and asked the security guard to help us. We were eventually successful and paid about $7 Canadian dollars to have 6 kilograms of laundry washed, dried and folded.

Our next order of business for the day was to get to a very large outdoor shopping mall to buy SIM cards for our cell phones. Because we were going to be in Peru for about 3 weeks, and because we were going to be interacting with several different agencies, a local phone number with a good data plan was essential. One very important tip for purchasing SIM cards in South America is that you require your passport. They will not sell you one without it. Be prepared to stand and/or wait in line. We had to wait in line outside the store for about 10 minutes. Once inside, we checked in with an agent who gave us a number. Then we waited for another 15 minutes before our number was called. After a lot of paperwork, we were away to the races. It cost us about $30 Canadian dollars for a 5 gigabyte card.

We are not big shoppers but had a good time walking around the outdoor 4-storey complex. Due to the design of the complex, cool air circulates without the need for air conditioning, making the shopping experience quite pleasant. A huge selection of stores for clothes, electronics, toys, accessories, groceries, health foods, supplements, and more were available.

View from outdoor mall in Lima

Green space across from outdoor mall in Lima

Pedestrian mall in Lima

Eventually, the need to use a public restroom arose and this is where the second very important tip for operating in South America comes in handy. The toilet paper is often on a roll when you enter, not in the individual stalls. If you do not have a personal supply, you will be caught hanging...literally. I will simply say that I did not know this very important piece of information when I needed it the most and I will never make that mistake again! If I can help just one person in this regard, I will have made the world a better place!

Although we did not have a lot of time in Lima, we were very happy with the part of the city that we did see. The shopping plaza was near a very large park and the amenities were all closeby. We chose to create an Uber account while there for the convenience of being able to prepay and not have to carry cash. The ride share worked out very well for us and it did not require long waits. Our normal wait time was a little as 2 minutes or as much as 7...you can't complain about that!

Peruvian lady selling produce.

Lima has a lot to offer, but life in the big city was not on our itinerary for Peru. We wrapped up our business in one day before heading on to our next stop, Cusco. The real adventure was about to begin!

To read more, see the next blog, "Peru: Adventure in the Land of the Incas."