Tour de Peru History - 6/24/2022

July 24 - tourism day in Historic District of Lima

The climate in Lima is very confusing for me. Though it is considered a desert area, it’s also very humid being on the Pacific coast. So my nose and lips are dry/chapped, but my hair is frizzy from humidity. Climate confusion! We are staying in the neighborhood of Miraflores, which is a wealthy section of Lima. We will have a chance late in the week to go to the outskirts of the city and get a more realistic view of Peruvian life. There are 43 districts in the metropolis of Lima, each with their own mayor and individual taxes. This is an election year, which will take place in October. I found it interesting that adults are fined if they do not participate in voting. The fine is not extravagant ($10-25), but it still sets the president for civic responsibility. Upon arriving at the historic district, we could see that the streets were much more narrow, and the houses and buildings in more post-colonial styles. It pays homage to the Spanish settlers that conquered the land in the 17th century. The culture here is a mix of traditional Inca culture and Spanish influence. There is a large Catholic presence, due to the Spanish influence, and Catholicism is required to be taught in all public schools. The Cathedral de Lima (the only official Cathedral), is here in the city center.

After stopping for a prayer in the Cathedral, we took a walking tour towards the San Francisco monastery and catacombs. This is the first time I’ve ever toured catacombs, which was both fascinating and creepy for me. When the monastery and catacombs were in operation, only monks were allowed beneath, in the cemetery area of the monastery. Corpses were placed in open graves, covered in lime to expedite the process of decay and reduce the odors. In a joking manner, I wondered what was the significance of the bones being organized like “crop circles” or “herringbone” (pun intended) patterns. I was surprised to hear that It wasn’t until the 20th century that the bones were organized for aesthetic purposes, so there was no cultural significance to the patterns. Apparently tourists would balk at open graves of skeletons atop skeletons. As I was ducked through a 4-foot stone arch to enter another room, I couldn’t help but remember the earthquake talk that we were given at the embassy yesterday. What would we do if an earthquake struck while we were in this underground maze? Thankfully, the tour guide read my mind and notified us that this was the safest place during an earthquake because of the stone architecture. If it was still in such good condition after many centuries of earthquakes and weather, I rest assured knowing it would still be standing throughout our tour.

Library

Group outside Monastery/Cataco

After a 20 minute tour through the labyrinth of cavern-like catacombs, we toured the monastery and church. The chorus was staged above the congregation so that the building structure could lend to the acoustics (no microphones and speakers in the 17th century, of course). I found it fascinating that the hymn books were made from lambs skin pages, approximately 3 feet tall, so that all members of the choir could view. The heavy books were placed on a rotating stand that would be turned for each song. Next, we entered the oldest library that I’ve ever seen. It was roped off to visitors, and not even the monks were allowed to touch the books. They were so antique, I would assume they would turn to dusk if they were disturbed. There are two beautiful winding staircases in the middle of the library, leading to storage of more antique books.

Walking back to the bus, we enjoyed some photo ops along the cobblestone post-colonial roads and even purchased coca leaves from a sweet vendor who had her toddler on the back. The coca leaf is going to be vital when we go to the higher elevations in Cusco and Machu Picchu. It helps with elevation sickness as well as digestion. Curiosity got the best of me, and I tried some today, before needing it on the last leg of our trip. It didn’t seem to have any affect on me, in terms of feeling a buzz or anything, so I can rest assured that it will be ok to use when in the Andes.

Group in Lima Historic Distric

Nagla, Pedro, and Kate

Our final stop of the day was the Lake Titicaca Cultural Folk Dance Festival. I was a little uncomfortable being dressed in touristy clothes from the beginning of the day, but I quickly overcame my insecurity and enjoyed the show. After a couple incredible dances, the crowd was invited to the dance floor. Wow! Who knew Fulbrighters could tear up the floor. Agnes, Greg, and Pedro are salsa pros, and the rest of us joined along, letting go of our inhibitions and enjoying the moment with our newfound friends. Fulbright could not have selected a better group of people to come on this trip, and I know we will forever be friends no matter the time or distance between seeing one another. At the conclusion of the show, we loaded the bus once again, and returned for an earlier evening back to the hotel. Many people went out to dinner or the bar, but I took some time to relax, recharge, and update my blog. It was a much-needed quiet evening for me.