Day 14 — Back to Lima

Thursday — April 16

We’ve never had an entire airport to ourselves before, but that turned out to be the case when we arrived at Aeropuerto Internacional Inca Manco Capac. We’d made good time on the drive from Sillustani to Juliaca and still had about two hours to kill before our 2:35p scheduled departure. That’s OK … I’d rather be early than stress over making it in time.

Check-in was a breeze — even with the added time it took for the LAN Perú agent to calculate our excess baggage fee. (We told him it was $23, but he still had to figure it out for himself.) Vidal wanted to stick around and make sure we got off OK, but knowing that he still had to tackle a long bus trip back to Cusco, we bid him a hearty goodbye and saw him off to Puno.

After paying our departure tax, we went through security and found seats in the darkened waiting area. The guard at the security gate must have felt sorry for us; he came by a few minutes later to turn on the lights and the TV. We whiled the time away translating the Spanish broadcast and eating the sandwiches Mui had picked up from the airport restaurant.

We have the Juliaca airport all to ourselves.

For a while we thought we were going to be the only passengers for LP 111, but about 20 minutes before boarding time a couple of large groups showed up, dashing any such hopes of a private flight. Our plane took off on time for the 30-minute hop to Arequipa, where we dropped off some passengers and took on quite a few more for a full flight to Lima.

Farewell Juliaca.

An aerial glimpse of the landscape around Arequipa.

The flight to Lima was just over an hour. I spent the duration uploading our photos from today to my laptop, so I didn’t even notice the passage of time. Before I knew it, we were on approach to the Lima Airport. The whole area was covered by the thick haze that I understand is typical this time of the year.

It took a while for our bags to show up on the carousel. Eventually, with our luggage in tow, we headed out to the waiting area where we found Vidal’s sister-in-law holding a sign with our name. She had a taxi waiting and without further delay she escorted us to our hotel in the Miraflores neighborhood. The drive to Hotel San Antonio Abad took over an hour — only one word to describe the traffic: horrendous!

Hotel San Antonio Abad is in the Miraflores neighborhood.

I’d asked Vidal to make reservations here based on a couple of recommendations I had received. I have to admit that the hotel did not live up to my expectations. The staff was great; it’s location — a 20-minute walk from the promenade of Miraflores — was fine; the general look and feel of the hotel was fine; the old-world style salon on the main floor was charming. All that sounds OK, doesn’t it? So what was wrong? Simply put — our room just didn’t measure up. It served for a one-night stay, but if we find ourselves in Lima again, we won’t be staying at the San Antonio Abad.

We didn’t dally long in the room once we checked-in. With no A/C in the hotel and the portable fan turned off, the room was stifling in Lima’s humid 90F (32C) weather. Asking for directions to the Larcomar Mall we headed off to explore a bit and get a bite to eat. The streets were crowded with Limeños heading home after a long day at work. The rush hour traffic was in full swing, making us especially glad that we were walking to our destination despite the less-than-comfortable temperature. It got cooler as we closed in on the coast — that’s a bit of a misnomer; Miraflores does not sit on the coast, but rather, is situated atop high cliffs overlooking the Pacific. Regardless, the gentle breeze coming off the water was quite welcome.

Larcomar Mall is no different from any other mall you might visit in any other place in the world. It has shops and restaurants galore, and lots of people strolling around, shopping, or eating. But Larcomar has something special going for it — fantastic ocean views made possible by its prominent cliff-top location. We got a glimpse of the view before the nighttime darkness completely obscured it, but what we saw was enough to encourage us to return the next day to see things by the light of day.

Larcomar Mall is a hopping kind of place.

After wandering around for a while, we started looking at the menus posted at the various eateries. Eventually we settled on having dinner at a sidewalk table at Restaurante Vivaldino — a relaxing dining experience under the stars.

Good food; good atmosphere — an enjoyable dining experience at Vivaldino.

We had a great waiter, with an interesting sense of humor. After consulting him, we decided to start off with a couple of Cusqueña Rubia beers. There was no doubt as to what Mui was going to order for his main course — he’d been craving seafood since our arrival in Perú (Lima is known for having a variety of excellent seafood). He was very satisfied with his parilla de mariscos (grilled prawns, shrimp, scallops, octopus, calamari and tuna with lemon chili butter, garlic and parsley). I opted for a traditional Peruano dish— chupe de camarones (shrimp bisque prepared with rice, egg, corn, and shrimp). Knowing we could walk off at least part of the calories on the way back to the hotel, we topped off our meal with a yummy chocolate torta served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Parilla de Mariscos.

Chupe de Camarones.

