Recommend January 2012 - (Page 94)

Facts • Best time to go: Venezuela peru Lima Once called the “City of Kings,” Lima was the center of Spanish power in the New World following Pizarro’s conquest of Peru in the 16th century. Fast-forward 500 years and you’ll ﬁnd a night-lit colonial center with the Plaza de Armas cleaned and restored to show off the cathedral, the Archbishop’s Palace and the Presidential Palace. It shows an economy supporting stable growth; shopping malls—Jockey Plaza and clifftop LarcoMar for starters—packed with high-end shops and trendy discotheques, plus a dining scene not to be topped anywhere on the continent. The city of kings reigns again. While Lima is no urban beauty, the capital has beautiful baroque churches, such as La Merced with awesome gold-leaf altars, and the Convent of San Francisco with its gallery of ﬁne paintings and labyrinthine catacombs. And the capital’s museums are outstanding, too, from the Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology to the newly remodeled Museo Larco with a mind-boggling 45,000-piece collection of pre-Columbian pottery, textiles, and gold and silver jewelry. You need an appointment to see two worthy private collections—ancient textiles and ceramics in the Amano Museum (weekdays only) and the Pedro de Osma Museum of Colonial Art. The latter is located in seaside Barranco, an artsy, welcoming neighborhood of vintage bars and restaurants occupying graceful old mansions. In summertime, Barranco’s beaches are favorites with the surﬁng set. JW Marriott has a seafront location overlooking the surﬁng beaches of Miraﬂores, a neighborhood where you’ll ﬁnd bargaining’s the rule at the Mercado Indio craft market and dining’s a treat of Nouveau Peruvian cuisine at Restaurant Huaca Pucllano, located within the compound of a 1,500-year-old pyramid. While in Lima, do make the day trip to the archaeological complex of Pachacamac, an important preColumbian citadel of palaces and temple pyramids. And then, of course, ﬂy on to Cusco and Machu Picchu beyond. May to November, the dry season; however, in coastal Lima, those months can be gray and misty • Fun Fact: Peru’s greatest contribution to the world is probably the potato. All modern varieties— roughly 5,000—can be traced to a single species ﬁrst domesticated in the southern Andes around 10,000 years ago. Today, Peru cultivates hundreds of different kinds of potatoes—in nine different colors. In Lima, dine out at Mi Causa, a temple to the humble potato • getting there: Delta ﬂies from Atlanta to Lima • entry documents: Valid passport; tourist card issued free on arrival • currency: Nuevo Sol • must-try LOCAL Food: No city makes ceviche—raw sole or other ﬁrm white ﬁsh, marinated in lime juice and spices, served with cold sweet potatoes and white corn—better than Lima • Best Buys: Hand-woven textiles and alpaca wool clothing to gold and silver jewelry, paintings, ceramics • inFormation please: PromPeru—peru.travel Venezuela guyana ECUADOR Facts • Best time to go: Caracas While foreign visitors may ﬁnd Caracas less carefree and fun-loving nowadays, in the capital of oil-rich Venezuela there are still many things to see and do. Sightseeing includes the historic heart of the old city, visiting the Great Liberator Simon Bolivar’s home (Casa Natal) and adjacent Bolivar Museum, displaying a large collection of the national hero’s memorabilia. Right on the plaza is the cathedral whose sumptuous interiors are full of art treasures including works by Rubens and Murillo. And while in this neighborhood, break for lunch at La Guayaba Verde for some Venezuelan cuisine, serving healthy takes on national dishes. Modern Caracas is all about modern art and architecture, boasting the excellent Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Caracas, where Henry Moore and Fernando Botero pieces share space with Matisse and native son, Jesus Soto. On a clear day, take the modern cable car up Mt. Avila for spectacular views and when back down in Caracas, have a good dinner, in fact stay at, the JW Marriott. Leisure travelers often bypass Caracas and on arrival, stay seaside and near the airport—Hotel Ole Caribe in Maiquetia’s a good choice. Then head out to explore a country of great beauty in its sun-drenched beaches, verdant jungles, cascading waterfalls, bird sanctuaries in its Llanos grasslands and horizons full of snow-capped Andes. Venezuela’s main resort, the mountainous and green Isla Margarita, is a 45-minute ﬂight away. Visitors love its white sand beaches—long and popular is Playa El Agua—casino nightlife, two nature reserves, and world-class surﬁng at Playa El Yaque. However, winning best beach destination awards are those on the islands of gorgeous Mochima National Park on the northwestern coast and Los Roques National Park archipelago, a short ﬂight from Caracas. Both get top rating also for snorkeling and scuba diving. And one ﬂying excursion not to miss is the trip to Canaima National Park, with aerial views of Angel Falls, 15 times as high as Niagara. Best falls-viewing is July and August, perhaps staying at the base of the falls and viewing up-close by motorized canoe. November-December, April/May • Fun Fact: At 3,212 ft., Angel Falls is the highest waterfall in the world • getting there: Delta ﬂies from Atlanta to Caracas • entry documents: Valid passport, valid for six months from entry date • currency: Bolivar (dollars can NOT be exchanged at hotels) • must-try local Food: Classic arepa, cornbread with different ﬁllings, such as chicken, avocado, spring onions and mayo • Best Buys: Ceramics and wood carvings, on Margarita Island, locally made hammocks • inFormation please: Venezuela Convention & Visitors Bureau— burodevenezuela.com D74 january 2012 recommend.com http://peru.travel http://www.burodevenezuela.com http://www.recommend.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend January 2012

Editor's Note
Hotel Desk: Hard Rock Hotels and Resorts
Tour Talk: Lindblad Expeditions
Holland America's Veendam
Delta Air Lines' 2012 Caribbean, Mexico and Latin America Travel Guide
The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes
Las Vegas' 2012 Offerings
Hot European Tours for 2012
Hokkaido, Japan
Egypt's Antiquity Attractions are Eternal

Recommend January 2012