How to get lost in Lima

I got lost today, badly! I went out early to fulfill my mission of getting to work by foot, but I ended up at the National Stadium. I was later told that the area was not nice, but I never felt unsafe and there were always lots of people walking too. This incident made me test the Metropolitano, which works in the same way as the Transmilenio in Bogota. It was quite an experience since at 8:30AM it is packed. By packed I mean that there was people pushing more people from the door to fit in and I never saw anybody wait for the next one, so use your imagination! It was very fast though and another checkmark on my things to do in the city. I also went alone for lunch to this restaurant called Susy Wong. For about $4.60 I got an entree with potatoes and chicken, rice, fish with mushroom sauce, vanilla pudding and passion fruit juice... great deal! They even give you a little piece of paper with the things available for next day to plan, which is a good idea. In the afternoon I drew a little map with every street that I needed to take to arrive home and it worked perfectly. It took me about 45 minutes to do it, but with the mildly cold weather it is a pleasure to do it. One of my roommates made some delicious brownies for her boyfriend and just for the price of cleaning the dishes I was able to enjoy one that was just out of the oven (delicious!). I will have another night without covers since they haven't brought them yet, so I am covered from head to toe. I only have one complaint so far... why do people have to beep their horn all the time even in the middle of a huge traffic jam or when there is no traffic like midnight? I am next to a big intersection, so even now I can hear them.

I have a room to stay

I just got a room and I will be spending my first night there tomorrow. It is in the Jesus Maria area on Salaverry Avenue and has a wonderful view from a 14th floor. I have two roommates who are American and working here at least until next year. I also was able to order business cards for the people that I will be meeting at work and even bought a "Cuaderno Norma" (notebook) from the Tottus supermarket. I also decided that since this is a long weekend I will spend it in the south. The person at the hostal gave me some directions and I will go to Nazca, Ica, and Parque Paracas. I just have to get all the details ready by tomorrow or thursday and get the bus on saturday morning (about 7+ hours). I will have plenty of pictures for sure :)

First Day of Work

Today was the first day of work and it went great. I got breakfast in the hostal and waited for my boss to pick me up, but due to traffic I had to work to the office. It was only 12 blocks away and with a cool day it felt perfect. The people were very friendly at the office and things are going well. We had purple chicha with chicken in a restaurant called Caravana and later on in the evening we visited a place called La Gran Fruta where I had a juice made of Chirimoya, Apricot, and Mandarin. It was delicious as well as the egg and avocado sandwich that was made by the owner himself that told us all his 25 year history in the juice business. After that I came back to the hostel and stopped at the supermarket for an iron for all my wrinkly clothes. I am sure that I will have a room setup by tomorrow and will probably move tomorrow night or wednesday morning.

I also benefited from the postponement of the 10k race in Lima and I am signed up already. It will be a week from saturday and during the evening. I am also trying to setup a trip to Ica and Nazca this weekend since it is a holiday on monday.

Today there was a lot of walking! I first went to the supermarket Tottus to get a SIM card for my cell and after a couple of tries it finally worked. I am now able to communicate around the country! After this, it was Miraflores for a long walk along Arequipa Avenue until the "Miraflores oval". At Parque Kennedy next to the oval they had the book fair and I walked along a lot of locals that were really enjoying this after a couple of years of not having it (it definitely helped that Vargas Llosa just won the Nobel prize!). There were also wonderful paintings at the park and even though I had one that was ready to be bought.... I declined :( I am sure that I won't leave without one though! I then went to calle Porta to check an apartment and I ate at a small restaurant were they served traditional chicken with chicha. This was a different chicha than the one we have in Colombia, but a very tasty one. I am sure I will have more in the future specially if it is as cheap as in this place. While walking back to the hostel I also saw the Huaca Huallamarca, which is one of the sites in the city where traditional native artifacts have been found. The Colombian embassy was also on the way and I was vehemently denied pictures of the sign and a huge wall probably due to security concerns. I still got a picture of the huge flag in midair along with those of Colegio privado San Ignacio de Loyola (same name as my high school) and Empresa nacional de la coca. I met with the people in the apartment that I visited yesterday and hopefully they can tell me if they accept me or not since I need to get a definite place. It is very well located, close to the ministry of health, and has a very large cycle route. My boss will pick me up tomorrow around 9AM... so time for bed!

BTW... al pictures on facebook :)

I am in Lima

Ok... some of you requested the second version of the blog, so here it is. Even though some wanted it in Spanish I had to decide for the English version :) I know that you can manage with it, right?

I arrived around 4AM at Lima airport after pretty much sleeping the whole flight even though my legs wouldn't fit. The taxi that was supposed to pick me up wasn't available but I found a very nice taxi driver that brought me to the hostal. My room is pretty spacious and even though I have to share the bathroom, it is more than what I really need it. During the day I visited one of the apartments even though the owner or the roommates were not there, and hopefully I get to meet them soon. I thought it was really nice, centric, secure and with a gorgeous view of Salaverry avenue from a 14th floor. I went around the city with my future boss for lunch and drinks and I can proudly say that I have already tasted: ceviche, causas, tacu-tacu, cerveza cuzquena and a couple of pisco drinks. I am now in the hostal waiting to here from a couple of people to go around town and to find a way to get a SIM card. Lima reminds me a lot of Bogota and has looked very nice to me. Everybody has been very helpful and extremely nice to the tall Colombian :) Thanks for all your good wishes and I hope to write constantly