Peru – Visiting Lima with kids

Peru – Visiting Lima with kids
Larcomar Mall
Huaca Huallamarca
Lima – Plaza De Armas
Convent of San Francisco
Colors and Flavors Tour of Lima

Peru – Visiting Lima with kids

Lima is the capital of Peru and one of the largest cities in South America. It is situated on Peru’s pacific coast, an eclectic mix  of metropolitan urban areas, ordered slums and historic areas rich with  Spanish colonial history. The climate is normally temperate, with the temperatures in the 60s during our June visit. It tends to be humid and foggy during winter months with some minor rainfall expected at any time of the day.

We stayed at Casa Wayra in Miraflores which is an upscale residential and shopping district south of Lima.

Lima – Larcomar Mall

Larcomar Mall is a beautiful, three level shopping mall on a cliff directly on the pacific coast.  It has upscale international stores as well as restaurants and food courts with offerings of number of Peruvian, fusion, and American food.

It had beautiful views, no matter from where we looked. Majority of the restaurants were on the cliff side, so people can enjoy the view while they dine.

We had lunch at the much recommended Mango restaurant.  The food was good, ambiance and views fantastic, and it turned out to be an international version of Peruvian food.  With our city tour planned to start at 2 PM, we probably had the only 2 hour meal of our entire trip!

Lima – Huaca Huallamarca

Climbing the pyramid at Huaca Huallamarca, LimaThe Huaca Huallamarca is an ancient burial site, established sometime in the sixth century AD.  It has a temple, a burial site, a site of sacrifice and some urban areas.  It is primary made of adobe bricks which are made of mud and straw.  These bricks form the the building block of most of the small buildings in Peruvian countryside even for modern homes.

A huaca mummy under a shelter in Huaca Huallamarca, LimaThe structure is believed to be inhabited later by the Incas. Today, it stands surrounded by towering condos of San Isidro, Lima, with only a few tourists to visit this piece of history when they have the wonders of Machu Picchu and Cusco to see ahead.

Lima – Plaza de Armas

Plaza de Armas or the Plaza Mayor is in the heart of Lima’s historic district. This square is surrounded by some of the most important buildings in Lima’s history. The building in the city is the Government Palace in the north side, adjacent to Casa del Oidor, Archbishop’s Palace of Lima, Lima Cathedral, South Side of the Plaza de Armas, Palace of the Union, and Municipal Palace, going in the clock-wise direction.

The Plaza Mayor is a vibrant area full of tourists and locals at any time of the day.  There are vendors selling souvenirs, Peruvian paintings and handicrafts and street food. During the evening, it transforms into a happening place with live music, impromptu dancing,  lights and sheer joy of being there.

Lima – Convent of San Francisco

The Convent of San Francisco is a church and a monastery built in the 1600s.  Photography is not allowed inside so we couldn’t take pictures of the beautiful paintings covering the walls around the courtyard and the catacombs.  The catacombs could be a tad claustrophobic for people who don’t like closed spaces with little light.  It would also be difficult to access for someone with wheelchair.

While we enjoyed the architectural details and the paintings, the kids really enjoyed the walk through the catacombs looking at the bones of around 25,000 humans laid to rest underneath the buildings.  This was one of the favorite visits for Yuri!

Lima – Colors and Flavors Tour of Lima

One of our favorite tours of the whole trip was the Colors and Flavors of Lima trip led by a non-profit Haku tours.  We got a local’s view of Chorrillos and Barranco districts of Lima, walking though the local produce fish and meat markets through the city’s streets.

We got picked up by Jimmy, our tour guide at about 10 AM at our request, as we had reached our hotel at 11 PM the night before. We got to Chorrillos in about 25 minutes.  If we were coming here by ourselves, we would have taken Uber instead of the yellow taxis which overcharge tourists by a mile!

Thanks to starting an hour late, the morning catch was mostly sold by the time we reached here around 11 AM. There were just a few tables left cleaning some late comer’s catch.

Here, we got to play with tiny crabs used as baits by the fisherman. They tickled our palms on being held, but were very energetic, trying to walk around and get somewhere! We also bought a hand held fishing line to try out when we got back in Florida. Still need to try it out and see if they work.

And this is where we regretted not listening to the tour guide and laying off the breakfast before leaving in the morning.  Jimmy stopped at various trusted local street food vendors to try out authentic Peruvian food.

He introduced us to food that is traditionally made in the Amazon rain-forest, a bundle of rice and chicken in flavorful broth and seasoning cooked inside a banana leaf.

We stopped to try Papa Rellena, a delicious fried mashed potato balls with minced meat stuffed inside.  It got to see it getting cooked while chatting with the vendor about her background.  She was very friendly and gracious with us and happy to share her story.

At a small cevicheria in Chorrillo, LimaFrom there, we got to a tiny cevicherai on the streets of the local market.  Here we got to try some of the best sea food of our entire trip.

We got to taste amazing Arroz con Mariscos. We were told to ask for this name instead of seafood paella when looking for this dish. We had the freshest ceviche, made with sea-bass and also fried see-bass which made the kids pretty happy!

The owners were a brother and sister duo, working hard to save money to open a restaurant in the more upscale district of Miraflores.  We definitely wish them luck and success because their food was amazing!

We stopped on the way to try out some fresh squeezed orange juice. The kids got to try out a mechanical extractor, we definitely felt nostalgic, reminded of similar contractions back in India when we were growing up.

Stuffing ourselves full of all kinds of delicious food, we walked through the vegetable and fruit markets of Chorrillo.  Jimmy introduced us to local Peruvian produce.  Here, we learned about the many species of corns produced in Peru, and specially the puple corn that is the key ingredient of a very popular drink in Peru called Chicha morada. It is a non-fermented drink made with pruple corn, pineapple juice, cinnamon and other seasonings and fresh and delicious like lemonade.  A must try when visiting Peru, just like Pisco sour is a must try for adults!

After trying some local Peruvian fruits, we got back in the car to head to Barranco.

Barranco is a hip, colorful district of Lima, with walls and houses along the streets painted with bright and beautiful paintings.  The district is a beach town, home to famous artists, musicians, authors, designers, photographers, etc.

 

After walking about the bohemian streets in Barranco, we ended up at the Bridge of Sighs, getting serenaded by a local musician.  It was a beautiful end to the 13 day trip to Peru.  While Lima may not be considered the primary destination in Peru, this half day tour was one of the highlights of the trip for all of us and would be a high recommendation for anyone with half a day to spare in Lima.

Also see: Traveling to Peru with kids