If
I am being completely honest, Lima was just another city to me. It wasn’t a bad one; there was just not much
that I saw that stands out in my mind.
That being said, we were only there for a couple days so I wouldn’t say
that I really got to experience the city.
One reason for that is because it is very difficult to get around. The only form of public transportation in
Lima is the bus system. Imagine a city
of 10 million people with only a bus system.
It is nuts!
Our first day in Lima we took a bus to the city center, that is the square where the government buildings are located. It is also the main historic center of the city. Not only was it a long ride, it was chaotic! Ana asked at least five different people what bus we should take and where to find the stop, and she got five different answers. No one seemed to know what was going on. It was only a few miles away from our hotel. It should have been a quick bus ride; instead it took an hour and a half. Even then we got off the bus because it wasn’t taking us to where we wanted to go. After we got off the bus we had to walk several blocks to get to the square.
The square was really pretty. By the time we actually got there it was way past lunchtime, so we stopped for a nice meal before exploring. A full afternoon was spent walking around taking photos, visiting the cathedral, and shopping at the markets. Around 5 p.m. everyone met up to head back to neighborhood where our hotel was located. No one even thought twice about that being rush hour. The group spent an hour trying to locate and flag down the right bus to take us back. The buses were absolutely packed, and traffic was moving at a snail’s pace. Thankfully a nice man redirected us to a bus stop about 7 or 8 blocks away. We eventually found and boarded the correct bus, but by then rush hour was in full swing, and we were getting nowhere fast. Since the bus was packed full most of us had to stand for the two hours that it took to get back to the hotel. It was not a pleasant experience, and is the reason why my first impressions of the city were not the best.
My second impression of Lima is the complete opposite, and includes one of my favorite memories of the trip. On Tuesday, a small group of us met for breakfast and headed to the beach. Lima is located on the Pacific Ocean and is a great geographical location for surfing. A guy from our group, Zach, is from South Carolina and has grown up surfing. He decided to rent a surf board and spend the morning surfing on the coast of Lima. We obviously did not want him to be there alone so we agreed to go hang out on shore, watch him, and keep an eye on his belongings. I was excited to take it easy and enjoy the beach atmosphere. I had no intentions of joining him.
It wasn’t long before I found myself all zipped up and tucked into a wet suit, receiving surfing lessons. Surfing has always been an activity on my bucket list. I looked into it once while I was in California, but it was pretty expensive so I decided against it. I don’t know what it was that got into me, but I spontaneously decided (with the help of Amanda and Paige) that if I was going to learn how to surf what better place to do it than Lima, Peru. Plus, I was with someone I knew and it was incredibly cheap; I am talking $23 American dollars for an hour and a half of instruction and surfing. I checked and double checked before I agreed to anything, just to make sure it was safe for beginners and average swimmers like me. I was in no way prepared to surf, but I think that is what made it so fun. I stuffed myself into wet suit with only my bra and underwear on under it (since I did not have a bathing suit), and pulled my hair back with a hair tie. Just like that I was ready to surf, or ready to learn how to.
Zach headed out to surf while I got the basic instructions about what to do and what not to do from my instructor Xavier. We got out into the chilly Pacific water and, to my surprise, I did not feel cold at all. My instructor did not waste any time and immediately helped me catch a wave. The first time I was able to get up but only halfway, so I rode the wave out on my knees. The second time I tried, I bit the dust… hard. Thankfully I only did that a couple times. The rest of my time in the water I felt like I did ok for a beginner. I even rode out a couple waves standing up. It helped that the waves were very small. I paddled to shore when my time slot was over, exhausted from treading water. Zach still had time left, so I hung out with the others on shore and enjoyed the beach scene. I couldn’t think of a better way to spend our last morning in South America. There is something extremely fulfilling about crossing something off of your bucket list; it will leave a smile on your face for the rest of the day.
We met a couple hours later with the rest of the group to walk to a building where Ana had arranged a tour for us. I cannot think of the name of the project off hand, but it is a museum and memorial to social justice and tolerance in Peru. The building is a new project, not yet open to the public, but Ana has connections everywhere it seems like. I am assuming that is how she was able to get us in. The project is a very nice example of emerging modern architecture in Latin America, or anywhere else for that matter. The building was great; the couple mile walk to get there was not. Regardless, walking was exponentially better than taking a bus. Hopefully I never have to experience something like that again.
