Lima–2014 January 17

This was my last full day in Lima, so I started out to go shopping for souvenirs, taking the bus out to near Canaval y Moreyra.

Multi-level bowl-shaped fountain flowers and cobblestone / circular stones near fountain “split cylinder” skyscraper

I then took the bus back to Barranco, and walked back from there to a main street.

Metal sculpture of man with shield that rotates Sculpture resembling a large red paper clip Metal sculpture of reclining person lime green and purple stucco building Building with bird beak painted across top of door and side walls

I’m not sure if it was smoggy or just fog from the ocean, but visibility was fairly low. I found myself back in Miraflores, and the walk back to the hotel was shorter than I had anticipated.

City shrouded in either fog or smog. “Miraflores” spelled out in plants on hillside near freeway worn mosaic on side of a stairstep Tree with orange blooms Cartoonish chef drawn in chalk on restaurant menu blackboard Tall red building with rounded balconies and outside staircase

After a brief stop at the hotel, I went to lunch (chicken, french fries, and salad), then on to the ChocoMuseo. I had some cocoa tea, which was just spectacular (I bought a bag of it), and a skewer of frozen strawberry and kiwi dipped in chocolate.

“Choco Museo”; the two Os in Choco are in the shape of chocolate beans. Hand holding chocolate bean Store area of chocolate museum

Proceeding to an area that had a lot of artisan shops, I passed undoubtedly the dirtiest car I had seen in a long while. Don’t anyone complain to me about my car not being clean.

Filthy car with windows opaque with dirt

Some more pictures; the mismatched mosaic is actually pretty attractive. The stack of paving bricks just sort of demanded to be photographed, so who was I to argue. I ended up at the Parque Central, and this time the fountain was turned on.

Fancy scrollwork in shield pattern “Mosaic” with mismatched tiles at random angles Mosaic atop arched window stack of paving bricks with diamond pattern Spherical fountain at entrance to Central Park

Wall Art

Wall painting of man and woman among plants. Wall art of elephant in hat and sunglasses Wall art of face like a skull with yellow eyes Stencil of Nikola Tesla on wall

Signage

Sign with traffic signal: “Respect the red light”

This one reads “Respect the red light.” (Like that’s going to happen.)


Sign for “Monstrous Sandwiches” shop; word “Monstrous” inside a sandwich

I like this sign for “Monster Sandwiches.”

Lgoo with stylized sunflower

The logo is nice; the font is showing its age, badly.


purple, red, orange, yellow logo for restaurat TAntA

On the other hand, this one just has the right blend of upper and lower case, with the right colors, to be very appealing. (It’s the sign for a restaurant.)

Sign with letter “O” as concentric multicolored rings

Another clever use of geometric forms in a letter.


Shoe repair places with before/after pictures

Sign for a shoe repair shop; the text reads “before and after” and “yesterday/today.”

Here’s a nice word of warning stenciled onto a crosswalk: 4 out of 5 deaths in traffic accidents are pedestrians.

Sign stenciled onto pedestrian crosswalk

Feral Cats

Of course, I couldn’t leave you without another quick cat fix.

Gray tabby asleep in grass gray tabby looking head-on at camera

Closing Comments

I had a great time in Lima. The weather was great, I saw a lot of interesting things, and had plenty of time to take it all in. (Side note: when I checked out, I told the lady at the desk how much I enjoyed Lima, but the ceviche at the mercado was probably not a great idea. She gave me a look, and said, “Not even we eat ceviche at a mercado!” So there you have that.)

I’m writing this at home, and it is very nice to be in a much smaller city that is a lot quieter; in Lima, everyone drives with their horn. It works, but you don’t realize how noisy it is until you leave.

Overall, a wonderful trip; even though it was a bit spontaneous, it turned out to be a good choice.