2009 VOYAGES UPDATES

UPDATE#33 08/30 thru 08/31

Howdy Everybody,

The adventures of 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009 through 08/29/09 have been published on the website. We continue with the latest edition.

UPDATE 2009 #33 08/30/09 thru 08/31/09

At last update, we were enjoying the wonderful city of Lima, Peru.

08/30/09 SUNDAY LIMA, PERU

Judy and I are advocates and fans of the city of Lima. There are lots of things to see and do in this large metropolitan area. When we see trip reports that suggest avoiding Lima, we must disagree. Like all big cities, Lima has its negative aspects, however, our experiences here have convinced us that the positives far outweigh any downside. We have visited Lima many times now and we hope that you will find and see the enjoyment and adventure that we have found here.

Today is the principal day for the observance of the Feast of Santa Rosa de Lima. As the patron saint of Lima, the holiday is of prime importance to Limeños and Peruanos. From the rooftop guest café at the Hostal San Francisco, we had a prime viewpoint from which to observe a flood of red-shirted marathoners rush past commencing their especially patriotic, holiday race.

Under the typically gray skies of Lima, seemingly thousands of colorful runners provided an awesome contrast.

Around the corner at the Monastery San Francisco, indigenous natives were here to reverently offer their prayers to Santa Rosa. The colorful style of their “trajes” (traditional dress) is one of our favorite aspects of Peru. In modern times, this level of finery is reserved for special occasions.

A parade and performance by the PNP National Band encircled the Plaza de Armas.

The Policai Nacional Del Peru (PNP) is the national police force of Peru. Its jurisdiction covers the nation's land, sea, and air territories. Formed from the combining merger of the Investigative Police, the Civil Guard, and the Republican Guard in 1988, it is now one of the largest police forces in Latin America. Its mission is to preserve domestic order, public order, and to provide national security by enforcing the laws protecting the people of Peru. Filling the perimeter of the main Plaza, the assembly of PNP forces, in dress uniform, was an impressive display of their importance.

The PNP color guards, many in white spats, stood proudly at attention while awaiting the arrival of high-level officials and government dignitaries.

Colorful ground displays were painstakingly made by hand from flower petals and tinted wood chips.

The Chaplain division of the PNP led some of the honors at the National Cathedral.

Along many of the neighboring streets, groups artfully prepared their tributes to the holiday and the PNP. Later, the marching parade would trample their efforts into dust.

The historic streets were the walkways of celebrants strolling between various churches, cathedrals, and holiday points of interest.

As patron saint of the PNP and of the city, the devout followers reverently carry the statue of Santa Rosa de Lima.

The main parade was forming along a major thoroughfare in the city proper. The entire area was closed to vehicle traffic.

A huge number of parade participants were dressed in traditional and semi-traditional variations of folkloric outfits.

Since the Amazon Jungle represents much of Peru, these revelers chose to portray the early Amazonian natives.

Within the PNP, there are many divisions. On this parade float, the display represented the role of their Highway Patrol.

Another colorful parade float represented the role of the “Transito”, or traffic division. As it is on the city’s streets everyday, the traffic police stands have roof covers advertising the Peruvians’ favorite soft drink, Inca Cola.

A division of mounted police proudly rode their amazing steeds in the parade. Peru boasts a unique breed of horse, the Peruvian Paso, which is often regarded as the smoothest gaited mount in the world. These magnificent horses are the result of careful, selective breeding from the original stock brought here by the Spanish Conquistadores. Horses are regarded as an important part of the nation’s heritage.

Massive throngs of celebrants gathered by the Church of Santa Rosa de Lima as her statue was carried along Tacna Avenue.

As much of the festivities were winding down in the city center, we found a bus to take us to one of the city’s largest exposition parks (Parque Exposición). Food, drinks, and music were attracting many holiday goers.

Not mentioned yet in most guidebooks, we learned of a wonderful attraction called, Circuito Mágico del Aguas. It has been open for only two years and the present hours of operation are Wednesdays through Sundays from 4pm to 10pm. It is truly a “magical” place with magnificent fountains accompanied by music and lighting.