Our first day in Lima we took a bus to the city center, that is the square where the government buildings are located. It is also the main historic center of the city. Not only was it a long ride, it was chaotic! Ana asked at least five different people what bus we should take and where to find the stop, and she got five different answers. No one seemed to know what was going on. It was only a few miles away from our hotel. It should have been a quick bus ride; instead it took an hour and a half. Even then we got off the bus because it wasn’t taking us to where we wanted to go. After we got off the bus we had to walk several blocks to get to the square.
The square was really pretty. By the time we actually got there it was way past lunchtime, so we stopped for a nice meal before exploring. A full afternoon was spent walking around taking photos, visiting the cathedral, and shopping at the markets. Around 5 p.m. everyone met up to head back to neighborhood where our hotel was located. No one even thought twice about that being rush hour. The group spent an hour trying to locate and flag down the right bus to take us back. The buses were absolutely packed, and traffic was moving at a snail’s pace. Thankfully a nice man redirected us to a bus stop about 7 or 8 blocks away. We eventually found and boarded the correct bus, but by then rush hour was in full swing, and we were getting nowhere fast. Since the bus was packed full most of us had to stand for the two hours that it took to get back to the hotel. It was not a pleasant experience, and is the reason why my first impressions of the city were not the best.
My second impression of Lima is the complete opposite, and includes one of my favorite memories of the trip. On Tuesday, a small group of us met for breakfast and headed to the beach. Lima is located on the Pacific Ocean and is a great geographical location for surfing. A guy from our group, Zach, is from South Carolina and has grown up surfing. He decided to rent a surf board and spend the morning surfing on the coast of Lima. We obviously did not want him to be there alone so we agreed to go hang out on shore, watch him, and keep an eye on his belongings. I was excited to take it easy and enjoy the beach atmosphere. I had no intentions of joining him.
It wasn’t long before I found myself all zipped up and tucked into a wet suit, receiving surfing lessons. Surfing has always been an activity on my bucket list. I looked into it once while I was in California, but it was pretty expensive so I decided against it. I don’t know what it was that got into me, but I spontaneously decided (with the help of Amanda and Paige) that if I was going to learn how to surf what better place to do it than Lima, Peru. Plus, I was with someone I knew and it was incredibly cheap; I am talking $23 American dollars for an hour and a half of instruction and surfing. I checked and double checked before I agreed to anything, just to make sure it was safe for beginners and average swimmers like me. I was in no way prepared to surf, but I think that is what made it so fun. I stuffed myself into wet suit with only my bra and underwear on under it (since I did not have a bathing suit), and pulled my hair back with a hair tie. Just like that I was ready to surf, or ready to learn how to.
Zach headed out to surf while I got the basic instructions about what to do and what not to do from my instructor Xavier. We got out into the chilly Pacific water and, to my surprise, I did not feel cold at all. My instructor did not waste any time and immediately helped me catch a wave. The first time I was able to get up but only halfway, so I rode the wave out on my knees. The second time I tried, I bit the dust… hard. Thankfully I only did that a couple times. The rest of my time in the water I felt like I did ok for a beginner. I even rode out a couple waves standing up. It helped that the waves were very small. I paddled to shore when my time slot was over, exhausted from treading water. Zach still had time left, so I hung out with the others on shore and enjoyed the beach scene. I couldn’t think of a better way to spend our last morning in South America. There is something extremely fulfilling about crossing something off of your bucket list; it will leave a smile on your face for the rest of the day.
We met a couple hours later with the rest of the group to walk to a building where Ana had arranged a tour for us. I cannot think of the name of the project off hand, but it is a museum and memorial to social justice and tolerance in Peru. The building is a new project, not yet open to the public, but Ana has connections everywhere it seems like. I am assuming that is how she was able to get us in. The project is a very nice example of emerging modern architecture in Latin America, or anywhere else for that matter. The building was great; the couple mile walk to get there was not. Regardless, walking was exponentially better than taking a bus. Hopefully I never have to experience something like that again.
No comments:
Post a Comment