Welcome to Irene & Pats Lima Peru review. This will be the second trip to review an area of the world that we might want to spend more time in. We will be all over the globe and hope that some day some of you may join us or be able to make some of your own travel decisions based on our input.
In 2013 and 2014 we pretty much fell in love with Salinas, Ecuador, and we have decided to make many return trips. This year we will review the Miraflores District of Lima. We have studied this area on line for a couple years and it sure sounds like a probable keeper. The sheer beauty of the coast must be breathtaking in person based on all written and visual accounts. In the fall we will head back to Salinas until Ruairi and Stacey's Wedding. Then on to Penang Island in Malaysia to undertake a similar review.
The People: In Lima there are about 8 million residents, 3rd largest city in the America's. 15% of the population is White. 37% are Mestizo. 45% are Indigenous People. A fraction are Black or Asian. In Miraflores about 30% are White and 67% are Mestizo. There is a stream of Indigenous Peruvian People coming into Lima daily. These Provincianos are made up of Serranos and Cholos (Migrants of the hill and mountain country)and they have changed the make-up of Lima's inner city. There is no evidence of these people in Miraflores, San Isidro or Surco. They are the poverty stricken class that work the most menial jobs available in Lima. Money and education determine class here as in most places. The difference is very apparent when comparing neighborhoods.
Our time in Miraflores: We have rented a condo that is on the northwest side of Miraflores. It's on top of the cliffs overlooking the ocean and just off of restaurant row which Limeno's call "Calle Gastronomica". Lima and Miraflores specifically is the foodie haven of South America and named as the Gastronomical Capital of the Americas (as in North, South and Central) since 2009. The area abounds with great restaurants and hotels. The weather is rarely over 80 or under 60 anytime of year, 70 is the norm. Significant rain just doesn't happen. The humidity is comfortable at about 70% this time of year. It is significantly higher (80-85%)in their wintertime which makes the high 60s feel warmer.
Right away we found out: *Driving is a little nuts but there is a technique similar to Italy (daring cat & mouse) *Pedestrians are an endangered species with no crosswalk laws like in the US. *The people of Miraflores are wonderful and very helpful in introducing Gringos to their slice of the paradise pie. *Tourism is strong and getting stronger. Lots of visitors from Australia, Europe, Asia and the rest of South America.
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