This is my last post for the year 2025, but I don't want to make it like a look back post. There are plenty of them on that topic and I don't see a reason to do it. Instead I will do it just like the way it is for me. I spent the last few days of this year in Lima, Peru. So it will be a travel post.
First of all, my knowledge of Peru is limited. I have never been there before this trip. Even on this trip, I basically stayed at Lima for business purposes, and had no time to venture outside of town. So Cusco, Machu Pichu etc will have to wait. I stayed at Miraflores which is a fine place, and able to do several walks around The Malecón de Miraflores, which is perhaps one of the most popular tourist area of Lima. Here you can see the sun setting in the Pacific for the year at the Chinese Garden area.
There is a strong surfing scene down below as well which can't be visible on this image due to the shadows, but you can see linear and evenly spaced regular surf down below. It is not my thing, and I didn't have any time to get into the water, so I can't tell you how's the water.
However, I can comment on the local vibe though and it is fit and energetic in this area of the town. People are out and about very late. They are walking and running all over. I am happy to see that people walk a lot and using public transport.
This is the same area during regular daylight looking south. It is often not easy to get clear skies in Lima, I am told. It is often cloudy, but it rarely rains here:), the irony. I learned that the city receives almost no rainfall (averaging only about 9mm per year), its water supply is almost entirely dependent on runoff from the Andes Mountains. The primary water source for Lima is the Rímac River, which provides approximately 80% of the city's surface water.
The other thing that I enjoyed a lot during my few days at Lima is the 'cafe culture'. If you are a business traveler, then you know one of the most uncomfortable thing is to go to lunch and/or dinner on your own, if you have a free day. Yes, business lunches and dinners are fine, trust me, they get old soon enough :) So you typically crave to have a meal without the business conversations. The trouble is the iconic "table for one" concept in the US :) I won't explain it more for people who are not used to it, as it is a sad expressions in the US, not really is lots of other part of the world.
That cafe above is Rutina, and there is nothing routine about it. It is a charming and friendly place with excellent flat white and chicken quesadilla.
In Lima, the cafe culture works great in numerous charming cafes, where there are a lot of locals who go there not just for a coffee, but also for a meal. That swells I think. I had tried I think at least four different cafes in four days, which is a lot for me.
A simple egg-avocado-egg sandwich with a glass of orange juice can be so tasty that I had no idea at Piola cafe above.
Toast and scrambled eggs at DUAL miraflores with Flat White is just as good. It is clear that I didn't have a bad meal at Lima, and notice that I am largely skipping ceviche and sea food dinners, as most people always talk about them, and yes, they are great! But I like the cafe culture better.
PS: I just wrote my 157th post for the year! My second most active year in the Hive blockchain so far!
