Intriguing Things You Didn’t Know About Lima, Peru

Lima is the second largest city built on a desert after Cairo in Egypt. It gets 80 per cent of its water from the Rimac river, which runs across downtown Lima. Civilizations before Spanish conquest began to build water canals 2,000 years ago, which are still being used today. Despite Lima’s three main rivers, only 92 per cent of its citizens have access to drinking water.

Lima’s history dates thousands of years before the conquest. In fact, you can see traces of older cultures that inhabited the desert and made it possible for water to reach the entire city through the canals they built. Before the Incas, the dominant culture in Lima was the Yschmas, who left traces of their temples and administrative centers like Pachacamac – an astonishing archeological sanctuary in the southern coastal side of the city – or the Huaca Pucllana, right in the heart of Miraflores. Don’t wait until visiting Cusco to see amazing pre-Hispanic buildings.

Pachacamac, Panamericana Sur Km. 31.5, Lurín District, Lima, Peru

Huaca Pucllana, Calle General Borgoño, Cuadra 8, Miraflores, Lima, Peru, +51 617 7148

Lima was founded on January 18, 1535 by Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro. Legend says that Lima was given the title of “City of the Kings” due to its foundation date’s proximity to Epiphany, a Christian festival that celebrates the adoration by the three Biblical Magi. Anthropologist Maria Rostworowski clarified that the “City of the Kings” title was actually an homage to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and to his mother, Joanna of Castile.

Some say the world’s smallest chapel is called Cross Island Chapel and it’s located in Oneida, New York. But the Chapel Our Lady of the Rosary in the Rimac district in downtown Lima continues to be called by Peruvian faithful as the smallest church in the world because it has all the features of a normal-sized church: main altar, vault, towers, images and a pulpit. It was built in 1550 and it’s 16-feet wide, 39-feet long and 32-feet tall. Located at the second street of Trujillo avenue, the chapel is open Monday to Saturday from 8AM to 12:30PM, and from 4PM to 6:30PM. It’s open on Sundays from 8AM to 12:30PM.

If you’re in Lima, look up: you’ll see black vultures circling or watching over the city from a rooftop. Despite popular beliefs that give them a bad reputation (trash eaters, bad omens), black vultures – also known as “gallinazos” are responsible for cleaning up the city. They have also inspired short stories, academic essays and art pieces that revindicate their guardian status. Last year, a campaign was implemented to strap GoPro cameras onto black vultures to keep control over waste dumping areas throughout the city.

The Inca trail known as Qhapaq Ñan (the Beautiful Road) is 6,000 kilometers long and connected the five countries of the Inca empire. For trekkers, it’s mostly known for being the perfect route to travel from Cusco to Machu Picchu. But Qhapaq Ñan also reached Lima. When Spanish conquerors arrived, they found a very urbanized area, with roads that connected the highlands with the coast. Some of the best preserved remains of Qhapaq Ñan can be found at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. Most of it was replaced with Lima’s main transit roads and avenues like Camino del Inca, literally meaning “The Inca’s Road.”