The Rest of our Time in Lima

Lima.
 All the guidebooks and people say Lima is not very nice and not to hang around longer than you have too, but we have both really enjoyed it. Since last time we wrote we have seen a lot of the city. We have had some really cool and one not so great experience. On the way to the city centre a taxi driver dropped us off in the completely wrong place. we think this was an honest mistake as we wanted to go to plaza de
Mayor, but ended up in an industrial and mall area. In the end we found our way to the old colonial city square and saw all the amazing architecture. We were both blown away by the beautiful Spanish and French influenced cathedrals, government palace, libraries and churches etc. Absolutely colossal in scale and more intricate in detail than any we had ever seen. We took guided tours through these impressive buildings and learnt about some of the colonial history etc. 

Our first bad experience in Lima came late in the afternoon when we had an hour until we were meeting an Irish guy we had met at the hostel. We got chatting to a local guy who spoke perfect english and his cousin who spoke no English. They appeared genuine and he had been to Wellington so was easy to make conversation.  He was really nice but a wee bit pushy and ended up going for a pisco sour in a cool little bar. (a pisco sour is a Peruvian drink everyone is obsessed with. Contains egg white, pisco (a spirit) and various fruits depending on your choice). We insisted on the menu but before we could get one, four massive jugs of pisco sours arrived at our table. We didn't think too much of it at the time and all seemed well. It came time to meet the Irish guy and we brought him back to the bar. We started picking up on things that seemed quite strange and we kind of got the feeling we should be getting out of there quite soon. James the Irish guy had heard about local girls who find themselves a gringo boy to take advantage of, making them buy drinks and food all night, generally just ripping them off. Before we realised a girl had appeared and was quite "keen" on James. We all thought it was a bit too good to be true but just went along with it as we had these huge jugs of pisco sours to finish. James was lead off to another area by the girl and before he could think twice he was handed a menu and the girls was ordering things on behalf of James. What we all had kind of assumed had just been confirmed. Along with a few other signs we all sensed it was time to get the hell out of this place. Frano went off to go and try pay the bill which aroused a bit of panic as the guys realised we were cutting their plan short. Expecting to pay about 30soles per jug, Frano was confronted with a bill for 330soles. With 80soles between the two of us (which is all you need here) we were in a bit of a situation. Frano knew this was an excessive amount and knew somewhere between the Spanish speaking staff and English translation of the guy we had met, they were trying to get us to pay for the whole bill and some. Frano asked for the menu to reduce confusion of prices and the lady went off for a bit and came back with a "gringo menu" with prices at least double. The menu stated 70soles per jug which is still a massive rip off we realised we needed to suck it up, pay the bill and get the hell out of there as all the staff started gathering around saying there will be trouble. With a bill of 140soles we were 60 short but luckily James was able to bail     us out by emptying his wallet. We were completely ripped off by 80soles but their intention was to continue bringing us drinks all night so we weren't as bad you can imagine some people get ripped off. In the end when you translate it back to our local currency it's not too bad (about $40) and we learnt a lot from it so we won't be getting ourselves into a situation like that again.

The next day we returned to the same area to look at the other plazas we missed the previous day with a Hungarian girl we met from the hostel. We ended up meeting another guy at the same time of day who was also very very friendly. You have to understand everyone here is so persistent. Everywhere you walk taxis are stopping for you, people insist on selling you useless things on the street and there is someone outside each restaurant trying to get you into their place. Being persistent is just part of the culture here, you have to be to get by. We couldn't get away from this guy. He was a tour guide and had a lot of interesting knowledge on the history of the buildings. All was well until he invited us for a drink at his favorite bar. After our experience from the previous day we weren't going to fall into another trap and asked what kind of place it was. He perfectly described the place we were at night before and we clicked on to him as he was trying to lure us back for round two. Ironically we saw the asshole from yesterday on the street and the two passed a funny look to each other. The new guy told us he was a drug dealer and was a bit dodgy. He seemed a lot more genuine than the guy from the previous day but just as persistent so we weren't taking any chances.  

