LIMA:GENERAL INFORMATION

Lima is the capital of Peru. It is located in the central coast of the country, and it is the site of the main powers of the state. Besides, it is the financial and administrative centre.

Lima, was considered to be the most beautiful colonial settlement in the region. Founded in 1535 by the conquistador Francisco Pizarro, the Spanish Crown's "City of Kings" quickly became the center of power and trade for the entire American viceregency that stretched from Quito to Santiago. Lima was home to some of the Americas' finest baroque and Renaissance churches, palaces, and mansions, as well as the continent's first university, founded in 1551. For 2 centuries, the capital also served as the headquarters of the Spanish Inquisition.
When Spain created a rival viceregency in Río de la Plata, which subsequently grew rich from silver mines, Lima quickly fell into decline. An earthquake decimated the city in 1746, leaving more than 4,000 dead and few buildings standing. Today the capital of Peru is a sprawling, chaotic, and mostly unlovely metropolis, and many visitors dart through it as fast as possible -- if not bypass it altogether. Peru's blistering poverty is more apparent here than perhaps anywhere else: Depressing shantytowns called pueblos jóvenes lacerate the outer rings of the city. The despair of a large segment of the capital's largely migrant and mestizo population contrasts uncomfortably with the ritzy apartment and office buildings in the residential suburbs. And as if that weren't enough, for most of the year, an unrelenting gray cloud called the garúa hangs heavily overhead, obscuring the coastline and dulling the city's appearance. Although it virtually never rains in Lima, the sun comes out only from December to April; the rest of the time, Lima makes London look like Lisbon. Lima has calmed down a bit since the chaotic 1980s and 1990s, when the city was the scene of carjackings, kidnappings, embassy takeovers, and strong-arm political maneuvers. But the city still feels schizophrenic; outer suburbs such as Barranco are relatively gentle oases, worlds apart from the congestion and grime of the rest of the city. Although middle-class Limeños from residential barrios are again venturing downtown along with foreign visitors, there are still plenty of locals who consider central Lima off-limits.

Lima is the main gateway to Peru, a major city bustling with living history and movement. It is an ethnic melting pot, featuring pre-Hispanic, colonial and modern elements. The metropolis is also surrounded by every aspect of Nature: the sea, islands, mountains, desert and plantlife. Its various quarters feature an active nightlife and well-endowed cultural scene, as well as plentiful public transport and non-stop activities, a city of more than 8 million souls.

It sits in the riverbanks of the Rímac River, at 154 metres above sea level, with the Andean Cordillera to the East.
It limits with the Ancash and Huánuco Regions to the North, Pasco and Junín to the East, Ica and Huancavelica to the South, and the Pacific Ocean to the West.

Population: 6732000 inhabitants.

Surface: 334796.86 square kilometres.

Provinces: 10: Barranca, Cajatambo, Canta, Cañete, Huaral, Huarochirí, Huaura, Lima, Oyón and Yauyos.

Districts: 47 in the Large Lima and 124 in the remaining 9 provinces

Minimum altitude: 3 metres above sea level (at Ancón).

Maximum altitude: 4278 metres above sea level (at Tanta )

Altitude : 154 meters ( 505 feet ) above sea level

Date of its foundation as a department: The 4th of August of 1821

Language: The official language in Peru is Spanish. In some high areas of Lima, Quechua, the ancient language of the country is spoken.

Agricultural production: Cotton, corn, potato, barley, sweet potato, grapevine, fruit trees and vegetables on the coast; potato, corn, barley, wheat, bean, and others in the sierra.

Livestock production: Bovine, porcine, equine and goats in the coast; ovine, cameloids and goats in the sierra. It is the first department in the production of poultry (chickens turkeys and ducks).

Industrial production: The Large Lima is the most industrialised city of the country.

HISTORY

More than 400 years ago, the Spanish conqueror ("conquistador") Francisco Pizarro named Lima the City of the Kings ("Ciudad de los Reyes"). Nowadays, that same city, which rose from the lands of the native chief Taulischusco, is a metropolis of over 7 million people who proudly preserve the colonial convents and mansions which are symbols of their ancient and noble traditions.
Lima, capital of Peru, founded on January 18, 1535, is a modern city which, while constantly expanding, has also managed to maintain the elegance of its Historic Center. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Center, due to the large number of artistic monuments found there, Historic Lima is an enchanting haven of a period long gone.
Lima's Cathedral, which City Fathers began building on the very day of the city's foundation; the Church and Convent of San Francisco, due to its harmony of volume and color, considered by some as the greatest architectural complex of its kind in Latin America, and Santo Domingo, with its beautiful main cloister, are but a few of the invaluable treasures which provide evidence of Lima's deep religious faith.
Similarly, mansions such as the House of Aliaga ("Casa Aliaga"), built upon the private temple of the chief Taulichusco; the House of Goyeneche or Rada ("Casa Goyeneche or Rada"), with its obvious French influences; and the Torre Tagle Palace ("Palacio de Torre Tagle"), the most beautiful of Lima's early 18th century mansions, all symbolize the splendor and ostentation of the Viceregal era.
Built on the banks of the River Rimac, and caressed by the waters of the Pacific Ocean, the city of Lima also preserves traces of its pre-Hispanic period; most notably the great sanctuary of Pachacamac, where a god of the same name was worshipped, and the 'huaca' Pucllana, in the district of Miraflores, an important administrative center of the Lima culture (400 AC).
Lima's name comes from the 'aymara' word lima-limac or limac-huayta, the name of a yellow flower; or from the quechua ´rimac´ meaning 'speaker'. Because of these links with the pre-Hispanic past, its colonial past and the strong religious faith it gave it; its modern outlook and its festive nature, which bathes its eternally gray sky in color, Lima, will always be the City of the Kings.

