Lima

Arrived Lima, Peru on Sunday 19 August. This city has a bad reputation, but I think it's quite charming in its way. The air is incredibly dirty, though, and makes my eyes itch. I stayed in the "bohemian" neighborhood of Barranco, which was once a resort area for Lima's rich. Like most wealthy neighborhoods in South America, the spendier houses are surrounded by walls, barbed wire, grilled windows, security cameras, and dogs. Outside these fortress-homes, the regular limeños shuttle to and fro in jam-packed collective taxis, a most interesting way to travel if you've never done it. The normal taxi fare to and from the airport is $10-$15, but you can take a collectivo, if you're patient and don't mind sitting on elbows, for about 30 cents. Naturally, this is what I did.