After a connection in Dallas, one in Atlanta, we finally arrived safely in Lima’s nice modern airport. During the end of the flight, Karthik and I met the flight attendants Gina, and Rosie along with a passenger MartÃn. Rosie was a sweet girl living in Atlanta and was from Lima so, and MartÃn currently lives in Lima. MartÃn was blond and looked very german to me so i was surprised to fin out he was Peruvian. We began asking for restaurant recommendations and got a full list of places that are near our hotel.
Karthik was towards the back of the plane, and I sat next to an 82 year old woman who didn’t speak any English. I was amazed to see that my comprehension of Spanish led me to understand that just 4 years ago she had a transplant of the cornea from someone who had been involved in an accident. She was the mother of 6, grandmother of 7 and great grandmother of 2. She lives in Montreal and likes French better than Spanish. I was feeling pretty confident in my comprehension so was excited to try to use it as much as possible.
Exiting the long lines at immigration after finding out bags– what an amazing sight!– we went and changed money and I was hoping to see a sign on the outside with my name on it for our driver.
Leaving customs we were greeted by crowds and crowds of people and it felt like being in a pageant. People had flowers and there was a sea of families lined up waiting for loved ones. Among the crowd, without seeing a face, I saw ‘Benjamin Trotter’ and I had a huge sigh of release.
Edu was 29, had just started learning English and was proud of his taxi service. He talked to us the entire 30 minute drive from Callo, where the airport is located. The streets were somewhat busy but abandoned at the same time.
Where we started to see more life was at miraflores where our hostel is located. The safest part of town, it’s also the liveliest. After getting a quick shower and settling into our quaint little hostel, we went to the common area to meet other travelers. It instantly brought me back to my younger years of adventure and wander.
We then headed out and the sights and smells of this bustling night life had me salivating for street food. I’d eaten so much all day that I wasn’t really hungry, but when I saw a vendor creating a chicken sandwich topped with shredded potatoes and cheese, I wanted it. But I filed it away to enjoy tomorrow during our day tour of Lima. We wandered the streets that were full of party goers but also a prominent view of police. It was very orderly and fun. After a little bit of exploration we headed back and got earplugs, as miraflores is apparently the center of everything fun in Lima.