Take it easy, take it slow

A lovely lazy day yesterday. Changed hotels, walked along the cliffs above the sea, ate our way through a gourmet food tour. The pace will pick up significantly tomorrow as we fly to Iquitos and the Amazon; today will be leisurely; we'll meet our fellow travelers for lunch and tour the Miraflores neighborhood. Dinner on our own one final time.

But let's begin with yesterday morning--Here's the view from the top floor of our previous hotel, THe Dazzler, looking toward the sea:

 

You can see, among the tall buildings, typical flat box architecture ubiquitous to this place. Indeed, from the window of my new room is this house.

built on the roof of a building. These are not slums. 

These are buildings from our trip to Nazca Lines, the same flat-box architecture. I find them fascinating visually. They would be a good subject for studying cubism because the lines are simple, yet there are several layers. Anyway, enough musing about  these stacked up boxes!

After transferring to our new hotel, Jose Antonio Lima,

we walked the cliffs above the sea.

Several small parks line the area; this particular one in the Park of Love--

Lunch followed in yet another recommended cafe--La Paz, which means 'Peace,' with Picasso's dove as a logo. Fine food again! Following lunch we wandered to relax in our new digs until our evening Gourmet Tour!

Could it be??? A Pisco Sour?!!!

Three more restaurants followed--and more drinks! My favorite was pisco/passionfruit. The second restaurant, specializing in food from the Amazon, is known for its decorations, and our private room (There were twelve of us.) was decorated with large beads, creating a mosaic of jaguars and snakes.  The woman in the center is our lovely guide, Lourdes.

The bar upstairs, with a canopy of flowers!

The third restaurant was adjacent to an ancient pyramid, and the fourth, where we just strolled and had a lucema milkshake was in the Barranca, a rejuvenated neighborhood adjacent to Miraflores, where we're staying--until tomorrow when we fly to the Amazon!

From our companions on the Gourmet Tour, we heard about mosquitoes in the Amazon--LARGE! and at Machu Picchu--small and hard to see. We feel well-prepared with our pesticide infused clothes, our DEET and sunscreen. Plus we've begun taking anti-malarial drugs. I'm eager to meet our fellow travelers and begin the next stage of our grand adventure!

Just found a note slid under the door--the local guide arrives at 11:00, less than two hours from now! I'd better publish, post, and be on my way!