Lima II - the theme from Rocky

Miraflores is some way south of the the centre of town and requires a cab ride to see the main plaza (with a cab driver who was clearly fond of the British and was looking forwards to the Olympics).

Having been told at Huaca Pucllana that it doesn't rain in Lima, it was doing a pretty good impression of it - heavy drizzle if not rain.

This is the main square with the Presidential palace in the distance. If I overheard someone else's tour guide correctly, it was built by the French in 1939 - may account for why they weren't ready for WWII.

  Although this is the "old part of town" only the Cathedral is over 100 years old and is from colonial times

The roads were closed off and there was a bit of a crowd building outside the gates of the Presidential palace so I wandered over just in time to witness the "Changing of the guard".

As the band struck up the first few bars, an American woman in the crowd exclaimed "Its the theme from Rocky".
A) it certainly sounded like it
B) those of us that got the joke laughed out loud!
C) I don't think the locals appreciated our lack of respect for this solemn occasion.

It was bloody funny though!

There didn't appear to be any changing of the guard but just the band standing by the railings, in the drizzle, playing a few tunes. As they didn't play "Eye of the tiger" we all started to drift away. I don't think Buckingham Palace has any serious competition.

For my part I headed towards the Franciscan Monastery. I am not one for religion (you may have guessed that by now) but I quite like the fabric of Churches and some of their art. The real draw to going though was to see the Catacombs.

 Lima's original cemetery was the Catacombs below the Monastery and it was still in use until 1808. It seems odd that the Catacombs were only "discovered" in 1943 yet it had been continually inhabited but the monks. All very odd.
 
It is estimated to contain somewhere between 25,000 and 70,000 burials. They have stopped excavating but the estimate is based on the known population of Lima during the period. Bones are piled up along narrow hallways under the church, and one area contains several large holes (15 meters deep), filled with bones and skulls. It is not allowed to take pictures so I have pinched this one from the interweb.

All those bones and I still didn't manage to get one for Kiwi (the dog). If I am honest I was a bit disappointed, I was expecting it to feel a bit spooky but the ghost train on Brighton pier is more scary.

There is some lovely architecture, a fabulous wooden domed ceiling, a wonderful library with 25,000 books and some great artworks. Another mystery is why most of the fresco's have had the faces removed (even St Francis himself) - again there is no record of why or by whom. Sounds odd to me when the Priests have been in continuous residence in all that time.

One last thing - there is a fine 17th Century "Last Supper" painting in the dining room. The best bit is the last supper is Guinea Pig! Oh and a Devil standing behind Judas which is a nice touch.

The total cost of the two tours (here and the Adobe Pyramid) 18 soles, about £4 in all and both guides were excellent..

I made my way back to Miraflores and noticed a Hairdresser. The last haircut I had was in Pucon, Chile in April. I think I was due one. I have never had my hair cut with Wall paper scissors before but what can you expect for £3. No I haven't taken a picture of it!