We flew out of Buenos Aires and had a stopover in Santiago, Chile for a few hours and then continued on to Lima, Peru. We arrived in Lima... but our backpacks did not! There were also 2 other couples who took the same route as us whose maletas were also not there. In the end, we were told that they got left behind in Santiago.
 |
| No maletas :( |
We were just worried (and tired and feeling dirty haha) about our bags since we would be leaving Lima the next day for Cusco at 5pm.
We made our way to our hostel, checked in, but had nothing to do. So we had some dinner before calling it a night.
 |
| Tacos |
 |
| Inca Kola - a Peruvian softdrink |
The next day we spent the morning at our hostel. Sky Airlines called the hostel and told us that our bags would be delivered at 8am. They ended up arriving at 11, but we were just really happy that we had them. We took a much needed shower, packed up, then set out to explore Lima before our bus ride in the afternoon. Lima was cool, but not as cold as Buenos Aires.
We had a trio of traditional Peruvian food for lunch. I really liked the
arroz and the
causa but the
ceviche was too lime-y for me.
- ceviche - raw fish cured in lime
- arroz con mariscos - rice with seafood, kind of like paella
- causa - mashed yellow potatoes
We decided to explore the
Miraflores district in Lima since we didn't want to stray to far from our hostel. We headed to the
Parque del Amor (The Love Park), located on the cliffs and overlooking the Pacific ocean. Lima is nicknamed the Garden City for its beautiful parks and green spaces. In Miraflores, there is
El Malecón, which is a six-mile stretch of parks along the cliffs (El Parque del Amor is just a section of El Malecón). The park is dedicated to lovers and supposedly offers a nice view, though it was pretty foggy when we went.
 |
| El Beso (The Kiss) by Victor Delfín |
They had really nice mosaic benches reminiscent of Gaudi's benches in Parc Güell. The benches had some very pretty designs and quotes.
 |
| Lots of green spaces |
 |
| Also a popular spot for paragliding |
After walking along the parks, we headed to
Huaca Pucllana, an historical ruin located in Miraflores.
We didn't realize it was closed :( (it just so happened that it's closed on Tuesdays). The guard let us in though and we were able to snap a few pictures.
We walked back towards the main plaza in Miraflores and walked around.
 |
| More parks |
 |
| Church in the square |
We picked up our bags from the hostel, took a taxi to the bus station, and got ready for our 22 hour bus ride to Cusco!
The bus was actually comfortable; the seats reclined, and you could lie down about 160º; there were blankets and pillows and even electrical outlets for charging. They served us a really good dinner and a light breakfast the next day. I just felt a bit queasy towards the end as the roads were really winding around the mountains. It was a long ride, but the scenery was very beautiful.
 |
| View from the window |
 |
| Stopped for a fresh air break - the Peruvian mountainside |
We arrived in Cusco a little before 3pm and took a taxi to our hostel. Taxis are pretty much the simplest way of moving around here. Like in Buenos Aires, the taxis aren't metered. You should ask before entering the car how much the trip will cost, and if you take a taxi from your hostel, the receptionist will usually tell you as well how much the rate will be.
We explored the historic center of Cusco in the afternoon. It was a lot more rural than I expected it to be, but very pretty. Cobblestone streets and old buildings. There are
a lot of churches too. We walked around
Plaza de Armas first, the main square. It was a bit warm when we went out, but it got cold pretty quickly as the sun went down.
 |
| Streets of Cusco |
 |
| Plaza de Armas |
Then made our way down to
Plaza San Francisco to check out the markets. So many pretty textiles - bags, blankets, tablecloths, etc.
We took it easy to acclimatize since Cusco is at a much higher altitude. We had an early night, and we were actually upgraded to a twin room in Cusco (we booked for beds in a dorm, but they were overbooked), so I got to have a good night's rest before we headed to Aguas Calientes the next day.
Comments