Miraflores is a district of Lima near the Oceanside. It sits on the rim of the Pacific Ocean. I arrived roughly around 5:00 a.m. just in time to catch the sunrise over the horizon. The air was hazy and I couldn’t tell if it was the smog or just a hazy day. The driver dropped me off at Las Girasoles Hotel. I was hoping I could check in early and I lucked out. The receptionist got my room ready within 30 minutes and I was glad he did. I was exhausted from the 5 hour flight from Miami. I met a man by the name of Fernando on the plane. He was a Peruvian from Lima in Florida visiting Disneyland and Universal Studios. Pretty nice guy. He even helped me find my shuttle to the hotel.

After a long 4 hour nap I was set to explore Lima. I hailed a taxi and was off to Plaza de Armas. Walking around was like walking around colonial Spain. The streets were lined with vibrant shades of yellow and red. You could tell there was history behind each building. Not too many shops were open today as it was “Dia de Trabajo” sort of like a Peruvian Labor Day. The sun was warm. As I walked amongst the crowd there was music echoing throughout the street. Young and old were marching to the beat of drums and melodies of the flute. Watching them dance was like watching birds fly. The music was intoxicating and made me feel like a part of the festival.

I made my way through and walked around for about an hour before heading back to the hotel. I unloaded a few things and walked towards the beach which was about 20 mins away. When I arrived I saw the cliffs of Miraflores. The overlook was amazing. You could see roughly 10-15 miles down the coast. It appeared to be a big surf spot as well. You could see many surfers paddling to catch that perfect wave. The water looked a little murky. I think I’ll pass.I walked around the mall there alongside the cliff and got a cup of Papaya juice. It was the first real drink I’ve gotten since arriving. As I was standing there in line two men about 10 feet from me started a scuffle. I couldn’t tell what it was about but the crowd around seemed to grow infinite in size. I weazled my way out and enjoyed my fresh Papaya juice. On the way back I stopped off at a local restaurant called Las Tejas and ate a local favorite called Ceviche. It is a seafood dish with lemon squeezed on top. The oxidation process actually cooks the seafood. It was pretty good. It had some white fish and calamari and potatoes in it. Along with the meal I tried Inka Cola which I thought was quite tasty for a soda pop. Tasted somewhat like bubblegum. I bought the servers Ubaldo and Guzman a few cervezas which invoked quite a conversation about Lima culture. Learned a little Spanish as well.

After dinner I headed back to the hotel to meet the GAP group. My roommate named Cory was from Ontario, Canada. The rest of the group was from Canada, Australia, London and Sweden. I felt discriminated when I was the only American at the table. It was kinda weird talking to the Canadians. It was almost South Parkish when every sentence ended with Eh! They were cool though. After the greeting we all had cervezas down the street and then it was back to the hotel for an early 6 am wakeup call.