District Of Miraflores, Lima

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Want to shop for things Peruvian or eat your lunch or dinner with a spectacular view?

Larcomar is a shopping presinct designed to fit into the cliffs of Miraflores. From the street all you see is a park overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Take the stairs or escalator down and you are in the most intriguing shopping mall.

Larcomar provides a mixture of local and touristic shops and a selection of restaurants.

Take the link below but translate into English

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The Huaca Pucllana is a great adobe and clay pyramid which can be found in the centre of the Miraflores District. The pyramid has seven enormous platforms and was a ceremonial and administration centre between 200 - 700 AD.

The pyramid stands in a plaza or square and can be seen to have been divided into offeratory and administration sections. The site covers an area of 500 x 100 metres and is 22 metres in height. Excavation work still continues.

I found it intriguing the way the bricks were placed on their sides in order to take the impact of earthquakes.

Guided tours for small groups are available in Spanish and English and the tour takes about 45 minutes. These seem to be included in the entry but it is expected that you tip the guide. It is well worth the tip of a few S/.

Opening Times
Wed to Mon 09.00 am to 04.30 pm

Closed
1st of January, Good Friday, 1st of May, 28th of June and 25th of December

Entry fee
Adults: S/. 7, Univ. Students: S/. 3, Children: S/. 1, Retirees: S/. 1

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This park, dedicated to lovers was opened on Valentines Day 1993. The feature is a huge statue of two lovers kissing and is called of course "The Kiss"

Situated on the cliff tops of Miraflores the park overlooks the Pacific Ocean and has traditionally been a meeting place for couples.

The statue is surrounded by colourful and beautifully tiled walls. In my mind they are reminiscent of the art of Antonio Gaudi in Barcelona

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Parque Maria Reiche - this is a new park established in memory of Maria Reiche who discovered and worked on the Nasca Lines. Some of the most well known of the Nasca drawings are picked out in flowers and are also outined in lights at night.

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The Costa Verde or 'Green Coast' is the name given to Lima's west coast. It is here that Peru meets the Pacific Ocean. Lima is an oasis in an otherwise desert coast where it rarely rains - however it is often very hazy, especially in the morning.

Costa Verde is best seen in the district of Miraflores. There is a footpath that follows along the top of the cliffs which provides some great views over the ocean.

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I can recomend my friend's business SkyKitchen.
It's in Miraflores, Lima and offers a three to fours hour cooking class where you are teached three or four of the most emblematic Peruvian plates. There is a lunch class and a dinner class.

The special thing about SkyKitchen is, you not only watch the chef preparing something, but everybody prepares his own plates. Afterwards you eat your self-made dishes together with the other participants and the cook. All that on a rooftop terrace with a great view over Lima.

You get useful hints on where to buy and on how to substitute difficult-to-find products in your home country. You also get the receipts in written form.

More information on www.yurac.de

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There are pre-Inca ruins right in Miraflores. Huaca Pucllana is about 1500 years old, and it was a cultural and religious site for the Lima culture. In the Quechua language it means “Place of entertainment.” This was the smallest of about 40 temples the Limas built. They quit building about 700 A.D. when the Wari invaded. The Ichma were the last group here; the Wari were before them.

The pyramids and other buildings were constructed of mud bricks, and their “bookcase” construction style (layers of upright bricks with spaces between) was earthquake resistant. They had no kilns—the bricks were air-dried.

Huaca Pucllana is a step pyramid, and it is solid inside. Periodically, they wanted to make it taller without losing the flat area on top, so they started from the ground up, encasing the previous pyramid with another layer of mud bricks.

Archaeologists found offerings to the gods on the top—fruit, cotton, seashells, sharks, etc. The “Plaza of the Women’s Sacrifice” was named following the discovery of a group of women’s skeletons in a circle.

The site is open from 9-4 (closed Tuesdays) and is Free.

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In the centre of Parque Kennedy, next to the church, is an information booth of the Ayuntamiento de Miraflores (city council). (See picture). They have some very nice, and many not-touristic, excursions. They organise, for instance, an excursion to the presidential palace in the centre of Lima, (half day, take your passport!), a day-excursion to Chincha (the town, an old hacienda, lunch and a visit to a pisco factory), beach trips and much more. There is also a double-decked bus doing a one-hour tour of Miraflores and a morning tour to Pachacamac ruins. (The other excursions are in normal, comfortable buses). Their program changes every month so check with them when you're there. They also have a website, and look for Cultura y Turismo, click on turismo, visitas turisticas.
Very nice and cheap and very good. It helps when you speak some Spanish though. Nevertheless it is really worthwhile to go with them. Well organised, on-time and very friendly. Few foreign tourists take their excellent tours. Really recommended!
Info January 2009

Another one:
Brisas del Titicaca:
www.brisasdeltiticaca.com

Else, as Marissa suggested, take an evening city tour. Or go to Miraflores (if you're not already staying there) and walk around the Parque Central/Parque Kennedy-there's a local crafts market every evening from 5 pm and walk up the Av. Petit Thouars with its many shops.
Around said Parque many restaurants: El Parquetito, La Tiendecita Blanca, Cafe cafe, Haiti, La Tranquera (3 blocks from the Ovalo on Av. Pardo).
Larco Mar shopping center with many restaurants and view over the Pacific.
Etc etc
Info January 2009

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For $10-20 you can get a surf lesson in the ocean off Miraflores. The waves tend to be best North of the pier but the water can be spotty due to drainage from the city...brown foam in the water reminds me of Santa Monica or Venice CA after a storm.
As you can see there a plenty of guys out there on their boards and the waves looked kinda fun.
Check with your hostal or hotel for a shop that can arrange a lesson.