A good night’s sleep for both of us in a beautiful hotel did us wonders. We woke before our alarm, showered and headed down for breakfast. They had a delicious buffet plus a menu from which to order. Coffee was the first order of business as the tiny contraption in the room with one little coffee pod did not measure up for us.

We didn’t have to meet the group until 1100 so we had some spare time. In speaking with Lizann and Chris, we learned that she was getting a bit of a cold and was looking for meds. So were we as a preventative. In speaking with the concierge we determined there was a large grocery store a few blocks away that ought to have a pharmacy section. Chris joined us for the walk there, where we found a humongous store with everything except pharmacy items we needed. Fortunately, we had also learned that two small pharmacies could be found around the corner from there. We were in luck! After pantomiming my symptoms and using google translate we were soon in business! Made for a good excuse for a lovely morning walk in a very safe neighborhood.

Soon the bus was ready and Ara, our main guide was directing us on board. We were driven through terrible traffic, where I’m happy I was an oblivious passenger. They broke us into two groups, each with a separate local guide. We followed Alicia, who we referred to as the “heart” of the group . They dropped us off in the historic district where we began by going to the Saint Francis Convent/Monastery. The building was old and rather lovely but we were allowed no photos. We did tour the catacombs with tunnel after tunnel and bones upon bones of former monks and other religious people. Creepy but not nearly as eerie as the Capuchin Crypts we visited in Rome.

We then walked along to the central square of the historic district with ornate, beautiful buildings everywhere, including several nice fountains.

We were eventually back on the bus and driven to a gorgeous museum locale for lunch. It was set in a flower laden garden with a lovely breeze wafting through the al fresco dining area. Considering that Lima gets about 2”/year of rain it’s amazing that there’s as many flowering trees and plants that there are.

In driving back to the hotel we passed what our guides referred to as the Peruvian pyramids. It’s currently an archaeological site where they are excavating ruins from a pre-Incan civilization.

Back in our room we sorted our stuff out as we are able to leave extra things here until our return at the end of the week. No need to haul Galapagos specific items to the interior of Peru.

Drinks and dinner with some of our fellow travelers rounded out the day. We are only 28 during this portion so it’s becoming easier to recall who’s who.