Day #1
Let me start by saying that we hadn't set any expectations for our stay in Peru. We were here to catch an amazing 18-day cruise and decided, with Rachel's help, to spend a week getting to know Lima, Cusco, and Machu Picchu. Boy, are we glad we did... We went from saying, "You know, we'll never be passing through these parts again, so better see all the highlights while we're here" to "When are we coming back next time?" But I'm getting ahead of myself, what happened to change our mind? Here we go...
Our arrival at the Belmond Miraflores started with "Wow" - no other way to describe the understated but obvious elegance of the hotel we'd chosen for our stay in Lima.
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| Hotel Arrival |
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| Beautiful Lobby |
Andrea Denegri from Guest Relations checked us in and then made everything we needed or desired, happen. This included getting us lunch reservations at Central - a top "5" in the world restaurant - for the following day, dinner reservations at Fiesta Chiclayo Gourmet for our first meal in Lima, and her own recommendations for dining in Cusco when we headed that direction. After Andrea worked her magic, we were greeted by the hotel's general manager, Thomas Moons, who introduced us to his hotel and made our arrival at the Belmond Miraflores complete. Well, almost complete, Thomas mentioned we'd been upgraded and then between he and Andrea, they arranged for the marine layer to recede just in time for our first sunset in Peru, overlooking the beautiful park full of joggers, lovers, and happy dogs...
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| Our beautiful corner room - #704 |
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| Miraflores boardwalk |
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| Mall Overlooking the Pacific |
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| A drink with dinner perhaps? |
Our first impressions of Miraflores were so positive... We walked a short distance from the hotel to a nearby mall to find an ATM to get some Peruvian Soles for our visit. On the short walk through the park fronting the Belmond, we passed so many happy people along the way from small classes of people learning Brazilian martial arts, to dog walkers with 6 or 8 dogs on their leashes out for an afternoon stroll. After walking perhaps 3 or 4 hundred yards, we arrived at the mall - hustle and bustle of well dressed people of all ages - surrounded by stores we'd see back in the USA with restaurants of every cuisine, all with amazing views of the Pacific Ocean. With a little help from a mall security guard we found the promised ATM and proceeded to get some Soles as planned. The ATM had a choice of English or Spanish text so running through the normal sequence of selections was as easy as it is at home. On second thought, perhaps I should start practicing at home using the Spanish option, and save the English option for the road, but I digress...
In addition to the wonderful people hosting us at Belmond Miraflores, we were also fortunate to get tour of the entire hotel from Jorge Carrera from Sales and Marketing. Jorge showed us rooms in both traditional and modern motif - both beautiful in their own way - and most importantly, the Club Floor. The Club Floor hosts an Executive Club set up to provide for both business people (fully appointed conference room) or international travelers arriving or departing outside of normal check in/check out hours and wanting a nice place to shower, eat, or rest until their room is ready or their ride to the airport is leaving.
In addition to the wonderful people hosting us at Belmond Miraflores, we were also fortunate to get tour of the entire hotel from Jorge Carrera from Sales and Marketing. Jorge showed us rooms in both traditional and modern motif - both beautiful in their own way - and most importantly, the Club Floor. The Club Floor hosts an Executive Club set up to provide for both business people (fully appointed conference room) or international travelers arriving or departing outside of normal check in/check out hours and wanting a nice place to shower, eat, or rest until their room is ready or their ride to the airport is leaving.
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| Club Floor Entrance |
We also sampled both food and drink at the Belmond... Andrea had given us the heads up that breakfast was not to be missed. She was so right. For $15 US each, we ate in one of the best breakfast environments we've ever visited. The food was magnificent, fresh, and varied making this one of the best values ever. And the view? On one side was a disappearing edge pool and on the other, was a view of the park and a Catholic Cathedral.
So with breakfast well taken care of, what about dinner and drink? On Thursday nights, Thomas and his staff host a Manager's Happy Hour. Each of the guests attending the Happy Hour had the chance to meet and chat with hotel staff and in doing so, take a true measure of the hotel and its personality. Andrea shared tips and restaurants about Cusco and Machu Picchu while Eric showed us around the restaurant, explaining each piece of art and the concept of changing the art through the restaurant several times each year. Meanwhile Renzo the head bartender created our first Pisco Sours in Peru. After Happy Hour, we had a great dinner served on the patio, capping a perfect day in Lima.
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| Disappearing edge pool overlooking the Pacific |
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| Buffet Spread |
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| Fresh honey with bee pollen |
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| Breakfast View |
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| Happy Hour |
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| Belmond Patio Dining |
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| Renzo shaking a Pisco Sour |
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| Inside Dining |
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| Our First Pisco Sour |
While many of the people who host you - whether in a hotel or on a cruise ship - are those you get to talk to and interact with - there are other folks who we don't always see who make their presence felt in other ways...
In this case it was a member of the Belmond's housekeeping staff who helpfully rearranged our toothbrushes and toothpaste while we were out to dinner. This small kindness was emblematic of our stay - every thing and every one was perfect. We couldn't imagine staying anywhere else the next time we visit Lima.
From a travel tip perspective, the Belmond was the first part of our baggage bread crumb plan. We were packed for a 32 day trip with an 18 day cruise in the middle. So we arranged our cruise clothes into our big bags and left everything we wouldn't need for our Cusco/Machu Picchu visit at the Belmond. In Cusco, we left our two carry on rollers behind with everything we wouldn't need for our train trip to Aguas Calientes, tour of the Machu Picchu monument, and overnight stay in Aguas Calientes. Our bread crumb plan worked perfectly as we picked up each piece we'd left behind in Cusco and then at the Belmond, greatly simplifying the task of luggage and "Trains, Planes, Ships, and Automobiles".
Next up, a transition from world class accommodations to world class dining --did you know Lima may be the world's new number one city for dining?
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