Almost more churches than pubs !

Having Lunch at a restaurant that used to be a chapel .
We were actually sitting were the altar once stood. Freakie!!!!

The interiors of Lima's Cathedral.
The Cathedral was build on the same block of land that was assigned by Francisco Pizarro (the founder of Lima) in 1535.
It was at first a small chapel and it was inaugurated in 1540.

Near the main alter . Amazing woodwork!

More amazing woodwork and marvel floors.
Where did these people got so much money?
Oh let me think ......... Yes i almost forgot they stole tons and tons of gold
from the Incas and call themselves religious people. 

OMG there is lots of dead dudes!
These are the Catacombs of the cathedral right underneath the main alter. 

Closer look.  
In the beginning people were buried in the churches. It  was until 1808 when the first cemetery in Lima was built  

The cathedral of Lima it's also a Museum in itself.  Here it's the table where Peru's
Act of Independence was signed in 1821 by the Argentinean General Jose De San Martin.

Lima's cathedral was built as a seismic building rather than an anti-seismic. It works by allowing the structure
of the building to flex during the event of an earthquake by using timber and cane as frames. 

Madeline at the cathedral taking  door knocking to a new level.

The plaque reads; In memory of Jose Olaya martyr  of patriotism Executed in  this place on the 29th of June 1823.

The place was a side street off the Main Plaza . Jose Olaya was a fisherman from Chorrillos (my old neighbourhood)

He worked as a messenger  for the patriots during the war for independence by swimming  for 15 kms each way

between Lima and the port of Callao through heavily patrolled waters. When caught by the Spanish royalist he was

whipped 200 times, his finger nails pulled off  and hanged by his thumbs still he did not reveal his sources.

   He was sentence to a firing squad.  Before his execution he said.                                                                                                         ......"If I have one thousand lives to live I would gladly give them all for my country".

                       This cathedral it's the third cathedral built in the same block of land.
The first was only a chapel , the second was almost completely destroy by the earthquake of 1746 of which only
the front wall stayed standing the same front wall still remains .

Madeline buying her favourite drink. 

Louise took this photo of me whilst taking to a taxi driver , she reckons i was laughing so much.
Well he was telling me the story about his craziest taxi ride the one which he agreed to take a coffin
with a dead body inside on an overnight 10 hour trip and how when he was going up a very steep hill
the coffin  started sliding forwards. Since then I've been asking all taxi drivers to tell me their craziest stories.

Pisco Sour.
Pisco it's a Peruvian spirit made from grapes since the sixteen century. Pisco it's also the name of the port
where this spirit was  first made and sold to passing pirates and  merchant ships.
If you mix Pisco, lime juice, egg white and sugar you get Pisco Sour, the perfect balance of a creamy, frothy and limey
alcoholic drink.

La Marinera.

NICE!!!!