Chocolate torta and vanilla ice cream tops off an excellent meal.

In typical Latin fashion, the streets were very much alive during our walk back to the hotel. There were a lot of Limeños still trying to get home, but added to the throng of people were now those who were decked out in their fine clothing, ready for a night on the town. The many casinos we passed made us wonder if we had made a detour to Atlantic City somewhere along the way. Nope; we were still in Lima and the action was just starting. After a quick stop at a 24-hour mega supermarket to pick up some bottled water, we arrived at our hotel ready to call it a night — no partying until the wee hours for us.

Next Up: Day 15 — A Stroll in Miraflores

Day 15 — A Stroll in Miraflores

Friday — April 17

Originally, we wanted to spend our one day in Lima visiting the colonial sites in the city center. When the rest of our itinerary developed into an intensive, action-packed two weeks, we decided to use this day to just go with the flow instead. This decision was made easier by the fact that we knew we’d be planning a return trip to Perú to visit what we had to drop from our itinerary this time around.

Although we were up at our usual early hour, we were in no hurry to get anywhere. Taking our time, we prepared for an easy day of sightseeing, to be followed by a midnight flight back to the US. We already had our boarding passes in hand, so after confirming online that the schedule remained unchanged, we packed the few things we’d taken out of our bags and had them stored by the hotel staff so that we could vacate our room. By 10:00a, we were ready for a late breakfast. The “included-in-the-room-rate breakfast buffet” was not very enticing, so we headed out to the Larcomar Mall to grab a bite to eat.

Unlike the night before, Larcomar was deserted mid-morning on a Friday. The view that had been hidden by nightfall, was now veiled by the thick haze that I’ve been told is the norm in Lima this time of the year. Most of the shops were still closed, as were many of the eateries. Having noted the night before that Mangos offered breakfast, we went in to enjoy our morning meal on the cliff-top terrace. This turned out to be a mistake. Sure, the terrace views (despite the haze) were great, but service was non-existent and the food was not quite edible. Considering the crowds that were eating at Mangos last night, I can only assume that we hit the place at the wrong time.

The breakfast experience at Mangos didn’t turn out as well as expected.

View of the coast and cliffs — looking left from the Mangos terrace.

Looking right from the Mangos terrace — the pier that juts out into the Pacific is home to “La Rosa Nautica,”
a seafood restaurant that is highly recommended by guidebooks.

Leaving our food uneaten, we left Mangos and headed off on the Malecón de la Reserva, the walking path that follows the edge of the cliffs. It’s really too bad about the haze and the overall dreariness resulting from the low-lying clouds — the views all along the path would have been spectacular if we’d been graced by a clear day.

Our first stop was at Parque del Amor (Love Park; aka Lover’s Park), which was opened to the public on Valentine’s Day 1993. The most prominent feature of the park is “El Beso” (the kiss), a sculpture that depicts a couple in a passionate embrace. I was enchanted by the almost-Gaudiesque, curved, mosaic walls that surround the small property, providing private nooks for lovers of all ages to cuddle.

Parque del Amor is popular with lovers of all ages.

The sandstone sculpture is titled “El Beso.”

The mosaic wall provides private nooks where lovers can cuddle as they watch the sunset.

We were about to deviate from the walking path and head inland when our eye was caught by a lighthouse, so we decided to press on and check it out. It turns out El Faro de la Marina is a monument dedicated to the seafarers who fought in Perú’s naval battles.

El Faro de la Marina is located on top of the cliffs of Miraflores.

From the path to the lighthouse, we can see how the clouds are engulfing the apartment buildings.

The lighthouse is a monument dedicated to those who fought in Perú’s naval battles.

After determining that the lighthouse was not open to visitors, we took advantage of one of the many benches facing the ocean to rest and come up with a plan for the rest of the day. As the noon hour was nearing, we decided to combine sightseeing with a late lunch and headed off to check out a pre-Inca site about 20 minutes away.

Next Up: Day 15 — Huaca Pucllana

Day 15 — Huaca Pucllana

Friday — April 17

I’d come across a brief mention of Huaca Pucllana when I was researching alternatives for things to do on our “go with the flow” day in Lima. Though information about the “Templo de Adoradores del Mar” (Temple of the Sea Worshippers) was a bit hard to come by, the site looked interesting enough for us to decide to visit it after our morning walk along the cliffs in Miraflores.

Although the temperature and humidity had been rising throughout the morning, it wasn’t bad enough for us to consider taking a taxi to the ruins. Using a map we’d been given when we stopped to ask directions at one of the tourist information booths near the walking path, we easily found our way to Huaca Pucclana. The 20-minute walk was quite safe and afforded us an opportunity to see where the locals live and work.

