From left to right: Liz, Angela, Esther, Jennifer, and me in front of the fountain that is in the center of Plaza de Armas (Mayor's Plaza) and the Basilica Cathedral of Lima is to the left of that.
More pictures of the Basilica. The front entrance has statues of the Apostles and in the center, the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Cathedral is dedicated to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist.
Here is the Archbishop's Palace to the far left of the cathedral which has the ornate balconies.
Full view of the Archbishop Palace and Cathedral:
There was a wedding about to start so I quickly took a picture of the inside.
On the north end of the Plaza is the Presidential Palace. We just missed the changing of the guard (traffic was terrible) which happens daily at noon.
Close up with the 3 guards in the front of the main entrance:
There was a gay pride march (we didn't see) to the Basilica so they had armed military guards along the route.
The City Hall building or Municipal Palace with more elaborate balconies. Here, the rainbow flag is used to indicate united Incan territories and culture and is not indicative of gay pride as commonly used in other parts of the world.
Short video of street performers doing a dance with creepy gorilla masks although the teachers weren't familiar with why or who they were. I did a little research and the gorilla masks may be giving thanks to the bounty of the Amazon jungle.
For lunch we ate at Norky's which is a popular chain here in Peru serving Pollo a la Brasa (grilled chicken) and served with Ají Amarillo Sauce (chile pepper base whose taste reminded me of yellow curry) and Chimichurri (made from finely chopped parsley, minced garlic, olive oil, oregano, and white or red wine vinegar). Also, Inca Kola is one of the most popular and original colas in Peru, created in 1935, and now half-owned by Coca-Cola. Although it looks like Mountain Dew, the taste is more similar to Cream Soda...but not exactly. It's different, but good, and if you can find it in the US, definitely give it a try. My lunch included grilled chicken breast, Anticuchos (skewered grilled beef heart), fries, Inca Kola, and ice cream cone for dessert.
After such a big meal, we walked it off by heading to the nearby cathedrals in search of religious souvenirs. First stop was the Convento de San Francisco, a monastery, church, and a world-renowned library of ancient texts, and Lima's first cemetery, the Catacombs, containing 70,000 burials. We had to pay to enter so we instead just shopped the souvenir carts outside, but I do hope to make it back there before I leave Peru.
Next, we went to Saint Peter's Basilica and Convent, erected and maintained by the Jesuits, and first built in 1568. The pictures here don't do it justice as the artwork and detail is quite amazing.
Not having much luck finding souvenirs, we set off on the easier aspect of getting things I needed/wanted around the house, which took us to a nearby street market that was unbelievably packed. They don't like me pulling out my phone to take pictures as it just rouses attention and they are all concerned about pickpockets. They surrounded me to take this picture of a girl placing stickers on a llama and again at the entrance to Chinatown.
Today, school started although I didn't have any classes as it was mostly orientation. We started the day with an assembly at 8am and I was introduced with other teachers. The primary grades (elementary) start tomorrow and I will have classes with the secondary (high school) students tomorrow afternoon working with them on conversational english. My next post will go into more detail on the grade structure and my schedule. Now it's my favorite time of the day...siesta!
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