Do you think that visiting Machu Picchu is the only thing there is to do in Peru?
I'm here to show you that you're wrong.
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Lima, the capital and largest city, also most likely where you will arrive,
is a vibrant city with a lot of history and fun.
I'm spending the next few days here in Lima.
And in the next videos, I'll introduce you to the city
and show how you can also have a good time here.
Cheers!
[laughs]
That is just Gordon being Gordon.
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The fastest way to go from Miraflores to the
historic center is via the rapid transport bus system,
as there are dedicated lanes
Good morning from the most emblematic square in Lima.
This is Plaza Mayor or Plaza de Armas
and it's the birthplace of the city.
Later I'll explain a little bit more about this past
because, first, I want to show you what's here.
I bet you're curious.
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You can spend the whole day here in the city center
and most likely won't see it all.
So many things to do in Lima
and so many things to do in the city center.
So what are all these buildings here?
The most important one is probably that.
That's the Government Palace.
It's office and the residence of the President of Peru
like Peru's White House.
Next, the City Hall, and look at how beautiful.
I love this building.
Then there are some historically important buildings here
like Palacio de la Unión which hosts Club de la Unión.
It's an association like Rotary Club, Lions Club.
And on this other side here, you'll find the religious constructions.
Cathedral of Lima.
And over there, the Archbishop's Palace.
The entire historic center of Lima is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
This is what the symbol right here represents.
This black and white symbol here.
And you see this all over.
What else calls attention here?
Look around. Look at this.
The color, right?
This yellow, gold color, and there's a reason for that.
It represents luxury, gold.
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Guide: This place is very easy to understand, yeah?
All what you see, yellow,
yellow building, yellow, yellow, yellow.
Also that palace of the president over there, yeah,
the one with the black on top, that's like the White House.
And also next to the Cathedral,
there is a small building on the left-hand side.
All these buildings have been designed by Ricardo de Jaxa Malachowski
between 1910 and 1940.
Very easy to understand.
Mr. Malachowski who was a Polish Peruvian designed these.
The yellow ones are called new colonial style
and for Presidential palace and the Archbishop's Palace
is called Neo-Baroque style, yes?
Oh, the music is starting. It's for the change of the guards.
Look at everyone on the square going that way.
[trumpet playing]
Unfortunately, this is the closest you can get.
Cannot get very close to the fence
to take pictures without the fence in the middle!
Guards are right there on the sidewalks.
So you can't go to the sidewalk.
When you come here to Plaza Mayor, try to be here at noon.
This is when the biggest ceremony of the change of the guard takes place.
The change of the guard also happens at 9:00 in the morning
and at 3:00 p.m.,
but in a more subtle way, not with music and everything.
This is only at noon, as far as I've been told.
Also, at 6:00 in the morning, they raise the flag up there.
And at 6:00 p.m., they take it down.
This every day.
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Guide: Lima is a mispronunciation of Rimac.
And Rimac is the name of the river and means noisy.
Very noisy river in Quechua language, the language of the Incas.
Somewhere over there above the gravity, you can see like a yellow line,
like a yellow layer, yeah?
That is how high the river reaches during the rainy season on the Andes.
Keep in mind, in Lima, it never rains.
Yes?
-Is it that way, the U.S.? -Yes.
-Yes? -Yes.
-Ready to go back home or no? -Alaska.
-No, not yet. [chuckles]
-Alaska. -Not yet.
I could use at the cold weather.
-It's hot. -It is so hot.
-It's crazy it doesn't rain here. -Yeah.
This is the Pan-American Highway.
If you go straight through here, you'll arrive at Alaska.
And if you go to the other way over there, you'll arrive at Patagonia.
The smallest church in the world
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Why you wanted to pass in front of my image?
[laughs]
That is the wall of Lima.
-Right. -Yeah, that is the wall of Lima
which was originally 1,000 meters by 800 meters.
That's Francisco Pizarro.
right here in Lima City.
Please, can I have the green noodles?
-With chicken? - Yes
Here in the historic district, there are lots of restaurants
offering executive lunches, special menu just for lunch,
normally between 12:00 noon and 4:00 p.m.
And prices are like a fraction of the cost of the rest of the menu
and it always includes a drink, and sometimes a dessert as well.
Gordon is going to try Inca Kola for the first time.
I already know. I tried it before.
It is good. So, let's see what he thinks.
[crowd chattering]
-Ta-na-Na-nan.
-It tastes like a cream soda.
-Cream soda? -Yeah.
For me, it's like tutti frutti, you know, gum...
-Gum, yeah. -Yeah.
-It's more of a cream soda to me.
It's good.
-I like it.
It reminds me of childhood.
-Ooh. -Wow.
Thanks!
Wow, this is gigantic.
You should see your face looking at this. [laughs]
The size of this meal is unbelievable.
For four bucks.
-Yes, all this. -For US$ 4.
Including the drink.
Have you ever seen so much rice on a plate?
