Lima

We arrived in Lima extremely tired on Sunday, May 8. The first night there we stayed in a hotel in Miraflores, the nicer part of the downtown area. We were able to catch up on some sleep and also see a little bit of that part of town. The Miraflores area is very touristy... there is a Starbucks, McDonald´s, KFC, and other restaurants that you can only find in neighborhoods here that are geared toward the upper class.
The next day our friend Santiago met us at Starbucks and took us back to the part of Lima where he and his wife Elise (from Alabama) live. Santiago and Elise are missionaries at a Christian school and live really close to the school´s property. We stayed on the property in one of the cabins that they use for visiting groups. We had a great time with Santiago and Elise and another missionary, Ruth. It was a nice few days of rest with a little sightseeing, too.

 Elise and Santiago took us to a beach nearby where they hold an international surfing competition. Lots of surfers!

main plaza downtown Lima 

We took a tour of a former monastery/church from the 17th century. This is the library with many books from that same time period.

 Beneath the monastery there are catacombs with lots of human bones. We´re not sure why they felt the need to arrange them like this...creepy. 

Elise surprised me with an American birthday cake! (If you have ever had cake from South America, you will know that there IS a difference)

Us with Ruth, Elise, and Santiago 

Lima is a huge city on the beach, but in the middle of a desert. As you come to the edge of the city, everything turns back to sand.

Santiago, Elise and Ruth took us to a water park in Lima one evening. There was an amazing water/light/laser/music show that featured traditional Peruvian dances along with music.

 More fountains at the water park. There were about 20 totally different fountains. 

Us at a ¨Chifa¨ restaurant... the farther north we go, we see more and more Chinese restaurants. Yummm!

Well, those are the highlights from Lima. It was great spending time with friends and seeing some of Lima. Unfortunately, we had to keep going... on to Ecuador!