Kombi, ceviche and sunsets in Lima
…….A view of the dusty red sunset from the hills in Miraflores, while paragliders take flight reminding me of my first love in a place; Interlaken……..
My first 24 hours in Peru has been full of awesome surprises. The first of which was my bag being lost in transit by the airline. Now that I’m done with the sarcasm, the rest of the surprises were actually amazing.
While completing the lost baggage process at the airport, I befriended an airline host. I asked him if I should catch a Kombi to Miraflores and his response was simply a laugh. He initially told me the numerous other alternatives and said that a Kombis were unsafe, but then rephrased his opinion and said that it would be all right because it was during the day and I didn’t have any baggage with me (ha!). He told me that I needed to speak Spanish “Miraflores por favor” and have the correct change ready (3 Sol / 50 cents) for the 1.5 hour long journey.
Lima is an incredibly beautiful city; bustling, crowed and lively. I had three older ladies talk to me on the Kombi in Spanish, which I tried to respectfully fend off with smiles and making extra seat space. The Kombi itself was an experience; the local’s bus transportation system consists of old vans with 8 seats but hold 15, complete with a person hanging out the window hustling more on at intermittent and seemingly random stops. All in all, it was an interesting and adventurous ride, immersing into the local culture and having to withdraw my hands inside the window to prevent them from being chopped off by a side swipe a few times.
After checking into the Kaclla Healing dog hostel, I was keen to refuel with a healthy meal. On my walk towards the beach and shops, I passed a little van along the street, full of fresh, home-grown, organic produce. Needless to say, I got a little bit excited and stocked up on a whole bag (4 meals worth) which ended up costing me less than $5. I have not eaten such nice and fresh produce….ever. Sooo impressive. My whole body and mind thanked the smiling old lady and her gorgeous fruit and vegetables.
I went to get a haircut ($10!) and then headed to the beach to drink in the sunset. Lima sunsets are the same as the beautiful red ones that you get in smoky and dusty Asia. The huge cliffs and freeways beside the edge of the ocean make for pretty impressive scenery as the sun sets over the west cost.
The best surprise yet greeted me as I went down beside the waters edge to take some sneaky sunset pictures of a guy who was playing his ukulele. It was such a perfect shot – The graduated sky, pebbles worn smooth by the big crashing waves, the beauty of his immersion in the moment – playing his tunes solitary but for the grandeur of the world.
I was lying on the rocks trying to position my camera so that I could take a long exposure of his position to let enough light in, and he turned around and he caught me! He noticed and then actually stayed in position haha! I felt like I would have to make an attempt at Spanish after that and at least ask for his email to send him the photo, but he surprised me with perfect English. He was Israeli, also travelling around Lima.
The next day I was surprised with taxi drivers who didn’t try to rip me off, breakfast even though I had technically missed it and a lovely Spanish lady who helped me navigate my way around the hospital to get my yellow fever injection and ensured that I was set in more ways than one. By the way, I cannot recommend the Healing Dog hostel enough. And they are not paying me to say this! It is a cute family run hostel with a courtyard in a renovated old heritage house. Every evening they make peanut butter, caramel, and toasted muesli from scratch. And I don’t intend to risk missing breakfast in this place again.
Even though 24 hours in Peru has treated me with organic produce, a new friend, fresh bread and homemade muesli, finishing the day with two servings of fresh ceviche (one was certainly not enough) for less than $5 takes the cake!
Going to Lima reminded me what I had forgotten about travel. The food was amazing, the costs were pleasantly surprising, but the crux was in that the people were absolutely remarkable. I feel as though I must have been lucky to have been exposed to a mixing pot of incredible people who wanted to share a small piece of their lives. People who wanted to connect. Vegetarian Swedish girls who dreamed of going to work in the adventure town Queenstown in New Zealand. A kind Brazilian boy who forced his his Chilean money and coco tea on Julie and I and then delighted us with friendly conversation. Julie, the German girl who hikes and hikes and hikes to fill her cup with the splendour of nature and feed her soul. Two crazy French boys who were flying to Cusco to complete the Inca trail and who weren’t sure if stress could be transferred by drinking milk from a stressed cow in a factory farm. A beautiful Israeli boy who was more open-minded, emotional and connected than me and helped me to see a different kind of magnificence in the world in only one night.
Peruvian people are kind, expressive and friendly. They are good people. They have honour, they want to look after you, make sure you are safe and know how to best navigate their country. Their well meaning advice was welcomed, but in all the places (for me at least) their advice wasn’t needed because no one tried to rip me off or take advantage of my lack of Spanish or local knowledge. I thought that my lack of Spanish would lead me into disastrous situations but in Peru it has only led me into an appreciation for the kindness and patience of the locals and an experience with a taxi driver who speaks no English yet we managed to have an amazing conversation which consisted of 90% of laughing to the point of tears and a sore stomach.
Thank you Peru.
The only advice that I would give regarding taxis around Peru is that you should have the correct change ready to avoid being ripped off or feeling like you are being taken for a ride. Taxis in Peru don’t use meters. My strategy worked well and left me feeling satisfied and happy – I asked a local whom I trusted how much a taxi would be from here to there before I actually hopped into a cab – and just always had the right money ready at the end of the ride. You can give them the money immediately rather than asking them how much it was (in broken, confused Spanish which would be the same as standing out like a sore tourist thumb) then say gracias, buenas tardes, then leave.
<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3<3 <3 <3 <3
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