The trip to Bolivia - Peru - Crossing from Tacna to Arica

Arriving at Tacna Airport, my immediate goal was to get to the city and cross the border into Chile, so of course there were friendly taxi drivers that offered the ride for 20 soles for the 1km ride, its like 7 bucks, no big deal, but I prefer public transport for 1 sol.
Normally arriving at any airport I ask around if there is a bus and where I can catch it. Locals here are not very talkative and do´nt seem to care much for foreigners, the thing is that I felt like Captain Haddock from Tin Tin when he curses the locals for being oblivious to his questions.
I had to ask four times to find someone that would tell me that the bus stopped right where i was standing, and getting on the bus i saw a lady get on whom I had previously asked and supposedly did´nt know...and Spanish is my mother tongue, so I pity someone that doe´nt speak the language.

The bus ride was pretty interesting cuz it drove around the whole city before landing me at the bus terminal, 20 minutes in all. Over there I learned that there are some taxis that bring you across the border also for 20 soles, but this is a 10km ride.

You may wanna look for the biggest car cuz they jam as many people in them with luggage. I found a Lincoln continental so I travelled in style across to Arica.

The trip to Bolivia - Peru - From Lima to Tacna

After a week in Lima came the time to head back south so I flew down to Tacna, which is the border town between Peru and Chile.

Flying over the mostly arid Peruvian Coast, that I had previously driven in other trips.

After a  two hour flight I was ready to continue by land on the Chilean side of the pacific.

The Russian Ortodox Church in buenos Aires

I previously Mentined something about this Russian Ortodox church built in Parque Lezama in Buenos Aires.

The Church of the Holy Trinity is located at Avenida Brasil 315 at the border in between San Telmo and La Boca. Built at the beginning of the 20th century by Russian expats it still offers its religious services to the small Russian community in Buenos Aires.

Yesterday I had the chance to go to tour they offer once a month to see its interior which basically is the church that sits on the first floor of the building and is richly ornamented with Russian icons and rich religious art. These visits are held once a month and require previous sign up on line.

The trip to Bolivia - Peru - Downtown Lima, Barrio Chino

Bee not afraid, Lima has a Chinese hood too, right downtown stretching several blocks.

You´ll find the usual combination of bazaars, resto´s and miscellaneous oriental arts.

They also have done a good job at rescuing run down colonial houses and adding some Chinese decor.

And ofcourse you can also indulge in some Chinese delicacies while visiting.

The trip to Bolivia - Peru - Downtown Lima, Mercado Municipal Ramon Castilla

While visiting the historical Lima neighbourhood you might want to step into the local produce Market.

the Ramon Castilla Municipal Market is a wholesale produce market where you can find everything you need to make typical Peruvian food or even bring home some ingredients.

Not as seedy as other markets found in remote areas it has the right amount of colour and cleanliness.
Nevertheless you´ll find your share of non refrigerated meat to which north americans are not used to.

Where to eat meat in Buenos Aires - El Viejo Bagual, Las Canitas

El viejo Bagual is located In las cañitas a ritzy area of palermo where everithing is overpriced.

Now if you´re in the area and do´nt feel like paying double for a meal, than you can visit "El Viejo Bagual"in Ortega y Gasset 1767, they have daily specials and serve a good Parrilla for a decent price.

The trip to Bolivia - Peru - Downtown Lima, Colonial ornaments

I have mentioned in previous posts that Lima is known for its beautiful colonial balconies, which many say were more numerous in the past, but another feature of the city are the many ornaments found on doors and buildings

You could spend days taking photos of all the ornaments in downtown Lima.

These are just some samples taken in passing in the historical downtown area.

The trip to Bolivia - Peru - Downtown Lima, Beautiful colonial churces

As you can imagine Lima is very Colonial city, with many of its architectural jewels well preserved.

Something you might want to do in downtown Lima is visit its beautiful colonial churches, there a re about half a dozen that are very beautiful and will bring you back to the times when Peru was a very influential colony in the Americas.

You will certainly see the Cathedral at the main square and then you can make your way to Santo Domingo, San Francisco, San Pedro and Nuestra Señora de la Merced.