LANGUAGE

The official language in Peru is Spanish. In some high areas of Lima, Quechua, the ancient language of the country is spoken.

CLIMATE

Average temperature in summer (mid December to mid March) is around 25º - 28º C. Summer is the best time to enjoy Lima's many beautiful beaches, such as those along the Costa Verde, about 15 minutes from Lima Historical Center, or along the Pan-American highway within 30 to 45 minutes south of Lima.
Winter days are grey, overcast and quite humid, and average temperatures are between 12 to 15º.
Lima, with a mild climate of neither heavy rain nor intense cold, can be visited quite easily at any time of the year.

The coastal zone is warm during the Southern hemisphere's summer; and temperate with a lot of humidity and scarce pluvial precipitations in the wintertime.
The Sierra zone in the surroundings of Lima is mild, cold or glacial according to the altitude.

These characteristics are determined by the presence of the cold Humboldt Current, running along the Peruvian coast line. It defines the almost absolute lack of rains, the high levels of humidity which reach 98% highs, and the mild temperatures that are typical of the central coast.

Seasons

Lima and the Peruvian coast offer the four customary seasons.
The summer from January to March
The fall from April to June;
The winter from July to September
The spring from October to December. But they are not well defined.

The weather conditions imposed by the Humboldt Current, are responsible for the existence of two seasons only along the year, in practical terms. A wintertime lasting from May to November and a summer season from December to March. They sustain average temperatures ranging between 18° and 22° Celsius, though there are winters in which the thermometer falls down to 12° or 15° C, and summers in which they reach highs of 28° and 30° C.

If you are planning to visit Lima during the winter, it is advisable to place some sweater or coat in your suitcase, but if you will be arriving in summer, bring light articles of clothing will be the best choice.

Rains in Lima are non existent. During the months from June to August its streets dampen a drizzle extremely fine and thin, called garúa in Spanish. Besides, the presence of clouds and mists which moisturise the hills close to the Pacific Ocean, is usual during the winter.

The drizzle, however, is only present in a 50 kilometer long radius around Lima. In the rest of the coast the weather is of a rather desert type. It never rains and it is hot all year round.

Annual average temperatures

Average temperatures of the day in Lima:
• January to March: 21 - 29 °C (70 - 84 °F).
• April to June: 17 - 27 °C (63 - 81 °F).
• July to September: 15 - 19 °C (59 - 66 °F).
• October to December: 16 - 24 °C (61 - 75 °F).

The annual average temperature is of 18.2° C (64.76° F). In the summer it climbs up to 28° C (82.4° F), and in the winter it drops down to 13° C (55.4° F). The season with the highest humidity is from June to September.

PERUVIAN CUISINE

Lima's menus offer a wide variety of dishes from all parts of the world as well as the more select dishes of Peruvian cuisine, amongst the best in the world.
Whoever comes to Lima cannot leave without trying its "criollo" (traditional) food; particularly its many dishes based on fish and shellfish, which magnificently combine flavors and aromas beyond imagining. Ceviche, raw fish marinated in lemon juice and seasoned with chili, is the most representative of all Peruvian seafood dishes. Other favorites are the "jalea" (deep fried mixed fish and shellfish) and "tiradito", (strips of fish marinated in lemon juice, similar to ceviche) and "coctel de camarones" (shrimp cocktail).
Other jewels of "criollo" food are lomo saltado (stir fried pork and vegetables), carapulcra (a type of potato and meat stew), arroz con pato (duck cooked with rice), cau cau (tripe and vegetable stew) and anticuchos (barbecued pieces of meat, chicken or fish on a skewer). Desserts such as arroz con leche (rice pudding), mazamorra morada (a purple coloured jelly), suspiros a la limeña (a sticky sweet classic pudding), picarones (deep friend pumpkin and sweet potato doughnuts eaten dipped in sugar cane syrup) and turrón de Doña Pepa (a multi coloured cake). All these dishes are delicious enough to satisfy even the most demanding of tastes.
In Lima you will find excellent restaurants specializing in Chinese food; better known in Peru as 'chifas'. Chinese cuisine, which reached the City of the Kings with the first Asians who came to work in the haciendas close to the capital during the last century, has mixed in many cases with Peruvian cuisine, to create unique dishes such as Arroz Chaufa (stir fried rice).
One can also enjoy French, Italian, Japanese, Arab, and Argentine cuisine as well as a wide variety of international dishes at excellent restaurants within the 3 to 5-star category.

LIMA NIGHT LIFE

Lima nights had one name: Barranco, a traditional district with an old-fashioned atmosphere full of romance, and gathering point for Lima's bohemians.
In this normally quiet part of the city, at nightfall that peace vanishes: Barranco changes with the moon. Hundreds of people take the discos, bars, restaurants, pubs, casinos and pinball halls as a storm. Too much noise and people. Not recommended at these days.
The night however is not just Barranco's, it can also be enjoyed in many other districts all over Lima, such as San Isidro and Miraflores where there are a great variety of options. As well as casinos, discos, bars, and pubs there are Peñas Criollas (live Afroperuvian music and dancing) where the 'jarana' (party) is at the rhythm of the guitar and the "cajón" (traditional percussion box), with waltzes and polkas, in the style of traditional Lima.