Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Walking Tour: Downtown Lima
Begin your day in
Plaza San Martín
, and imbibe the faded grandeur of
Gran Hotel Bolívar
, the city's first
fine hotel. Walk the pedestrian street of
Jirón de la Unión
; once the heart of aristocratic city life, it's now lined
with cinemas and bargain shoe stores. To the right is
Iglesia de la Merced
, originally built in 1541. It held the
first Mass in Lima. Peek inside for a glimpse of the impressive mahogany altars.
The boulevard ends at the centerpiece of the city, the
Plaza de Armas
, surrounded by palms and ornate
canary-yellow buildings. In the era of the viceroys it served as market, bullpen and even execution site for the con-
demned. The restored
La Catedral de Lima
houses the once-misplaced remains of conquistador Francisco
Pizarro in an inscribed lead box. On the adjacent corner, the
Palacio Arzobispal
(Archbishop's Palace) has some
of the city's best-preserved ornate Moorish balconies, perfectly designed for absconding people-watchers.
To the northeast, the grandiose baroque
Palacio del Gobierno
serves as Peru's presidential palace - pass at
noon for the ceremonious changing of the guard with a brass band tapping out 'El Condor Pasa.'
The palace backs up against the Río Rimac. Follow behind it to
Parque de la Muralla
, a spacious city park
installed alongside remains of the original city wall. Return via Amazonas to Lampa and
Monasterio de San
Francisco
to check out the monastery's compelling catacombs that hold skulls and bones laid out in geometric
designs.
Cross the avenida to
Plaza Bolívar
and Congress, passing the ghoulish
Museo de la Inquisición
, where
only wax figures are tortured in the basement. Follow Ayacucho two blocks to the
Mercado Central
, with stalls
of goods from soccer jerseys to piles of tropical and Andean fruit. Take the pedestrian street Capón to
El Barrio
Chino
(Chinatown) for tea or lunch at a Cantonese eatery.
Iglesia de Santo Domingo
( 427-6793; cnr Camaná & Conde de Superunda; church free, convent S5;
9am-1pm & 5-7:30pm Mon-Sat)
One of Lima's most storied religious sites, the Iglesia de
Santo Domingo and its expansive
monastery
are built on land granted to the Dominican
Friar Vicente de Valverde, who accompanied Pizarro throughout the conquest and was in-
strumental in persuading him to execute the captured Inca Atahualpa. Originally completed
in the 16th century, this impressive pink church has been rebuilt and remodeled at various
points since. It is most renowned as the final resting place for three important Peruvian
saints: San Juan Macías, Santa Rosa de Lima and San Martín de Porres (the continent's
first black saint). The convent - a sprawling courtyard- studded complex lined with
CHURCH