We arrived at the archeological site 20 minutes before the next guided tour in English. (As this is an active dig, self-guiding is not allowed.) Taking advantage of the waiting time, we toured the small museum located just inside the entrance.

Left: A display entitled “Space and Time” shows how the pyramid changed over hundreds of years.
Right: A mural depicting a hypothetical Wari burial ceremony.

Some of the pottery excavated at the site.

“Huaca” is a name given to pre-Columbian tombs. And that’s essentially what the site is — an immense ceremonial center that served as a burial site for several cultures. The name “Pucllana” comes from Quechua and is the name that was given to the site in the 16th century by the Incas. The ruins themselves are far older, dating back to the sea-worshipping Lima Culture (200-700 AD) who first built the ceremonial/administrative center.

Our tour started at the pyramidal structure — the ceremonial area of the site. Built with handmade adobe bricks placed vertically like books on a shelf, the pyramid is quite impressive — not just because of the precision that went into the placement of the bricks, but also because of its size (1,650 feet long, by 330 feet wide, by 73 feet tall [500 x 100 x 22 meters]).

Though eroded, the pyramid is still quite impressive.

The builders of the pyramid lined up the adobe bricks very precisely.

Our tour of the ceremonial area eventually found its way to the top of the pyramid, which afforded views of the modern high-rise buildings in stark contrast to the ancient site. This vantage point was also good to get a sense of the extent of the rest of the site, which archeologists have determined to be the administrative sector.

The administrative center of Huaca Pucllana from atop the pyramid.
(the white building overlooking the site is the restaurant where we plan to dine shortly)

Archeologists hard at work? Wait and find out.

A sideways glimpse of the pyramid looking south from the top of the structure.

Our tour of the site concluded with a visit to the administrative sector where a closer look made it apparent that the figures we’d seen from a distance were mannequins and not archeologists slaving under the hot mid-day sun.

What we thought were archeologists turn out to be mannequins.

By the time we returned to the entrance it was 2:00p. We were hot and sweaty from our visit to the excavation site; we could have used a cool shower. Our growling stomachs, however, had only one thing in mind — lunch. No problem; we walked a few steps to Restaurante Huaca Pucllana where we were seated at a table with a view of both the administrative sector and the pyramid — perfect.

Restaurante Huaca Pucllana is conveniently situated for a meal after touring the archeological site.

A table with a view of the ruins adds to our dining pleasure.
(photo by our very obliging waiter)

A splash of cold water on the face, a bottle of ice cold water, and an equally cold Cusqueña Rubia beer did wonders to refresh us. We snacked on warm bread as we perused the menu, which had so many wonderful options that it was hard to make a decision.

In the end, Mui ordered the Ceviche Pucllana (fish, shrimp, scallops, and octopus marinated in lemon and yellow chili, served with yucca sticks) and I ordered the Yellow Potato Gnocchi (served in a creamy tomato and basil sauce broiled with parmesan cheese). Two words to describe our main courses: “very delicious.”

Although it might have been a bit gluttonous on our part, we just had to order separate desserts this time (we still split them … wink, wink) — Chocolate Volcano (a rich chocolate explosion served with coconut ice cream, sesame tuile, and mango-passion fruit sauce) and Quinoa Tuiles (filled with lucuma mousse and fresh berries, and drizzled with chocolate sauce). The word to describe these dishes: “delectable.”

Our meal at Huaca Pucllana is definitely a highlight of this trip.

Completely sated, we left the restaurant at 3:30p. The cliff-top walking path was calling our name — “come and walk off those desserts.”

Footnotes:

• Tuile: A french word meaning “tile;” when presented in rows, supposed to resemble the curved tiles on roofs. In its traditional form, a tuile is a flat cookie that has been set over a curved surface while freshly baked and allowed to cool, giving its characteristic curved-tile shape.

• Lucuma: A delicately flavored tropical fruit native to the cool highlands of South America.

Next Up: Day 15 — Time to Say Goodbye

Day 15 — Time to Say Goodbye

Friday — April 17

A slow walk brought us from Huaca Pucclana back to the Malecón de la Reserva along the cliffs of Miraflores. The heat and humidity was starting to take its toll, so we kept our pace slow as we strolled the cliff-top path. The sun was making attempts to break through, but the area was still covered with low lying clouds that hid the top floors of the high-rise buildings from view and the scenery over the ocean was still veiled by haze.

