April 18th
I caught a noon flight from Cusco to Lima, which was delayed by over 2 hours because of the Lima airport being shut down for a period of time. It had something to do with a plane, but I did not catch exactly what.
Once arrived went to Green Taxi, which is the trusted service for going anywhere in Lima. However, if your hotel is in Miraflores District, there is a Peru Express bus that takes you from the airport to this area and is much cheaper. This Express bus only travels to Miraflores District. Note: Make sure you check online where this Express Bus stops at to be certain your hotel is in the vicinity of the specific stops. The Miraflores District has over 60% of the hotels and restaurants for the entire city … I would recommend staying in this area when visiting Peru. This time, it cost me 60.00 Peruvian Sols (Approx. $24.00 CDN) taking the taxi from the airport.
Arrived at the hotel, which was nice, but they add a 10% service fee to the bill. This is indicated before you arrive and it is in the most expensive district in Lima, though. It was a very nice hotel and an excellent breakfast.
April 19th
Being my last full day, I planned on doing an urban hike. After researching the places that I wished to see, it would be impossible to hike to all these places in one day. I ended up checking with concierge and was fortunate to book a last minute morning half day tour that would take me to all the places I wanted to see with the exception of one place … good deal for $35.00USD.
I quickly went for breakfast and up to my room to get ready. I looked at my watch and only had 2 minutes to get everything together and be down at the lobby for 9:20am. A van showed up and drove me to the main place where the tour begins. I boarded a bigger bus that was completely full.
We left the historic site of Huaca Pucllana which was being reconstructed and it sure was huge.
We did not go inside, but only started at tour near this location. The guide did give some explanation about it. They consider it a pyramid which was not hollow inside, but built solid. They used the top of this site for sacrifices that involved humans as well as animals. This site date’s back pre-Incan.
As we drove through the city the guide explained many of the regions, buildings and sites. We stopped at the Plaza General Jose de San Martin for ten minutes to take some photos.
We quickly boarded and drove to Plaza de Armas and got off the bus. We walked around the area and a band came out from the building at the Government Place of Peru.
They had a tight security around this building and you could not walk up to the gate or to the water fountain in the center of Plaza de Armas. Apparently, once a year they fill the fountain with Pisco … just something original about that. LOL
After spending about 15 minutes in the area we walked about 3 blocks to the Convent of San Francisco, where the catacombs were located. I was looking forward to this! It was a great tour, but because of the number of people I did not hear everything that was said about the catacombs or Convent. No fault of the guide as I preferred to walk at the end to take photos.
While back on the bus and near the end of the tour, the guide said to me that we needed to settle business. I knew I had to pay for the tour, but she tried to charge an additional fee of $10.00USD for having the shuttle pick me up. I clearly indicated that this was part of the price that I had been quoted and that I would not be paying that. She made a phone call and found out that this was the case … she apologized. No worries, glad I stood my ground about this though.
Got dropped off at the hotel and I had two hours to spare before my urban hike to the remaining site I wanted to visit. At 5pm, I headed to the Circuito Magico del Agua that opens at 6pm. This park has 13 fountains in it. It was a lot longer of a hike than I expected but it was still a nice walk.
Wow! Was I impressed! You pay 4 Peruvian Sols (2.00CDN) to enter the park. The sun was setting and the park fountains were absolutely stunning. I was not too sure about how safe this area was at night. I had stopped near the park to ask a police officer how to get inside. He indicated for me to be careful. So, I only stayed an hour before heading out … it was already dark at 7:00pm. It was a shame as they have a light show that starts at 7:30. Each fountain was unique and boasted a varying colored light change … absolutely beautiful.
They even had a fountain with jumping water and music that the children could play in … adults too. LOL
Stopped at the mall on the way back to the hotel for a bite to eat and got back to the hotel at 8:30pm. Had to get bed early as I was getting up at 4:30am, taxi would be there at 5:15am.