LIMA is a boisterous, macho
city, relaxed and laid-back, yet
having an underlying energy, with
money and expensive cars ruling the
roost - you can buy anything in Lima
if you have the cash, particularly
in
Lima Centro , the colonial
zone of the city. The city's
population has increased
dramatically in the last thirty
years, swollen with people arriving
from the high Andes to make camp in
the shanty towns that line the
highways. The main plazas, once
attractive meeting places, are now
thick with pickpockets, exhaust
fumes and, not infrequently, riot
police. The
climate in Lima
seems to set the mood: in the height
of summer (Dec-March) it buzzes with
energy and excitement, though during
the winter months (June-Sept) a low
mist descends over the arid valley
in which the city sits, forming a
solid grey blanket from the beaches
almost up to Chosica in the
foothills of the Andes - a
phenomenon undoubtedly made worse by
traffic-related air pollution.
Lima is brimful of culture and
heritage, though it's not obvious at
first. On a strictly guidebook
level, there are the museums
(the best of which are excellent and
should definitely be visited before
setting off for Machu Picchu or any
of Peru's other great Inca ruins),
the Spanish churches in the
centre, and some distinguished mansions
in the wealthy suburbs of Barranco
and Miraflores. But in their own
way, too, there's a powerful
atmosphere in the pueblos jovenes,
where Peru's landless peasants have
made their homes. In addition,
Lima's noisy, fast-moving frenetic
craziness is mellowed by the
presence of the sea and beaches. The
mix of lifestyles and peoples is a
fascinating world of its own: from
the snappy, sassy, cocaine
influenced criolla style -
all big, fast American cars,
cruising the broad main streets - to
the easy-going, happy-go-lucky
attitude that can seem a godsend
when you're trying to get through
some bureaucratic hassle. And, as
anyone who stays here more than a
week or so finds, Limeño
hospitality and kindness are almost
boundless once you've established an
initial rapport.
The City
Laid out across a wide, flat
alluvial plain, Lima fans out in
long, straight streets from its
heart, Lima Centro . The old town
focuses on the colonial Plaza Mayor
(often still called the Plaza de
Armas) and the more modern ...
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