Lima was a truly magical city. It is at the crossroads of becoming a well-established tourist destination on its own versus a pit stop or jumping off point for more well-known destinations in Peru such as Machu Picchu or a diversion from the Galapagos Islands. Lima is a sophisticated metropolis that is a city of distinct contrasts grounded in a rich historical background.
I had no idea what to expect my first time in Lima. People who had heard that I was only going to Lima and not venturing to the highlands seemed to question Why? Well, you see this was a trip for my mother and me to re-start our globe trekking that dates back to my high school days when we would jet off to London for a weekend of theater or Brussels and Amsterdam to shop and dine and more importantly just be together. Mom is a fabulous travel partner in crime and we’d later visit Dubai before it was well known or be ducking the back alleys of Mong Kong in Hong Kong. She is now 73 and has more energy and hutzpah than most people half her age. The past few years saw my father battling for his life against cancer — a battle lost just ten months ago which still does not seem real. My mother was a rock during his illness and devoted every minute and ounce of her being to my father — not once faltering. After more than 50 years of marriage they were still as in love as the teenagers who met long ago. My father’s passing was beyond difficult for my family and my mother in particular. This trip was to make her feel special and rekindle our past travel experiences and make them once again an annual tradition.
My Lima experience was so diverse that I am breaking my travelogue into a few sections: The Flights; The Hotel; and The Sights and Food. Of course the focus for all of the sections will be on my travels as Celiac and shellfish allergic traveler in a country that is not too well-known as a gluten-free friendly locale. So stay tuned in the coming days for the release of each of these sections and I hope you’ll enjoy learning more about this remarkable city.
