Our first stop was the Plaza Mayor. This plaza is the center of the history Peru. 480 years before I took this picture, Francisco Pizarro founded the Viceroyalty of Peru and picked the location for the Plaza Mayor of the new city of Lima. It was here that José de San Martín proclaimed independence from Spain in 1821. The centerpiece of the plaza is a waterfountain built in 1651. The fountain is the oldest feature of the plaza. The archbishop's palace (to the left of the Cathedral in the picture on the left) was completed in 1922 and the Palacio del Gobierno, which houses the executive branch of Peru's government, was completed in 1938. The cathedral, originally built in 1538, has been destroyed by earthquakes multiple times. The building that stands today was completed in 1940.
There are 3 flags flyin on the Plaza Mayor. In the center is the Peruvian flag. To the right is the flag of Lima. On the left is not the gay flag. Don't fall into the trap of thinking that Peru is an impressibely progressive country regarding marriage rights. The flag on the left is the Incan flag, which also serves as the official flag of the Departamento de Cusco.
These types of balconies are very typical of the architecture of Central Lima. In colonial times, you could tell a person's status by how close they lived to the Plaza Mayor. The closer you lived, the more important you were.
Erin and I went into the Casa de la Literatura Peruana (the House of Peruvian Literature) in the hopes that it would povide free shade and something interesting. It delivered on both accounts. Downstairs they have a room devoted to Mario Vargas Llosa, a Peruvian nobel laureate (more on him another day). Upstairs was an series of exhibits that explained literary movements throughout Peruvian history, from colonial times to the present. The Casa de la Literatura is housed in the old train station. It was only recently repurposed in 2009. It's such a recent change that the 2010 edition of Lonely Planet Peru had no mention of it. If you speak Spanish, this is a great place to visit while in central Lima.
The Mario Vargas Llosa room and its beautiful stained-glass ceiling.
Next stop was the Monasterio Franciscano (Franciscan Monestary). They have a great tour that includes catacombs. Unfortunately it isn't free so Erin still hasn't had the pleasure. But the church was open worship so we got to go inside and take a peek around, and say a quick prayer before the mass started. It's a pretty standard rule in Peruvian churches that photography is prohibited. Even it weren't, I wouldn't take my camera out. A church is for worship.
There are lots of murals in Lima. I'm not sure how many are officially approved and how many are grafiti. Either way I'm glad they are there. The brighten up the street and make abandoned buildings less of an eyesore.
Our final stop in Central Lima was the Santuario de Santa Rosa de Lima (Sanctuary of St. Rose of Lima). Santa Rosa is the patron saint of Lima, of Peru, of the New World, and of the Phillipines. She is the first saint canonized from the Americas. She lived in Lima from 1586 to 1617 and was canonized by Pope Clement X in 1671. I was very eager to see her church, which I have not seen before, and the gardens attached, but both were closed. I took note of their hours for next trip.
On the grounds of the Santuario de Santa Rosa are statues of Santa Rosa herself (left) and San Martín de Porres (Saint Martin of Porres). San Martín was also Limeñan. He lived from 1579 to 1639 and was part of the Domican order. He is the first Black saint from the Americas. We'll talk about him more next month.
Erin took this for me on the steps inside the Casa de la Literatura. I realize that I have only a few pictures of people. That's something I aim to change.
More from last week's trip to Lima will follow over the next few days including pictures from the Jesuit owned zoo on the grounds of the high school we stayed at!
No hay comentarios.:
Publicar un comentario