Later that night we made it to parque de las aguas. (a water fountain park). We coincidentally entered behind a large tour group and walked in for free, the first time it had payed off being a gringo and making us feel better about the experience the day before. The show was amazing with synchronized music, water, lights, lasers and projections onto the water. Took some awesome photos which we will put up when we get the chance.
That night we met up with Martin, a friend who lived in new Zealand for five years as his dad was the Peruvian  ambassador. Martin and his girlfriend Vanessa took us out to some awesome bars and clubs in Barranco, a wealthy beautiful area of Lima. It was nice being taken around by a local who knows the ropes. We both had an awesome night beginning with the cervezas and trying several local pisco favorites. 

Today we had a rest day as our 15day tour down the coast to cusco starts tomorrow and every night so far has been a big one. Coincidently the Hungarian girl we met at the hostel is on our GAP tour and we just met the rest of the group. It is mainly kiwis and Australians and everyone is around our age and seems really cool. Looks like it is going to be an awesome two weeks and our next post will be from nazca. 

Love to you all, talk soon.  
Adios amigos.

Lima

After our long flight across the pacific we finally arrived in Santiago airport where we had over an 8 hour stopover. We were both surprised at the amout of air pollution lingering about in the warm climate. Frano's first observation was that the toilet cubical was below his eye level, the first indication that we would probably stick out.
We arrived in Lima at 11pm local time and had a taxi driver holding a sign with Necane's name. He escorted us to his shitty 1987 beaten up, Mitsubishi station-wagon. This was our first true experience on South American soil as the driver hooned off down the middle of two lanes. It only got worse as we realised everyone else was exactly the same. We also learned that you do not need much more than four wheels and an engine to get a warrent as seatbelts are removed, and the spedo works as a rev counter fluctuating 0-120km/h as the driver accelerated. The indicators have no importance when you have a horn and changing lanes is anyones game, first in, first served. The roads in Lima accomodate for this reckless driving with four lanes turning into two with no warning. Anyway, we arrived at our hostel safe and sound with all bags intact.
The guy at reception was awesome and couldn't get over the fact we were from New Zealand. "You mean, you're from New Zealand where Lord of the Rings is made? You're kidding me aren't you?"
The hostel is really sweet, clean, comfortable beds, a roof'-top bar and free breakfast at a cafe around the corner. So far we had got away with speaking little Spanish, and our first challange came at ordering breakfast with no menu, we're not sure how it happened but we managed to get what we wanted. While we were eating breakfast we were both amused to see a group of teenage boys doing flips and cartwheels at red lights for tips.

We went for a walk down to the beach where soon realised it was possibly more dangerous to be a pedestrian. They completely disregard redlights and pedestrian crossings, it's every man for himself on these streets. At the beach we were attacked by locals wanting to teach us to surf. All of whom were very nice, but very persistant, we did not take up on their offer but may return tomorrow. We noticed the sky was full of paragliders so went to enquire where we found a kiwi guy running the show. The paragliding was insane, we both loved it as we soared above the coast of Lima and got a birds-eye view of the city. Andy, the Wellingtonian running the paragliding offered us a discount and a whole bunch of stories and tips for traveling. He gave us his contact details and said to contact him for anything if we needed it. He also invited us out tonight for a drink so we are looking forward to being showed around and trying 'Pisco-sour', which every Peruvian has insisted we try.

We do stick out a lot on the streets, a lot of people just stare at us, but when we meet people they are so excited we are from Nueva Zelanda, "oh good, you're not from Australia or UK. In that case do you want some weed? It such a nice day!" We declinded his offer.

So far everybody has been really friendly, helpful and tolerant of our lack of Spanish. Most people are happy we know a bit and are keen to teach, but even more excited to practice their English.    

Loving it so far. Hope everyone is well and we'll write soon.

Eight hours to go...

Our day of departure has finally rocked around after a good 7 months in the planning. We have a colossal 28hours of travel time tomorrow before we arrive at first official destination, Lima, Peru. The realisation that we are about to commence an epic 90days of travel across a land of little spoken English probably will not hit us until we are trying to find some little Peruvian taxi driver holding a sign with our names on it.
Lets hope the first part of our journey is smooth and will keep you posted once we have arrived.
Hasta luego, see you in three months.