Ceviche and Pisco Sours in Lima

1. The ceviche platters 2. Puddings 3. It´s a potato 4. The Museo de la Nacion

We hadn´t really planned to stop in Lima but by the time we boarded the plane from Cusco I was nursing the mother of all colds and we decided that rather than hopping on to the next long haul bus to head north we should stop and recuperate. After spending the first day mosying around the district of Miraflores, watching the locals walking their dogs along the cliff tops at sunset, high above the nasty looking beaches below, Mike decided that there was no point hanging around the city unless we lived it up in style. So, the next day, he dragged me - roll of toilet paper stashed stylishly in my handbag, snivvling and watery-eyed in the bright sun - to the best ceviche restaurant in the best district of Lima to hang out with a gaggle of botoxed and bleached ladies-what-lunch and a herd of chauffeur-driven suits in aviator sunglasses. We fitted right in as you can imagine.

The food was amazing. Lubricated by a couple of pisco sours (Lima´s answer to Day Nurse) we tucked in to huge platters of spicy tuna, squid, prawns and octupus in the sunshine, tucked in amongst the trying-to-be-beautiful people. We even sampled the delectable puddings and outstayed most of the other diners.

We passed the afternoon in a drunken haze perusing more ceramic representations of potatoes at the Museo de la Nacion. Even geographically-challenged Lima can be beautiful given the right tonic.