A week in Lima

I got stoned on Lima beach. We expected grey sand from our viewpoint at the top of the cliff, but when we got there the beach was stoney. I went for a paddle and got pounded by the strong surf that threw the shiny grey stones painfully onto my shins. I decided to fill a water bottle with sea water so that I could give myself a refreshing shower, away from the pounding sea, as relief from the hot sun, so I gingerly made my way again into the water and found myself thrown onto my back by a wave with the bottle behind me. Throbbing with pain, but undaunted, I made my way towards the rocks at the edge of the beach where I saw a lady sitting amongst some rock pools enjoying the cool water. Brown and curious eyes of children were following me as I edged towards her and the next minute I was scudding sideways across the painful rocks and back to where I started. I gave up and made my way to where Jon was sitting, accepting the sun's rays. "Didn't you see me?" I screeched "Oh, yes" he said, "I saw you get up though and I thought you were OK".

We didn't go to the beach again but our time in Lima was pleasant. We stayed for 4 nights at the Pariwana Hostel which is in the Miraflores district. We made a friend; Claudia from Dresden in Germany, who is organising a peruvian dance group for a tour to Europe next year: www.takiri.com We had some lively chats, putting the world to rights, Claudia gamely communicating in her schoolgirl English. We walked around the local parks and once saw a little dog left heartlessly by a man who didn´t come back to fetch her. She was rescued by a policeman who was caring and nice. We did some shopping and I replaced my smelly shoes for some trendy new ones.

On the last day we went to the central area of Lima and marvelled at the wonderful buildings and statues, beautiful plazas and grand palaces. We were astonished to find that there was a heavy police guard in full riot gear around the president´s residence. Claudia later told us that Lima had, in the past, been plagued by rebel factions who would regularly bomb the central areas of the city, but since the heavy (and expensive!) security has been established there 24/7, a relatively peaceful period has been maintained.

The next day we took a plane to Cusco which is known as the `bellybutton´ of the Inca heartland. By a happy chance, this is also the central point and, in a way, the fulcrum of our whole journey in South America. We are staying in a very nice rustic hotel with a colonial feel to it. It is a bit more expensive than we had intended because it has been upgraded to hotel status since it was included as a hostel in the Lonely Planet guide, but we decided to say there anyway. We have booked a 3-day tour to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley which will, I hope, give us everything we want in this amazing and beautiful land.