The first is called Pantanos de Villa, where there is a natural reserve designed to protect the marshland. it is located just south of Lima, technically still within the municipality, and within view of some of the southern slums. There are trails and viewing towers for better bird watching. You can hire a guide, as we did, and even go out in a rowboat for a water-level view of the area.
the marshes are just beyond the slums
there are all kinds of migratory birds
A little further south, near the archeological site of Pachacamac and the Lurin River, are beaches, which are nice and quiet this time of year. They offer several kilometers of uninterrupted sand, and a rarely traveled and very straight road, which is an excellent spot for one's teenage son to learn how to drive. While Britt showed Addison how to manage the stick shift and maneuver our giant yellow car, Bacchus the dog entertained himself (and Valerie) by chasing sea birds and these funny red crabs.
crabs en masse
egret
egrets
Bacchus vs. the crab
ibises
Bacchus discovers that crabs have pinchers
more ibises
a beachside chapel
Bacchus is not a fan of the water, but he does love chasing the water birds
Addison driving, managing both the clutch and to avoid hitting the packs of wild dogs, an everpresent phenomenon in Peru.
For lunch, we headed to a nearby beachside village and to a very popular restaurant called Sarita's, which is famous for its "chicharron" (deep fried) seafood and pork.
A favorite with the Gwinner guys, this sandwhich has pork chicharron and a slice of sweetpotato.
