Being a Backpacker in Lima

Lima is huge compared to Quito. With over 8 million residents, and on the coast not far south of the equator, it's hot and busy. Feels really different from fresher Quito, high up in the mountains.

I had a bit of an adventure when I arrived in the city. I'd found a hostel I wanted to try from the Lonely Planet, in an area of Lima recommended by Carlos, but the phone number wouldn't work from Quito. When I arrived in the taxi at midnight at the address, it turned out the hostal no longer exists any more. So I had to again refuse the hotel suggested rather persistently by the taxi driver, and find the next one on the list. The Barranco Backpackers is ok. I guess it's kind of cliched. It's run by a Spanish woman and her two daughters who help out, and owned by an expat Londener. He's a character: tall, skinny, and fidgety, and always seems to know someone who knows someone who can help if you have a query. Despite living here for 15 years he still has only very basic Spanish with a strong Cockney accent. But he's really friendly, and there are plenty of fellow travellers to stop me getting bored. I've been wandering round Lima with an Australian guy called Chris. Not sure how old he is but he's at least 30, and because he's a little more than 6 feet tall gets cramp from sitting in the colectivos (minibus-style public transport) and at restaurant tables. Fortunately the beds in the hostal are the best he's found so far, he actually fits.

We've wandered around Miraflores, the posher touristy area of Lima. It's full of restaurants and bars and shops, lots of them American. It's home to the first Starbucks I've seen so far, as well as classy looking KFCs, MacDonalds and Burger Kind (with gold-coloured signs...). It seems, from when we were searching for a place to get lunch, that the prices increase in direct proportion to proximity to the centre of Miraflores. We took a street leading out from the main square, not being too keen on forking out 25 soles for lunch, and after walking past a series of 5 cafes whose prices decreased incrementally, settled for a 3 course lunch for 5 soles (about 60p). Bargain! And haven't been sick yet. There are very few indigenous people, everyone is (relatively) taller and tanned, and there are lots of gringos wandering round in board shorts, thongs and dreads. Mainly Aussies, I've not met too many so far. Maybe Carlos's stereotype is true - they don't stray far from the beaches. Though the beaches here aren't great, and apparently the sea is too dirty to swim in if you want to stay disease-free.

We went into 'downtown' Lima yesterday. First stop was el Museo de la Nación. As with all museums, all that standing around for hours is really tiring, but it was quite interesting. Though maybe not as much for Chris, whose level of Spanish (limited to greetings and cocktail names) didn't allow him to read any of the explanations next to the exhibits. There were a few translations into English at the start of each exhibit, but it seems like the translator got bored after the first few paragraphs and stopped. Or maybe the money ran out. After room after room of simplistically sculpted and painted ceramics, I got pretty bored, so we sped up to get to the Incas. It was good to get a sense of the history of the people of Peru though, it will put the ruins I visit in context. There was a special display organised in association with the Truth and Reconciliation Committee of Peru displaying photos and memories from the decades of terrorism in the country between 1980 and 2000, the most infamous and important of which was initiated by the Maoist movement Sendero Luminoso, or Shining Path. Hundreds of thousands were killed and many fled the highlands to the cities or other countries. The pictures were pretty harrowing and gruesome. It was interesting to see. Then we wandered round the centre of Lima. There are some impressive old buildings round the nicely kept main squares, and the Church of San Fransico (I think there's one in every South American city) was very elaborate. A glimpse down into the catacombs revealed a pile of human bones - bit gross! Outside of the immediate centre, things are a little less aesthetically pleasing. The river through the north of the city runs a murky brown (definitely don't want to swim in the sea if that's where the water comes from), and the pavements seem in need of renovation. But pretty tidy and neat compared to African capitals, I would say. The same machine-gun toting military men wandering around though, even a few big tanks sitting in the middle of the city. I assume it's all for show. Most of them were falling asleep on duty or fiddling with their mobiles and MP3s.

It's definitely different to my impression of Quito. I miss it. It was good to get to know the city. At the weekend, I had a bit more of a chance to wander around Gringolandia and the old town, as well as revisit the school and my host family in the north. I'll definitely miss the people. After a nice final supper with my tour group (good old Magic Bean again), when we had to say our final goodbye to Carlos, who'd been fantastic, I caught up with Karen, AnaSofie and Rebecca for a night out. It was soo good to see them again. We got drunk on Cuba Libras and Mojitos and danced the night away in the sweaty bar they always go to. I practiced my Spanish with a few of the local guys. The following day I met up with Sam, a guy from the school, on Sunday in the old town, and we visited the Basilica (biggest church in the city) and had lunch in the central plaza. I caught up with an Ecuadorean guy I'd been in contact with for a while in the afternoon. I wish I'd had more time to see more of him, but sadly not. Had dinner with the remainder of the tour group, and met up with Brad a little later for a drink, since I'd missed him the first time I left. On Monday, I popped into the school to see some of the students and collect my glasses from Aldis (I'd left them in the hostel in Ambato). I hardly recognised anyone, lots of the students that were there when I was had left and been replaced by new ones. It was nice to see the ones I knew though. Then I returned to the flat of my host family for lunch. I'd told them I was going to be in Quito for a few days again, and they'd told me to get in touch when I returned, so I did and they invited me for lunch. I'd been feeling a little lost in Quito, not being part of the schoolgroup any more and with the tourgroup disbanding. When my real family and friends are so far away it felt great to have a subsitute family. Albarro had told me he had to leave for the jungle on Monday morning so I would miss him again, but it turned out that he postponed his departure so that he could see me for lunch! It was so lovely to see all them again. I hope we stay in touch. Finally, I packed my bags to leave. But after such a lovely lunch, and with Karen insisting on accompanying me to the airport, I didn't feel to lonely!

So these next few days I'm going to be cooped up in internet cafés trying to complete my bloody TEFL course before I leave for my volunteer placement on Sunday, and figuring out how to fit in a week or so in Columbia without having to cancel too much of the itinerary I'd got planned. I'm loving my trip so far but I am slightly regretting having planned it out so tightly. It could cost me a lot to fit this in. Or maybe I'll just have to stay out here a little longer... If anyone's on MSN during the next day or 2 maybe I'll catch you!