I spent too much time reading travel blogs and reviews before my trip. And I’ve seen posts that they didn’t like Lima. They said Lima is gloomy and lacking life, so I didn’t expect much from it. The main reason I planned to stay 3 nights there was because I knew I would need to have a rest and time to recover after the long flight from Sydney. Oh, and I was thinking of joining a cooking class as Lima is known to be the gastronomical center of South America so I thought I would need 1 full day for that.
Things didn’t go as planned. I didn’t need a long time to rest and I didn’t take cooking class. However, I did see the beauty of Lima in my 3 full days of stay. I actually think I can live in Lima for a year (haha, just for a year!).
I think my hostel helped a lot in my appreciation of the city. Staying at Lima Backpackers (http://limabackpackers.com.pe/) and having Marco as the host made a big difference. It felt like I stayed with a friend and he was so happy to have us as guests at his hometown.
So what did I do in Lima?
1. Visited the Old Town (Historic Center)
Our hostel is in Sucro, it’s quite near Miraflores and Barranco. Marco lent us Metro bus tickets so we can just top it up. It is 2Soles per ride, and we took the bus from the station near Plaza Vea (a chain of supermarket in Peru) Sucro to the Centro stop. Do not expect that all information will be available on the bus stops, we didn’t know which gate to board, but there were very nice locals that told us where to go. They don’t speak English but they were to tell us not to board a certain bus and how many more stops until the Centro station.
From the Centro stop, we just walked for 15 minutes until we get to Plaza de Armas where the free walking tour starts everyday. I was immediately smitten by the Plaza de Armas. There were beautiful old colonial infrastructures everywhere, I felt I was transported back in time. I’m not a history geek but I was in awe with the sights. I highly suggest to do the walking tour as it gives you a summary of this bustling place.
From the center of the plaza, you can see right away the Governor’s Palace, City Hall and Cathedral.
Plaza de Armas, Lima
Governor’s Palace
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