Conditions have not changed much since this morning.
(look closely and you can see both Parque del Amor and El Faro de la Marina in the distance)

We wandered through the various parks along the walkway, stopping periodically to sit on a bench and ponder our trip. We asked ourselves what we would change knowing what we know now about the places we had visited in Andean Perú. The answer was: extend our trip by a week, but still keep the itinerary limited to the same areas. We talked about the places we’d visited, trying to come up with a favorite or two. We couldn’t; each experience was wonderful and unique in its own way. We sat and we watched and we relaxed, happy that we’d left this day as a “go with the flow” day.

After a couple of hours, when it became apparent that the haze was going to obscure a colorful sunset, we headed off in the direction of the Larcomar Mall for a refreshing drink. At this stage, still sated from our late lunch, we’d decided not to have dinner at La Rosa Nautica, the seafood restaurant on the pier … another reason to come back to Perú someday.

On the way to the mall, we could not resist one more stop at Parque del Amor. This time there were more couples around to prove the park’s popularity with lovers of all ages. After a few more clicks of the shutter, we turned around to leave and ran right into … the family whom we’d met in Ollantaytambo. They too were at the end of their trip, although they had one more day in Lima before they needed to head to the airport. It sure is a small world!

The enchanting “Gaudiesque” wall/seats at Parque del Amor.

A closer look at El Beso.

At the mall, the terrace at Mangos was crowded and looked inviting, but after our breakfast experience, we weren’t willing to take a chance. Instead, we found ourselves a table on the balcony of the appropriately named Vista al Mar (View of the Sea) and ordered a couple of “bebidas” (beverages) to while away 30 minutes or so before walking back to the hotel to collect our luggage.

Larcomar Mall
(Vista al Mar is in the building with the brown roof on the right)

After using the hotel’s internet connection to verify the status of our midnight flight, we asked that a car be ordered to transfer us to the airport. The vehicle showed up promptly and within a few minutes we were on our way. It was only 7:00p and we still had five hours before our scheduled departure, but traffic was so bad that we were happy to allow more time than we had initially planned.

We’ve traveled pretty extensively and I have to say that so far Lima’s traffic takes the prize for “worst ever.” The driver muttered under his breath the entire time, swerving in and out of tight spots in the traffic, taking advantage of even the smallest opening to make headway. There was a lot of shaking of fingers and hands and exchanges of “colorful” words with other drivers. We drew a deep sigh of relief when the car drew up to the departures terminal shortly before 8:30p. We’d made it through alive!!!

Inside was a mass of humanity checking in for flights. The Delta check-in counter was just being set up and we were first in line at the business class counter. Normally, we’d hate having to wait in line for an hour to check-in, but considering how quickly the queues grew behind us, we weren’t about to complain. Besides, there was plenty of activity to keep us entertained. Chatting with the other passengers waiting in line, we whiled away the time. Before we knew it, we were handing our passports and boarding passes to the Delta agent charged with checking us in.

We were fully prepared to pay the $31/person international departure tax, so we were surprised when the Delta agent handed us new boarding passes with the stamp already affixed. I thought I heard him say it was because we had business class seats, but it was so noisy that I wouldn’t swear that’s what he said. Not about to question our good fortune, we collected our paperwork, bid our queue-mates adios, and headed off to complete the rest of the departure formalities.

We were welcomed graciously at the Sumaq VIP Lounge, which services several airlines. The place was packed with passengers reading, chatting, clicking away at laptop keyboards — not surprising since so many of the international departures are late at night. There was an extensive self-serve buffet of snacks and beverages and a complimentary bar where the bartenders were doing brisk business. Many of the leather armchairs and love seats were occupied with passengers snoozing while they waited for their flight to be announced by a roving lounge attendant who made the rounds periodically.

After seeing me settled in a comfortable spot near an electrical outlet, Mui wandered off to use one of the internet stations. I spent the next hour downloading photos and writing my blog entry. The wireless internet connection was a little slow, but sufficient to check in with friends and family via email.

About 30 minutes before our flight was to be called, I had an “oops moment” that left me feeling faint. I couldn’t find my boarding pass? Where was it? This had never happened to me before, why now? I could barely breathe as I tried not to panic. I went through all the obvious pockets of my carry-on; I emptied out my handbag and looked in the few pockets inside. No boarding pass!!! I went in search for Mui and explained the situation. Calm and collected, as he usually is, he sat me down and went to talk to the lounge attendants. Twenty minutes later he was back with a brand new boarding pass. Apparently it was no big deal to get a replacement pass, or so the Delta agent had cheerfully told him — “This happens all the time.” Not to me it doesn’t!

Next Up: Travel Night & Day — Back to the US