Points of Interest in the City of Lima

I've been in Lima for over six weeks now and during that time I have done a fair amount of exploring in the city. There is ample public transportation and it is very cheap. I can ride a bus for an hour and pay no more than $2. I can also take a taxi just about anywhere in Lima for around $10 and if I'm in a group it cuts the cost even more. My Spanish speaking ability has seen some definite improvement and I now feel confident enough to negotiate with cab drivers without a native speaker having to come with me.

There are also these wonderful little cereal boxes on wheels called combis. Their routes are like those of buses and the same price, but combis are tiny and perhaps a little bit faster than buses. When you ride in one of these you're crammed in with a bunch of strangers and the way people drive around here you feel as if you're in a speeding roller coaster. They are a different experience and though I wouldn't want to ride in a combi everyday, they are fun to take every once in a while.

Back half of a combi.

The bus system here in Lima is not like the ones in the states. There is no set schedule and you have to read words printed on the bus and talk to the toll collector to make sure it's the one you want. There are so many buses and combis driving around that you do need to be careful which one you get on so you don't end up unknowingly going in the wrong direction. The grand majority of people here in Perú are smaller than Americans. Therefore, all the seats in the buses, combis, and taxis are made for short people. Being 6'5", I have to scrunch my legs in wherever I can. But it's not as bad as it sounds, and since I am young and skinny I can usually find a comfortable position.

Palace in background.

With this public transportation we have been able to go around many different parts of this huge city. One of the first places we got to know is the gigantic Plaza de Armas in central Lima. The plaza is surrounded by the Presidential Palace, the Lima Cathedral, and some other large colonial age buildings. The night we went there Lima was celebrating it's anniversary as a city. There was a huge stage set up in the middle with music and dancing. There were many cheering people there which gave the event the sense of a big rock concert. In the streets on the edge of the plaza there were all sorts of people in costumes, women dancing in dresses, and men riding horses. The people, music, and buildings created an atmosphere that was unique and enjoyable.

Lima Cathedral

Parque de Amor

Another part of Lima that I have gotten familiar with is Miraflores. This district of Lima is on the coast and has quite a bit of historical value. The literature class I'm in took a tour of the district and we saw and learned some interesting things. Along the cliff above the coast in Miraflores there are many parks with statues and flowers. The most outstanding park was the Parque de Amor (Park of Love). There are many colorful ceramic walls and fountain with a statue of couple on top of it. In the ceramics on the walls are names of famous Peruvian couples and simple phrases of love.

Miraflores Lighthouse

 

Miraflores Coast

Another part of the Miraflores tour was the archeological sight of the "Huaca Pucllana." This Huaca is the site of temples, squares, and homes of pre-colonial peoples. When the Spanish first arrived in Lima, they believed that they were just simply hills and didn't realize what they were until later when people tried to dig into them to build. The temples and houses are all constructed out of mud bricks and since it rarely truly rains in Lima (maybe once a year), the buildings have lasted hundreds of years. On the tours we learned of how these people lived and heard stories of religious ceremonies with human sacrifice.

Human Sacrifice Replica

Partly Restored Huaca Temple

For shopping Lima offers malls and centers very similar to those one would find in the states. However there are also shopping places that are very different. The biggest of these center is called Gamarra. This place is absolutely enormous with about 17,000 different little shops that sell everything from clothes to electronics and more. If you go deep enough into one of the stores you can actually find people making the clothes. Brand names like Nike, Billabong, Rolex, and Ray Ban are sold, but I highly suspect they are fakes. This really doesn't matter to me though because they look exactly the same and are about one third of the price. Speaking of prices, nothing is marked and you need to be prepared to do a little bargaining. As a foreigner I expected to pay a little more than what they would sell to a local, but even the prices I got were far below anything that I would pay in the states. The atmosphere was a little sketchy and I we stayed in groups of at least three because pick pockets and muggers are know to roam around Gamarra. We made it through the day fine and were able to make a few purchases without any incidents. It was a fun way to buy in my opinion.

  

Just this past week the group took a tour of the Fortress Real Felipe in the Callao district of Lima. This fortress is located right by the port of Lima and has been a major part of the history of post-colonial Lima. When we first arrived the shear size of the fortress was very impressive. It was constructed in the 18th century and the entire place is surrounded by a moat and a 20 foot wall with cannons spaced about every 10 yards. The side facing the sea has two great towers on each end. The tour of the fortress was very interesting and we were told of battles against the English pirates and also with the Spaniards after Perú's independence. The tour was a great way to spend a morning and to learn a little more about Lima and Perú.

Exploring the city has been fun and has really helped me enjoy my time down here. I hope to continue learning and exploring as the semester continues.         

       

  

UPC Campus, Staff, and Classes

     The university that I am studying at while in Perú is called Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas, or in English, Peruvian University of Applied Sciences. The campus is small, but it is really nice and modern. The entire campus is walled off and you need your student I.D. to get in. Once inside it is more or less a big circle of buildings. The picture of me above shows pretty much the entire campus and if you look further down the page you can see a picture taken from the other side. There are little shops all around that sell snacks and sodas. There is also a cafeteria where one can buy a meal for a good price. There is also a bank with ATMs on campus. It's summer down here so there aren't many students on campus but it still keeps pretty busy. Evidently there will be many more students in the March. I tend to stick out since I am a foot taller than everyone else and white. The first week or so I felt like I was stared at, but either I'm used to it or the people on campus are used to me because I don't notice it so much now.     

     The staff here at UPC is extremely nice and helpful. The first day at orientation they spoke to us in English but since then they have insisted only to speak in Spanish unless it is an emergency. They have helped me with anything I couldn't figure out myself on campus and even given the group some tips on things to do in Lima.

     Classes have been going well but are starting to pick up here in week four. I'm taking literature, conversation, and grammar classes in Spanish. The professors for these classes are very good at what they do. While they only speak in Spanish during class, they can read the students reactions to see if we are understanding. If we aren't then they explain it differently or simply repeat it more slowly. The professors are more than willing to work with a student who needs help if the student makes the effort to learn. I am enjoying these classes and even if I don't understand 100% of what is being said I catch enough to participate. All the UNK students are also taking an Indigenous Politics class in English with the faculty lead from UNK. He is a political science professor who specializes in South American politics and is proficient in Spanish. While I am not extremely interested in politics, this class has opened my eyes to the indigenous situation in South America, which is much more than my previous thoughts of a bunch of natives dressed in loin cloths running around the jungle. This class may not be directly related to what I am studying (foreign language education), but I am learning a lot and by that simple fact I will benefit from it.

     All the UNK students are also assisting and tutoring in English classes here at UPC. We spend two hours a week helping Peruvian students. I like doing this and the students are eager to talk to a native speaker. These tutoring sessions bring bad memories of middle school English when I get asked questions like "When and how do I use the past perfect progressive tense in English?" I usually just give them a look that says "I don't know" and ask them to try and use it in a sentence and I'll tell them if it sounds right. Helping out in these classes makes me appreciate learning English as a native speaker.

     With the help of the faculty, staff, and students here at UPC I am starting to see improvements in my Spanish. It's hard to believe that this semester is a quarter of the way through. I am sure that my Spanish will continue to grow and I hope that the remainder of the semester continues to go smoothly.