Sunday, November 2, 2008

Lima




I really didn´t have high expectations for Lima, but to my surprise it has been one of my favorite stops! The entire coastline has massive cliffs speckled with fancy buildings and a nice boardwalk. The views are simply amazing! Most of my time was spent in the barrio called Miraflores which has great shopping, dinning, and entertainment.

On Halloween, I was able to meet up with Kristen and Natalie. It was great to see them once again and listen to their stories from Peru. On Saturday, Kristen and I headed to central Lima (Natalie was under the weather) where the first day of bull fighting was beginning!

So there we are in the stadium, all ready for the games to begin, when we hear and feel a faint rumble. We both thought it was the bulls running around somewhere under the stadium, but we were wrong. When the second rumble (louder and stronger) shakes the entire stadium, my heart skips a beat and I realize it´s an earthquake!!!

Luckily, the earthquake only consisted of the two minor rumbles and it was over with. By far it was the weirdest sensation I have ever experienced in my life! The people sitting around us said it was normal for Lima. I guess its a rather high earthquake zone. The rest of the night was great! There were a total of six bull fights, one of which was a ten year old boy! Kristen and I both thought he was going to be a goner. As tradition has it, each bull is dueled to the death and dragged out of the stadium by a chariot of horses.

Afterward, everyone gets together outside the stadium to socialize, drink, and partake of grilled bull´s heart (anticucho). It was such a great way to practice our Spanish and we met so many great people. The anticucho was very tender and had so much flavor! Later that night, we headed to the airport to meet the fourth and final traveler, Whitney.

Today I hopped a bus five hours south of Lima to a desert oasis called Huacachina. It is nothing but a small Lagoon surrounded by massive palms and giant dunes. Tomorrow the girls are meeting up, and we are all going sand boarding (much like snowboarding but on sand). I am pretty excited about it. I will try and post some pictures soon.

I hope things are getting better at home. Grandpa and Grandma you are in my thoughts and prayers. Love you!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Im afraid my nerves would have been shot by the end of the night. Two tremors, seeing bulls killed...haha id be a mess. Thats so awesome though that you got to experience all this. Im excited so see pictures! Especially of this lagoon!

Cortney said...

Oh man the bull fights sound intense! How fun! I can't believe Whitney is already there! You guys are going to have so much fun! I can't wait to see you all when I get back! LOVES!!