Chorrillos

A few weeks ago, I spent a day exploring a new district, Chorrillos.  Just south of Barranco and Miraflores, it's right on the coast, so of course there is a malecón, or walkway that looks over the sea.

I also visited the Museo Planetario y Observatorio del Morro Solar, where the Peruvian Astronomy Association presents a show about the stars as well as runs a small museum.  I went for the show with one of my students, Alberto.  The conversation went something like this:

• Me: Alberto, are you going to translate the whole show for me?
• Alberto: No, it's not necessary, I think it's in English.
• Me: (looking at all the kids around): Ummm, ok.

It, of course, was not in English.  But, since it was a visual presentation, I was more or less able to follow along.  It was cool to see the stars from a different perspective.  

The museum was even more interesting. Nowhere have I seen such a random collection of stuff crammed into one small room.  Not only did it host information about astronomy, there were also exhibits about aliens, the Battle of Chorrillos (1881), and pre-Inca civilizations.

We are here

I'm pretty sure the model's jacket was NOT hand-stitched! 

On the left, the Battle of Chorrillos.  On the right, pre-Inca civilizations.
Everywhere else, astronomy. 

...and aliens!

But the view from the hill is spectacular-even better than from the malecón!

We also took time to visit the monuments that pay tribute to those who fought in the Battle of San Juan and Chorrillos:

 

And the Christ of the Pacific statue (by all accounts nowhere as impressive as Christ the Redeemer in Brazil):

From the hilltop, we headed down to the beach to have lunch at the fish market.

pelícano

Fresh ceviche with chicha morada

Last, we took a short ride in the harbor on a boat, which was apparently long enough to disorient me, as I nearly fell climbing back onto the pier.  Luckily, the driver caught me, but I ended up with some nasty bruises from hitting the side of the dock.

The boats work like shared taxis-you wait until it is full before you leave on your ride.  I suppose some days you could sit for a long time while waiting for enough people to fill the boat up.

View of the planetarium from the boat