Marian Johns' Journal of the Desert Explorers trip to
Peru in 2002
Images by John Page unless otherwise noted
Day 2, Thursday, September 5
Lima See Map
Sept 5,
Thursday – 
After a continental breakfast,
we were ready to be tourists. We had originally planned to take cabs to the museums today, but the hotel owner arranged for a 15-passenger tour bus to take us, instead, for $20 each for eight hours. We got an unexpected extra I had not planned on – a driving tour of downtown, central Lima that included the cathedral and government buildings,
plus a stop at the Sheraton Hotel (elegant – bring
money) to use the ATMs there. 
I screwed up at first, pushed the wrong
button, and got US dollars instead of soles. Did it right the second try.
John and Mary have volunteered to be our kitty keepers. They will use it to pay for our entrance fees to museums and archaeological sites and later when we get the trucks, they will use kitty money to pay for the fuel. They will also buy food for on-the-road lunches, bottled water, and any other group expenses. Luckily for us, John is also a doctor. He brought the first aid kit.
After the excursion around
central Lima, we went to the Museo de la Nación 
which is a huge,
ultra-modern structure of unusual and imaginative design. It has a good
overview of pre-Columbian cultures and incredible artifacts. 
The ceramics
and textiles are just amazing! 
And there are so many cultures and sites I
have never heard of. Peru indeed deserves the title of “archaeological
center of the western hemisphere”.
For lunch, our bus driver took
us to a shopping mall with several restaurants interspersed among the
shops. 
At an Italian “Pasta Pronto” place, I had ham and mushroom
lasagna – different from any lasagna I’ve ever had – very creamy,
but good.
Last stop of the day was the
Museo Nacional del Antropología, Arqueología y Historia. It was similar
to the other museum, 
but housed in an old, yet well-maintained building.
The gift shop has some very nice and reasonably priced replicas of
pre-Columbian pottery. I’m sorely tempted to buy some, but I don’t
want to lug them all over Peru for the next four weeks.
The tour bus and driver, despite the cost, was an excellent introduction to Lima sights - and Lima traffic which we are in no hurry to experience first-hand. Got back to the hotel about 5:30 and rested up a while before dinner. The hotel doesn’t have a restaurant, so we had a dinner of chicken, fries, and salad that was ordered and brought from a nearby take-out place. The chicken was very good – almost as good as Pollo Loco at home.
To
Next Day To
Previous Day To
Itinerary
