Northern Chile, Andean impressions. (page 8 of 10)

Next, we head to the Peruvian Literature House, which occupies the premises of an old train station.

The main attraction of the place is its magnificent Art Nouveau stained-glass windows.



When we step outside the building, we’re surprised to see that the gray has given way to blue.

How about lunch on a terrace?





After devouring our meal, we decide to swing by Plaza Mayor again.

What’s with all the police cars? Why are barriers being set up?

The Ecuadorian president is visiting his Peruvian counterpart—the area’s about to be locked down!



So, we take a little detour to reach the San Francisco Convent Museum.

The basilica is under construction, but the catacombs are open. Good thing, since that’s what drew us here!

We’re not the only ones interested, judging by the line at the entrance...

You can start the tour in half an hour—sound good?

Okay, let’s wait!

Thirty minutes later, we follow our guide through the convent’s rooms, and then comes the highlight: we descend into the catacombs.



Maybe not the best place to bring kids...

Soon, we’re back in the open air and sunshine.

We admire the beautiful ornate balconies decorating the facades while looking for a bus stop.







The return trip is slower than the way there—we’re experiencing the joys of rush-hour traffic...

The day ends there, as my partner isn’t feeling well—a lingering effect of the traveler’s diarrhea from a few days ago.

We also visited the catacombs of Lima… incredible, those thousands of bones, but I didn’t take any photos 😅

There’s only one spot where the guide allows photos. Everyone ends up with pretty much the same one. 😄

It’s impressive, but I find it less so than the Capela dos Ossos in Évora, Portugal.

For the nightmarish vibe, the mummies have a bigger impact on me... 🤪

I'm hesitating about visiting the city center on the last afternoon before heading to our hotel near the airport. Lima doesn’t really tempt me, but spending the whole afternoon at the hotel isn’t any better either.

Lima isn’t my favorite South American capital, but it’s not unpleasant to wander around there. You could also pick one of its museums for your afternoon.

The patient is feeling better in the morning.

We decide to visit the famous Gold Museum.

While it’s easy to get to the historic center, reaching the suburb where this museum is located turns out to be a bit more complicated...

Public transport is managed by numerous companies, each with its own payment system and its own buses.

Some routes are served by old minibuses where you pay the fare to the *cobrador*—an employee tasked with attracting customers and collecting payment—while others are served by slightly more modern buses where you pay the driver directly.

The route we need to take is served by this kind of bus. I find the number and the stop using Google Maps.



On the way there, the driver will shortchange us a bit by taking the coins without giving change and forgetting to issue tickets.

A scam worth 50 euro cents. Not the end of the world.

Anyway, it’s better to know the ticket price before boarding a bus and to have exact change!

We won’t get fooled on the way back...



The journey is long, very long...

And we’re not passing through the most interesting neighborhoods...

Phew, we’ve arrived!

A few hundred meters on foot, and we’re in front of the museum.

There’s hardly anyone here...

The place looks a bit neglected and houses both pre-Hispanic treasures and a motley collection of weaponry.

A real mishmash!

We choose to head straight to the rooms dedicated to pre-Columbian artifacts.

According to some studies, most of these objects are likely fakes...

Which probably explains the lack of visitors!

Fake antiques, maybe, but still made of gold.

The collection is kept in the basement, and we feel like we’re entering a bank vault.



Some display cases are empty. Loans? Proven fakes?

The enjoyment is still there, especially in front of the skulls that eerily remind us of certain panels from *The Temple of the Sun*.



We then wander through the rooms of the weapons collection.

Very extensive—too much so! It’s overwhelming!

We head back to the bus stop and Miraflores for a late lunch followed by a seaside stroll.



We watch the street vendors with their ice cream carts and souvenir sellers for a while, then linger at the paragliding takeoff area.





Unfortunately for the last customers, the wind picks up, and the sails have to be packed away!

We return to the hotel to pack our bags for tomorrow, then go out for dinner.

The restaurant we choose won’t be the best of this trip.

Very noisy, and the specialties we pick won’t really be to our taste...



Yet the place is packed, and the clientele is mostly local! Oh well...

Our trip is coming to an end.

We leave our suitcases at the hotel reception and head out for one last stroll along the Pacific.