It's gigantic.
And it's really good.
[music]
Excuse me, do you know what's this?
Woman: This dance is called tunantada
-And is this a religious group?
-No, it's a dance group, folkloric dance
- Ah, folkloric dance
- Yes. - How beautiful
- From Valle del Mantaro - Oh, how beautiful!
-Thank you so much. -Sure
[music]
It's a folkloric group from the interior of Peru.
We were here at the square and all of a sudden they just appeared.
How nice.
[crowd cheering]
Lima was founded on this square
and the independence also happened here.
Now, to dig a little deeper into the history of Lima
and for me to explain a little bit more about the city center,
you have to learn about one person
who is very important in the history of Peru,
Francisco Pizarro.
He was a Spanish conquistador
and he led the expedition that conquered the Incan Empire.
Then, immediately he founded Lima in 1535
and built that palace over there.
It didn't look quite like that back then. That's the Government Palace.
And listen to this.
Some of Pizarro's descendants are still alive.
They still live here in Lima.
They are in the 16th generation.
Amazing.
They still live here in the historic center of Lima
next to the Government Palace, right here,
and that's their house.
It's called House of Aliaga.
It is possible to visit.
It's not like a museum that you just arrive and go,
people still live there, so you need to go with a guide
and you need to preschedule your visit.
It is funny that they have this beautiful door,
and then someone cut another door inside this door.
-Man: House of Aliaga? -Renata: House of Aliaga, yes.
-But you need a guide, right?
-No, there's a guide inside
-Gordon: You don't need a guide?
-Renata: He said that there's a guide over there inside
that you just knock and go. -Oh, yeah?
That was so nice, a cop just stopped here to talk to us,
and told us we just need to knock on the door and go.
So, it's not that difficult.
If you want to come here, now you know.
And one more thing about Francisco Pizarro.
He's buried right here inside the cathedral.
-Renata: Hello, good afternoon.
-Woman: This is the entrance to the Cathedral museum. For a visit you must buy a ticket
We have one just for this museum, which is 10 soles per person
It includes the Cathedral, Pizarro's tomb, the crypts and the religious art museum
-Uh-hmm. -And if you wish to visit the corner museum, which was
the house of the archbishops, the Archbishop's Palace
It's 30 soles per person for the entire architectural ensemble
Man: Number one for this is over there,
Francisco Pizarro's tomb.
You see the cathedral. Inside to the left, the museum.
Pictures inside, but without flash.
-Renata: Okay. -Man: Thank you, you begin there
-Welcome. -Thank you.
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Pizarro is buried right here.
And on this side, there's a replica of his skeleton.
Not the real one, just a replica because he's really buried over there.
His head was found in this box right here.
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The cathedral was built between 1535-1649
Let me show you something very interesting
right underneath the main altar.
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All these here are kids below seven
and they are right below the main altar.
The altar is up there.
And the reason for this location is because it's closest to God.
And they believed back then that kids dying this young,
they would become angels.
This is a little challenging.
How they used to bury between the 17th and 19th centuries.
Oh, there's a huge hole here.
Very deep.
They probably buried a lot of people here.
It's hard to get in here. It's very tight.
This is very impressive.
[music]
A letter from Pope Francis.
Look at his signature, how tiny.
I have to stand next with these books for you to have an idea of the size.
Look at this.
There are lots of chapels like this
on both sides of the cathedral.
The cathedral is famous for having Pizarro's tomb,
but there's way more here.
10 soles - really worth a visit.
Peru is mostly a Catholic country
and churches here definitely deserve a visit.
Let's go inside another one. Santo Domingo.
Free entrance to the church, 10 soles to visit the museum
Here you can see the remains of 3 Peruvian saints:
San Juan, Santa Rosa and San Martin
A mass has just started here, so I cannot show you inside anymore.
But there's something else very interesting that I'd like to share.
This is where the first hospital in Lima was created.
Exactly because those three Saints that we saw inside,
they would take care of people that were normally ignored by society.
Like people with leprosy or other diseases like this,
that didn't have a cure at the time.
Also, this is where they founded the first university in Lima.
Actually, the oldest and the longest continuously
operating university in the Americas, since 1551
The balconies here in Lima also say a lot about the society.
Do you see these balconies right here, totally closed?
There, too.
I can't tell for sure but these have all the characteristics
of being from the colonial period because they're all closed off
representing a conservative society.
Balconies from the republic are totally open.
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They really put order here.
Cheers!
It is refreshing.
With this heat, this is amazing!
You already had all your pisco! [laughs]
-How are you dealing with the heat here?
-Oh, it's cool. I got no problem.
-No problem at all. -No problem at all.
-It's just like Texas...
-No, we're closer to the Equator here.
-Yeah.
No, seriously, the heat here is crazy at this time of the year.
Summer, it's crazy.
[laughs]
-Do you want to take over?
-No. -Okay.
[laughs]
-If I take over, I'm the star.
Oh!
[laughs]