The Magic Water Circuit, located in the reconstructed Reserve Park, is one of the “do not miss” highlights of the city. Established with a recent Guinness Record, the attraction currently boasts the distinct honor for the largest fountain complex in the world. The unique park offers thirteen impressive fountains that combine massive water movement, lights, sounds and modern laser images. One favorite is the Children's Fountain (Fuente de los Niños).

Each fountain is remarkably different and intriguing. Another popular favorite is the Tunnel Fountain of Surprises (Fuente Túnel de las Sorpresas)…

The Fantasia Fountain (Fuente de la Fantasia), site of a scheduled, evening laser, light, and picture show, is almost 400 feet in length and contains powerful jets that seemingly dance to synchronized to music.

The park is so large that it required a special tunnel to be built under the main road to connect the two sections of fountain displays.

As evening falls, the colorful lights begin to illuminate the various fountains in magical fashion.

The largest fountain in the Park of the Reserve, named "Magic Fountain" (Fuente Mágica) contains a central jet which blasts water to a height of over 260 feet.

Two nightly shows combine wonderful music, sequenced arrays, alternating lights, projected images, and pulsating laser rays to fascinate the crowds of onlookers. Simply put, it was magnificent!

For dinner, we chose a place in the central historic district called, Fanny’s Restaurant. The Chicken Breast Cutlet (Pollo Milanesa) was delicious. Before heading back to our room, we picked up some slices of cake and coffee from the Metro Supermarket for us to enjoy up at the hostal’s rooftop, guest café.

08/31/09 MONDAY LIMA, PERU to FT. LAUDERDALE, FL, USA

We were scheduled for the late-night flight leaving Peru for Florida in the United States of America. We decided on a leisurely day of sightseeing and shopping around the city’s historic district. Many foreign arrivals choose the Miraflores district when they visit Lima. The restaurants, bars, and hotel accommodations may be a bit more upscale, however, for us, the real beauty of this city is found in its historic significance and magnificent architecture around the beautifully restored historical area.

The Archbishop’s Palace, adjacent to the National Cathedral, boasts some of the finest wooden balconies in the Americas.

Judy was delighted to observe a group of Limeño women actively engaged in their bead and jewelry-making craft…

With clear, warm, blue skies, we casually strolled around the Main Plaza and Presidential Palace area.

Once again, we were very pleased with the economical accommodations at the Hostal San Francisco. Every one of the staff has been very friendly and helpful. We look forward to our next visit. We rested, took our showers, and completed our final packing for the trip back home. We had hoped that Senor Juan could take us to the airport, but he was already booked for the evening. He kindly set us up with a colleague. He called him his “hermano” (brother) and told us that he served in the PNP during the day. He was punctual at 8pm for the 30-minute jaunt, in very light traffic, headed to the airport. There was hardly any line yet for the Spirit Airlines flight scheduled to depart at 10:57pm. After check-in, departing passengers must proceed to the separate area for payment of the departure taxes, which came to $31 US each and were payable in either dollars or soles. Everything, such as food, souvenirs, and drinks, were ridiculously expensive at the airport kiosks. Security was carefully conducted, however, they did confiscate a pair of small scissors that I used to trim my beard and mustache. Who knows why, but we have carried them many times on previous flights. Another security checkpoint at the gate confiscated all the drink containers that passengers had just bought inside the security area. My guess is that this will result in greater drink sales aboard the Spirit flight, but who knows… Seated in the very last row, our flight departed at 11:40 pm. As we waved goodbye to Peru, we were already looking forward to our next exciting adventures, whatever and wherever they may be…

CONTINUING UPDATES ARE IN PROGRESS…

WATCH FOR THEM, COMING SOON…

POST SCRIPT:

We sincerely hope that you will review the previous years of compilations to give context to the current editions. Please let us know if you have any special suggestions and thoughts.

REMEMBER: The website is now fully active and you can visit it at any time. You can also review any of the previous logs from the years 2006, 2007, or 2008 and learn more about the crew and their many adventures. Enjoy.

ATTENTION: SPECIAL NOTE:

You may contact us via email anytime.

Thanks for allowing us to share our life and adventures with you.

Lotsa Luv,

Fred Reed and Judy Law

AMARSE

MT40

"AMARSE" is pronounced "AM-ARE-SAY".

Our website is: www.amarse.net