I struggled with figuring out how to begin this series of posts, seeing as my ideas and plans of travel changed as my summer progressed. I had ideas of how I wanted to structure these posts... by city, or by country, or on my observations and frustrations in a singular post. The ending is not surprising for those of you following me on the FacePage. The reason for this ending is also not a surprise to those of whom I maintained contact with as I moved further south. This trip would bring me to some rather interesting places, allow me to reconnect with myself, and learn more about the continent I have chosen as my home. I accomplished each of these by any measure, but not in the same sense that I originally thought. Enter the cliché: TRAVELING CAN AND WILL CHANGE YOU. It has changed me most definitely, and now I just need to do something with that change to continue moving forward. I feel like I am finally ready to begin writing and reflecting on this trip now.
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| Street Art in Barranco. |
Let's start at the very beginning...
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| View of the Pacific Ocean from Miraflores. |
I was surprised about how confident and anxiety-free I was prior to leaving for Perú. I mean, I spent the entire day of the 10th, after getting minimal sleep, lounging in my apartment and slowly checking things off of my to-do list. I was fearful that I may have forgotten to pack certain items, resulting in me unpacking and repacking my
mochilla several times. Otherwise, I felt ready to embark on this six weeklong trip through four countries. There were, however, a couple of environmental factors I hoped would not detract me from my course. Firstly, the volcano Reventador was showing increasing pre-eruptive activity and I didn't want this (selfishly) to prevent my plane from taking off from the Quito airport. Secondly, there were two STRONG temblores around 9 PM, which shook my apartment and my focus. After exiting my apartment for about 30 minutes, I got back inside and prayed for a peaceful slumber-- something I knew those at the coast were not going to get.
I got a few short hours of sleep, somehow managed to wake up in time to find a taxi to the airport, and checked-in with little spare time. My only connection for this flight was to Guayaquil, which I left with no delay to Lima.
LIMA
The minute I landed and stepped through immigration, I felt welcomed. My
taxista from the airport to my hostel, for example, was so excited that a little
gringuito was going to practice his Spanish and get to
conocer his country. He shared all sorts of "inside information" about the three main cities I was planning to visit while in Perú-- Lima, Arequipa, and Cusco. After dropping me off at my hostel, I quickly checked in and began exploring Miraflores district, the area I would call home for a few
days. A few things I immediately observed and continued through the rest of my time there was:
- Lima is this juxtaposition between the modern and colonial. It is this interesting patchwork of new and old, with no signs of losing it in the near future. On top of it, my preconception of its cleanliness was broken. Minus the area immediately surrounding the historic center, it is really clean!
- The transportation system is so well-developed. Not only do they have a highly systematic bus system, but there are many bike lanes either painted or constructed on the roadways... and plenty of people using them.
- For the largest city in the country, and by a factor of ten ahead of the second largest city, it is quite affordable.
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| The Basilica of Lima |
I was finding myself enlightened after my last post, taking the weight off of my head and shoulders in my cathartic moment. I was set to make my trip meaningful, more than checking things off a laundry list of places and things to see and do. Reflecting, I realized I have a pattern of behavior of waiting. Waiting for time to pass. Waiting for someone to show up. Waiting for people to get to know me. I am still trying to figure out from where exactly this pattern originates, bit it got me Thinking of the idiom "good things come to those who wait." Whoever developed this, I want to find, exhume, and shake him or her awake. There is something to be said about being patient, but waiting never really gets anybody anywhere. I took this new realization and found myself stepping out of my comfort zone.
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| The Courtyard inside of MALI |
Since I saw so many sites and walked through many interesting neighborhoods, here is a quick breakdown:
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| Pre-Colombian Pottery |
- After finding a Dive Shop (which only really operates on Saturdays), I stumbled across Museo Pedro de Osma. How do I begin to describe this? There is a lot of religious artwork, silver, colonial furniture, and stunning architecture.
- Barranco district was something special, too. Amidst the colonial buildings, museums and artisan shops, I found a lot of interesting street art. I really could have spent a couple of days here by itself.
- The centro historico is like a much more functional version of the one in Quito. There are plenty of sites, shops, malls, theaters, and churches to visit. Each plaza I found was more sensational than the previous one.
- I toured the Parroquia del Saguaro next to the Cathedral of Lima. It is also filled with religious artwork, but, more importantly, was the residency of the archbishops of Lima.
- MALI, or Museo de Arte de Lima, is pretty awesome. There are various temporary exhibits there. During my visit, it hosted a contemporary artist's paintings, sculptures, and architecture drafts. Another one was solely pre-Colombian art from the northern region of Perú. Upstairs is the permanent collection. The pieces range from pre-Colombian to present day. The most impressive piece is that of "The Funerals of Atahualpa," painted by Luis Montero. If any of you have seen "Night Watch" at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam... it is larger, more impressive, and less crowded.
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| "The Funerals of Atahualpa," by Luis Montero |
- The other site I absolutely recommend to visitors is Huaca Pucllana. It is this great adobe/clay pyramid in the middle of Miraflores. Unfortunately, much of the ancient city constructed around it was unknowingly destroyed for land development and building, but was uncovered in the late 1960's. The cost of the ticket pays for the excavation and preservation of this important archaeological site.
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| Museo Pedro de Osma |
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| Huaca Pucllana, in the heart of Miraflores |
This was only my first stop of my trip but already became my favorite... and remained so throughout the rest of my travels. In part because I did adopt a mentality to not wait and just go for what I want. It allowed me to discover things I probably wouldn't have and to increase my consciousness and awareness. And with my newfound attitude to be more of a risk-taker, I was ready to set off for my next stop: Arequipa.
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| Street Art in Barranco |
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