The day we spent in Lima
went like a dream. We experienced the whole city with its parallel
contrasts – from the north end to the south end, from the poor
neighbourhood across the river, where they have no canalization and
people live like the Romany gypsies in Bulgaria, through the city
centre, influenced by old Spanish architecture, to the modern
luxurious buildings and seaside parks of Miraflores.
We began our journey in
the middle ground, the city centre, with its synchrony of intense car
noises at 8 o'clock in the morning, European-like atmosphere of
narrow pedestrian streets and 2 magnificent squares, one with a big
statue of the national hero (Jose San Martin), another with a big
cathedral,naturally. Yet, even though Europe tried to establish its
suffocating atmosphere, it did not know that the clouds hanging over
Lima are stronger, thicker, and filled with more rotten fish smell
than a European capital can ever handle, even if it was London we are
talking about. No, Lima has its own tropical character, warm, heavy,
and humid at the same time. It is immersed into a desert mist, loud
noises, and wooden façades on 2 story buildings painted in salmon
pink and yellow tones. Full of life!
Life around us was buzzing
in weird colourful ways, meeting us with things unseen before. One of
the most notable such would be a couple of men, one on each side of
the street on every little crossing, acting as independent currency
exchange pedlars (yes, if it wasn't for the representative uniform of
a reflective yellow vest that distinguish them, I would have taken
this whole business for very suspicious!).
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