My first impression of Lima came hours after I arrived in the city.

To say I was unprepared for my trip would be an understatement. I am usually the sort of traveller that has a full itinerary planned before I get on the plane but, not this time.

I got on the plane to Lima knowing where I would stay for the next four nights, and that was about it. I’m ashamed to admit I had no idea that the Peruvian currency was Soles!. Found that out at the airport, trying to get a taxi and realising I did not have usable currency on me. (I have travelled enough to know you never change currency at the airport). Thank God for Uber. And Starling Bank. And my really lovely Uber driver, who allowed me to practice my beginner Spanish on him for the half hour drive to Miraflores.

We had exactly the kind of conversation you have when you do not know a language – what’s your name? how many siblings do you have? …why are you travelling alone, don’t you have any friends? He was a Limeno born and bred, and told me really useful information like the fact that I had come in winter and that I should expect mostly gray skies and a cold sea (at which point I thought to myself, ‘Really Chino, you couldn’t do the basic weather check before booking?). I’m pleased to say he was partially wrong.

I didn’t pay much attention to my surroundings, on the drive (too busy trying not to butcher Spanish) but arrived at Selina Miraflores to be greeted by a llama made out of old telephone cords and handsets! It was a nice, trendy place – you know the kind, with hanging plant pots, minimalist art and small chalkboard menus. Less nice and trendy was the 3pm check in, which gave me hours to kill.

I looked shattered, was wearing day old travel clothes, and had no eyebrows (I had made the rookie mistake of packing my make up bag in my checked luggage), but bravely set off on a walk. To be honest, I didn’t need makeup, just an eye pencil for some eyebrows! Those of you with thick, lush brows do not know how blessed you are.

Back to my first impressions of Lima – busy, bustling and green. It is not a particularly charming city. It comes across as a very practical one, at least Miraflores (a municipality in Lima) did – all you need is at your door step. The architecture was uninspiring, city blocks with high rise buildings, the ground floors of which alternated between bodegas, cafes/restaurants, clothing shops and cambios (money exchange).

Until I stumbled upon the Malecon de Milaflores, a stunning coastal, clifftop boardwalk high above the Pacific Ocean. It stretches 2 miles and is interspersed with lovely parks along it. The most famous is the ‘Parque del Amor’, with a huge statue of a couple in an embrace, ‘El beso’ (the kiss). It was built in 1993, to celebrate ‘love’ and is surrounded by mosaic walls inscripted with romantic quotes. The mosaic wall reminded me of Gaudi’s Parc Guell in Barcelona.

And the views…

The views from the Malecon were breathtaking.

There was the singular view of the Pacific Ocean, in its vastness, roiling waves crashing against the beach and pier. There was the view that captured the juxtaposition of this untamed body of water, against the high rise condos of Lima and lush greenery of parks lined with tropical plants and trees. And there was the dramatic weather change, in which one minute you are basking in sunshine and the next the fog rolls in, everything is covered in a thick haze and you can barely see in front of you.

I took this all in, as I stood there, an oasis of calm in the hubbub of the city.

I had found my happy place.

Now I knew my holiday had begun.

Interesting Fact about Lima…Did you know?

Lima is a desert climate. It gets virtually no rainfall during the year, less than 20mm of rainfall. Despite this, it has numerous parks and gardens and is very green. This is attributed to natural irrigation when water melts from the mountains, and also the inexhaustible efforts of park workers who water these sites daily.