Peru day 3

You guessed it another tour today with Mariela.  Today we are only with her for 5 hours!  The afternoon is free time and nothing but relaxation!  We had to wake up early so it was a quick breakfast where we both ate a lot of fresh bread.  The bread was so fresh and a good thing we are headed out for a walking tour so I can burn off some of those calories.  As we rode to the city center we learned the tallest building in Lima is the Westin Hotel at 38 floors . . . I think they are almost finished with a taller building but maybe misheard that tidbit of factual information.  First stop is Plaza San Martin.

We then set off to see several gorgeous churches and old buildings.  The architecture is amazing!

We visited three churches:  La Merced, San Pedro, San Francisco. We also toured the San Francisco Catacombs.  Colin was mortified.  He thought it was gross and weird and could not finish that part of the tour fast enough.  I was really surprised; I was amazed at how turned off he was by the bones and catacombs.   At the end they had some bones and skulls placed very symmetrical (no photos allowed so pulled this from a non rule follower on the internet) . . .

. . .  he said, "why do they think it is okay to be artistic with dead people's bones?"  Sometimes you just don't have an answer.  Since yesterday Colin has been asking our guide, Mariela, for a churro. She promised today and finally she found a place to stop! Honestly, I was getting tired of hearing him ask about churros.  One happy tourist . . .

. . . now on to the Plaza Mayor to see several places, the old bronze fountain . . .

The main reason was so we could be near the Government Palace to watch the Changing of the Guard ceremony.  We had some time before it started so just sort of looked around and waited.  About that time a group of school girls came running up to Colin asking to take photos.  Before we knew it there were at least 20.

He was nice and took photos but the look on his face was hilarious.

One girl even pointed to her cheek for a kiss and he quickly shook his head no and said no thanks.  The girls took off and the changing was about to start.  It was very festive and a great presentation that lasted about 45 minutes.

We had to stand a street width back but were on the front row so we saw a lot.  It was difficult seeing through the super tall fence though but the music kept your attention.  I was not expecting it to last so long.  We saw this black dog several times . . .

From time to time we would watch this dog . . . he slept most of the time or would get up and move near another one of the guards.

He was so not interested.  He was cute and managed to sleep through out all the music but always near one of the guards.  Back in the car and we hit traffic, oye!  I know that there is no way I could drive here. It seems no rules just go as you please. Our driver, Arturo, was amazing.  He managed to detour yet again and get us out of traffic to see the last few places of our tour . . . a drive through San Isidro and Olive Park.  A quick stop at Huaca Pucllana . . .

Huaca Pucllana was built 900 years before Manchu Picchu.  While they were small, it was amazing how big they are right in the middle of town with houses and stores all around.  Another interesting fact we learned today (remember Lima has 43 districts).  In the district of San Isadro, 80% of the embassies are located here and 80% of hotels are located in the district of Miraflores.  A drive by Kennedy Park where we learned there is a huge population of cats.  Several years ago there was a mouse problem so cats were brought in to help. They solved the problem but now there is a cat problem.  Our last stop was Parc del Amor (Love Park) which the only exciting thing were people hang gliding off the cliffs.

Colin said he is adding that to his bucket list. Such an adventurer already. We made a quick return to the hotel where our tour ended. I can't say enough good things about the tour company I selected, Peruvian Local Friend. They had excellent communication at all steps of the process, the guide and driver were both so friendly, happy, and smart.  Another bonus was I thought the price was great for what we received.

We did not have lunch so we headed to the executive lounge for a light snack which was yummy. I wanted some butter for the bread. I didn't know the Spanish word for butter and server didn't know English word so I got a spoon, a knife, and plate.  I then showed her as if I was spreading something in bread and she said, "oh mantequilla". Ummm, sure I guess so and we had a winner! I enjoyed the desserts too.  Left was a creamy sweetened condensed milk but not super sweet and on the right was a yogurt cake.

The hotel has a really cool pool so I told Colin we could swim.  It is winter in Lima.   By winter I mean during the day the high is is the upper 60s and people are wearing winter jackets while we walk around in short sleeves and shorts/pants.  So I agreed to go swim.  Well it was a quick swim!

The wind was so cold and the water not so warm, but we toughed it out for a bit.  We also had our first taste of Inca Kola . . .

We were not so impressed with its super sweet taste.  Someone described it as a mix of bubblegum and cream soda . . . I did not taste those flavors but then again all I had was one sip.  I gave Colin the camera to play with while in the pool and had a lot of these photos . . .

This one is funny because while I did get in the pool, I stood on the hot semi warm water pipe . . .

It did not help that much.  We made a quick dash to the room to warm up.  The free dinner at the executive lounge was lacking so settled for the dinner of champions . . .

. . . while watching the old Godzilla movie on the only English channel we could find at the hotel.