Lima and her 10+ million inhabitants showed us how to fit way too many children into a church and catacomb tour and yet supply the worst pillows in the known world in a fairly decent hostel. Our walking tour took in the volunteer bombero brigade with museum worthy pieces to complement their second hand operational vehicles. We tried out the metro bus system and took a walk to Plaza San Martin – a liberator who ISN’T Simon Bolivar – I know, amazing isn’t it! We continued to Plaza de Armas, down streets established by the conquistadors and waded through throngs of people – the freakier of which insisted on shouting at us and shaking our hands.
Santa Domingo church houses what’s left of the Franciscan order of monks, largely declined since its heyday, thousands of dusty old books, including one of the first dictionaries, religious art, private crypts of generous benefactors and a whole lotta bones in catacombs. Equivalent to approximately 25,000 people. Storage bins up to 5-6 metres deep are filled with bones categorised by researchers and laid back into groups behind plate glass. It reminded me of candy shops where you scoop out lollies into a bag and pay by weight. Except without the cute metal scoops and no cheery bags. An immense collection was laid out in a tricky display of femurs and skulls at the bottom of a huge well. Kinda like macabre meets “Modern Living”.
A lovely set menu lunch, sneak peek at the UEFA cup final between Dortmund and Bayern Munich and we were on the road again, checking out the Museo del Congreso y de la Inquisición. That’s Congress and Inquisition. The displays showed the torture techniques of the Inquisition, secret and public cells, water channels built under ground level and stern faced mannequins to show the set up of the heretic trials. It was also the senate house in more recent years so it’s been through some history. I upped its street cred by assembling the masses of our group to wish my parents a wonderful anniversary in photo form. Now it’s gruesome AND cool.
We closed out our time in Lima with big salads for dinner, a morning spin around Larcomar – a shopping mall built into the cliff side overlooking the sea in Miraflores and – only because it was the only place open at 9am on a Sunday – Starbucks. I know. I had a shower to feel clean again afterwards.
Oh, and it’s called Lima because the invading Spanish couldn’t pronounce Rima – river – in the pre-Spanish language.