A crêpe for lunch—a little taste of our return to France—and it’s time to head to the taxi we booked for the airport.

The flight was uneventful, and the drive home was smooth too.

So, what’s the verdict on this trip?

Traveling the roads of the Altiplano isn’t as straightforward as driving through South Africa, Namibia, or even Zambia.

While the tracks weren’t too tricky, the lack of gas stations, accommodations, restaurants, and the cold weather threw a few wrenches into our plans, making it harder to organize the trip.

The lack of up-to-date road conditions was another challenge.

But the biggest hurdle was the altitude...

If I were to do it again, I’d plan a different route—spending less time descending to sea level and prioritizing stays in villages at mid-altitudes (like San Pedro de Atacama, Pica, or Codpa) to only be above 3,500 meters during the day.

I’d spend one more night in San Pedro and one less in Lima.

The landscapes are breathtaking, and the sense of solitude is incredible.

The wallet took a hit, but you only live once! 😛

(You can find a version of this travel journal with more photos on my blog)

Thanks Agnès for this trip from the comfort of my couch. Might just be a destination where I’d love to drag my slippers around—I took good note of the altitude warnings.

I don’t remember ever staying this long above 4,000–4,500 meters.

Crossings above 4,000 were rare during my trip to Bolivia (Uyuni is below 4,000, as is Lake Titicaca), same in Peru. I only went above Mont Blanc’s altitude in Ecuador (5,100).

Personally, I handle it pretty well, but my partner doesn’t.

So this is definitely something to keep in mind so the trip doesn’t turn into an ordeal. 🤪

Thanks, Agnès, for making me dream of those desert landscapes. I know I won’t be going because of the altitude—I don’t want to risk getting sick again, so I’ll just follow along with the travel journals instead 😉

Yes, travel journals let you travel vicariously.

I recently realized I’ll never climb to the summit of Kilimanjaro! 🤪

The next two will be much more accessible to everyone. 🙂

Thanks, Agnès. You’ve jogged my memory—those high-altitude landscapes, the lagoons, the desert.

Adishatz :) Whis

A new destination, a new travel journal—check it out right here !

Thanks for this beautiful travel journal... Dreamy photos. Well done! We’re planning a trip from Lima heading to northern Chile and then crossing into Argentina. Lots of research ahead...

Nous préparons un séjour depuis Lima direction nord Chili and then crossing into Argentina.]

A great trip in the works! 🙂

Thanks Agnès for this travel journal and its beautiful landscapes (the cities didn’t wow me as much). A slightly belated thank-you (I made the mistake of trusting VF to send me a notification when there were new messages in the thread 😏)

Lima and Santiago really aren’t the most interesting cities in Latin America. 🤪

(Personally, I get the notifications but not always in my main inbox. Maybe check your spam folder?)

I get the feeling this travel journal is the only one that’s been blacklisted from my notifications 😅 ... but this last one still made it through 😊

Lima and Santiago aren’t actually the most interesting cities in Latin America.

Well, that’s debatable 😉... Generally, I’m not a big fan of cities... But in this case, I actually quite like these two. Lima’s historic center is really beautiful and pleasant, with its stunning central square, the Iglesia San Francisco, and the long pedestrian avenues. The Chinatown district has a unique character, with the ethnic blend between locals and Chinese immigrants.

As for Santiago, the Parque Metropolitano is lovely. But overall, I found fewer spots for strolling than in Lima.

What these two big cities have in common: they’re incredible culinary destinations. Restaurants in the markets (the ceviches served at Lima’s Mercado Central are "out-of-this-world amazing" 🙂), high-quality street food, etc.

On the flip side, in Latin America, I personally don’t like La Paz, Quito, or Buenos Aires much.

Of course, everyone has their own tastes 🙂.

I found that these two cities lacked a clear direction—they felt kind of thrown together. Their size also makes visiting them difficult.

I don’t have great memories of La Paz or Buenos Aires, but those were trips from a while back.

I really liked Quito, with its well-preserved historic center and proximity to the mountains. Public transport there is easy.

Brasília was a pleasant surprise.

Salvador de Bahia is also very interesting.

I was a little disappointed by Rio (the bay must have been stunning in its day).

But the best, in my opinion, are the medium or small towns with well-preserved old historic centers.😛