7,000 Years of Peruvian History

After a day of relative laziness, the level of activity in this trip to Peru is back to normal. What I covered today in the Peruvian megacity of Lima tired me almost as much as what we did in Machu Picchu..

Huaca Pucllana Archaeological Site

This morning, I slept in unusually long, but it's probably the only reason I wasn't completely exhausted by the end of the day. After taking care of morning business and getting breakfast at the hotel, it was about 10AM. Our first destination was Huaca Pucllana, an archaeological site in the Miraflores district of Lima. The site, which was built in pre-Columbian times by a uniquely Limean civilization in 500BC, covered the size of several city blocks and could be easily recognized from afar by its large mud pyramid in the center.

The very good English guide who toured us through the site explained to us the culture and history of the civilization who built the ancient city district we were exploring. Something I found very interesting is that unlike many other Peruvian civilizations at the time, this Lima civilization did not worship the sun (Lima almost always has overcast skies), but rather worshipped the ocean, their source of food. By the end of the tour, which brought us through main squares, personal rooms, and royal tombs, I got a much better sense of how advanced civilizations were on the American Continent, 2000 years before any Europeans arrived. Something particularly interesting is how Huaca Pucllana is still an active archelogical site. There is still a huge area covered in dirt and we could see archeologists and construction workers digging through the site and restoring the newly revealed areas.

Our next destination, which we reached after an interesting 20 minute walk through a realtively nice part of Lima close to the Pacific shore, was the La Mar seafood restaurant. This very famous seafood lunch bar serves one of Peru's most famous dishes, Ceviche. Ceviche, which is somewhat similar to Sushi, is raw fish and other seafood served in a cocktail of lime juice, onions, and spices. Although I did not try the Ceviche (I am not a big fan of seafood), my parents tried it and thouroughly enjoyed it. What I had instead was an absolutely delicious meal of very tender steak bits served with onions, fried potatoes, and rice in some delicious, soy-sauce based sauce. Overall, the food seemed to be very nice and the service was spectacular. The advantage of travelling in Peru is that you can eat at a very fancy restaurant, like La Mar, but at a price comparable to what you'd see at a regular sit-down restaurant in the United States.

After a 20 minute taxi ride in a car that seemed to be missing any form of suspension, we ended up at the Museo Larco, established by archaeologist Rafael Larco Hererra. This private collection of mostly pre-Columbian art from the Peru region showed the incredibly interesting history of Peru. As one of the few cradles of civilization (with Egypt, Babylonia, India, China, and Mexico), Peru was the home of about a dozen unique civilizations from 5000BC to around AD1530. Among all of the textiles, pottery, and metalwork displayed in the museum, the most interesting thing I learned was the true nature of the Inca civilization. Most people don't know that the Inca civilization was really just a short-lived empire that existed from 1400 to about 1530 when the Spanish defeated them. This civilization, which was essentially a fusion of the dozens of cultures that lived before it, only became the most famous civilization of the region because it was the one discovered when Europeans first began to colonize the area. There is much more to pre-Columbian history in Peru than just Incans. The Larco Museum is an excellent way to learn the details behind this fascinating fact.

Before our next destination, we stopped at our hotel after a nice taxi ride to get some rest after all of the walking and history-absorbing. At around 5PM, we left our hotel and walked toward the center of the Barranco district our hotel is located in to visit a handicraft shop recommended by some guidebooks. Although the goods and souvenirs sold in the store were very stylish and lovable, the prices were absolutely outrageous and we did not end up buying anything. A little robot toy made of cardboard was S/130 ($50), and an authentic leather pool chair was S/8.000 ($3,000).

We wanted to go to a very famous meat restaurant for dinner after the handicraft store, but it was quite early and there wasn't any reason to rush. To pass some time, we walked again to the Pacific-Ocean-facing  shopping center of Larco Mar, but along Lima's coastal cliff for the whole time, a route we never took before. It was on this route that I first witnessed a car accident in Peru. One car was trying to pass a car at a curve by speeding up, but the passing car re-entered the lane too early and we could hear the other car bump the passing car. With the absolute craziness of Peruvian drivers (blinker use is unheard of, actual speed of cars is often 2-3X speed limit, lanes in the road are simply suggestions, etc.), I figured it was only a matter of time before I'd see something happen. Luckily, no one was hurt and the cars didn't even seem to be damaged. After a little quarrel between the drivers that lasted no more than 15 seconds, both cars were already back on the road.

Larco Mar was surprisingly uncrowded for a Friday night, but we figured it was too early (6PM) to make that judgment. From the shopping center, we found a taxi across the street that took us (through very bad traffic) to La Tanquera, a restaurant renowned for its wide selection of and excellent preparation of meats. I thought Cusco was going to be my last opportunity to eat guinea pig, but we actually had some at this place. Unlike the waiters in the restaurant in Cusco, who served half of a guinea pig in a few breaded balls, the waiters in La Tanquera gave us a full, freshly grilled guinea pig with some grilled potatoes, all on a little charcoal grill brought to the table to preserve the heat of the food until we started eating it. Although the guinea pig meat was very tender and tasty, the Peruvian delicacy is not something I think I would order again. The meat is very difficult to get to and the taste is not, in my opinion, worth it. Nonetheless, the food was delicious and fresh and the service was absolutely exceptional. Like La Mar, this was an especially fancy restaurant that ended up costing as much as an average American restaurant.

For our walk back to the hotel, we decided for two reasons to walk. First of all, we wanted to avoid the Friday night traffic in Miraflores (a very high end, consumerist, and casino-filled district) that we suffered on the taxi ride to the restaurant, and we wanted to burn all of the calories we just consumed from eating an entire animal. On the way, we stoppd by a small park in Miraflores where a public talent show was in progress. For about 15 minutes, we watched a few acts from some local talented people. One singer, who the crowd really loved and cheered on, was so good that I was surprised she wasn't already famous. This kind of weekly gathering, where people celebrate with music and dance, really reflects on Lima's community-focused culture. 

After it was time to leave Miraflores (our hotel is in the Barranco district), the nightlife and traffic quickly died down. Although we were slightly confused and unsure about the direction in which were going at some points, we arrived at our hotel after about an hour of walking at 10PM.

Tomorrow, we'll spend our last day in Lima exploring the historical center of the city (El Centro) before hopefully flying out of Lima's Jorge Chavez International Airport at around 10:30PM. I say hopefully, because there is a chance that Tropical Storm Isaac, which may soon become a hurricane, will prevent us from flying into Miami, our layover airport to Boston. I've never travelled through the Miami airport without some sort of problem, so this is nothing new, but I hope that everything will go smoothly and we'll find some way to get home safely and on time. Whenever I finally get home, I'll post the final entry of the trip and begin posting pictures.