Feliz Viaje - Peru Day 1

Lima Plaza de Armas, originally uploaded by kardinalsin.

It's beena while but I still have something of substance rattling around in the old can, right?

So we start here then, our first day in Peru in the capital city, Lima. A coastal town, Lima is characterized by the sights and sounds of the streets we drove down during our cab ride from the airport. The political slogans I see adorning the urban sprawl will become ubiquitous in the populous areas of peru, and the driving we experience will become par for the course. As our driver slalomed between lanes and honked without discrimination, it appeared that there were no rules of the road. I should have known that there would be one rule: get out of the way.

We spent the balance of the day familiarizing ourself with the city as much as we could, considering we only had the night. We toured the Plaza de Armas, with its vast colonial buildings, giant edifices of concrete, testaments to the grand opulence of their era. On each corner, police officers were posted. Some in riot gear. Some casually and carefully watching each passer-by. We had been assured that the policemen in white shirts were "Tourist Police" with enough command of the English Language that even the most spanish-less of tourists could ask for help.

We never saw any of these white shirts throughout our entire trip.

The city, like many of the tourist centers we encountered, houses many expat-friendly restaurants. After an hour or so of shopping around, we decided to sit down in the inviting restaurant "Haiti" for our first meal. My first traditional meal of roast chicken and fries accompanied the first Pisco Sour of the trip. G sampled the Lomo Saltado and we finished up with a traditional chocolate torròn. As first night's go, it was very low-key.

With that, we retired. Our first taste of Peru was an excellent dose of what was to come, but we really had no idea what the rest of the country would offer.