Located off Benavides Avenue and just behind the Ricardo Palma University you will find a place called “Parque de La Amistad”which can be translated to the “Friendship Park”. This park spans a 30,000 m2 area and the first thing you will see even before you enter this park is the large arch but I will mention more about this a little later in the article.

Well you all will be happy that the park is free to enter (open from Tuesday to Sunday 9 am to 9 pm) and as soon as you enter you will see the park is laid out in a circuit, there are also ATM’s close to the entrance just in case you need to take out some money and near these is a children’s play area with swings and slides. 

Beyond that you will find a building called “Centro Cultural Augusto B Leguia” which is the cultural centre in which art is displayed and other events take place here. The building is in the style of the old “Casas Haciendas” and the wood that makes up the columns and the roof are from the port of Callao which were once used in an old structure that was built in 1929.  

Now continuing on your circuit you will eventually arrive to the artificial lagoon here you can watch the ducks and the swans, there is also a paddle boat that you may take to check around the lagoon. I did not take it but the website says that it will cost 5 soles. 

Next to the lagoon is a small passage way this will lead you to many food carts that are selling traditional food and desserts that you can tuck into, you can also buy coffee and ice cream all depending on the weather or on your choosing.

Another popular attraction is the steam train and like most of the items or attractions in the park have a historical context to them. First of all the train will cost you 4 soles and you take it in a small train station located next to a restaurant inside the park. The train station is decorated with accessories of Peru’s locomotive history. The train itself is from 1926 and has 3 wagons that you can sit in and it will take you around the park passing the main attractions.  

Also remember to read the post that is around the park, it will give you an insight of the historical importance of the attractions, I was surprised with some of the history behind some of the attractions.

Now the main attraction is the large arch standing at 29 meters, you cannot simply miss it. 

The arch is in the style similar to that used by the Moors but this is not the originally but a replica so what happened to the originally?

The originally one was never in the same place but was located on Leguía Avenue now known as Arequipa Avenue and was a gift from Spain and was inaugurated  in 1924 but due to modernization of Lima it was demolished in 1939 under the government of Oscar R. Benavides. He claimed that it would cause problems with the traffic. The construction of the new arch started in 2000 and was finished by 2001 and inaugurated by the King of Spain, Juan Carlos and his wife Sofia. 

After walking around this nice park you can take the weight off your feet and just take in the surroundings and let time pass, in my opinion it is nice to see a little greenery among the concrete. There is a pizza place also located in the park and a restaurant however, these can be a little pricy and I would recommend that you go to one of many restaurants that can be found just outside the park. 

By: GringoPeru

Looking at this picture many of you who are living in Lima probably have passed by it many times. It is Parque Salazar ("Salazar Park") in Miraflores next to the Commercial Centre Larcomar. 

The history of this park begins with Alfredo Salazar Southwell (1913 – 14 September 1937) a Peruvian aviator, Salazar was very studious gaining high marks in his school. He joined the Peruvian Air Force in 1932 and In 1935 he finished his military studies gaining the rank of Sub-Ensign and became a flight instructor for other cadets. By 1936 he was promoted again to the rank of Flight Officer. 

On the 14 of September 1937 while celebrating the inauguration of a monument to Jorge Chávez, the airplane he was piloting started emitting smoke while doing a rehearsal. He ordered his copilot, a mechanical technician Carlos Fajardo to abandon the aircraft using the parachute, initially he refused but then later accepted. In order to minimize damage and civilian deaths Salazar veered the aircraft out of the populated areas and crashed into a field that is now Parque Salazar, he was killed instantly. 

Salazar's quick thinking and sacrifice is remembered and he is considered a hero for this. 

The monument of the condor that stands there now was inaugurated in 1953 and is the work of a Hungarian sculptor Lajos D’Ebnet and is made of rocks found in the Highlands of Peru so the monument is not easily affected by the heat nor by the humidity.

By GringoPeru

 

 

 

 

In the Rimac district of Lima you will find a park close to the presidential palace this park is known as Parque de la Muralla (Park of the Wall) what is interesting about this park is that you will see the remains of walls that were constructed in 1684 and finished in 1687 by Viceroy Melchor de Navarra to prevent the city being attacked by pirates or would-be attackers however, the walls were torn down under the presidency of Jose Balta in 1872 under news expansion plans of the city.

 

 

 

 

 

Also in this park hidden away in the corner you will see a statue of Francisco Pizarro, this was never originally place here but was near the presidential Palace and Cathedral in the main square (Plaza de Armas) so, Why did it move? Well ... Pizarro was the Spanish conquistador who lead the invasion into Peru in 1530 but due to his cruel and heavy hand in the country many question the validity of him being praised and due to lobbying especially by one an architecture professor named Santiago Agurto Calvo had it removed in 2003, it moved twice before being officially placed in the Park of the Wall. I wish to add something else to this history:

The statues were made in the 1930’s by Ramsey MacDonald and I say statues because three were made. Ramsey made the statues not as a representation to Pizarro but to an anonymous European foot soldier and some back up this claim because the sword, horse and helmet are historically inaccurate. So where are the statues? Well the one in Peru was never really destined for Peru but was given to Mexico to represent Hernan Cortes (Conqueror of Mexico - 1518) however, they rejected it and it was sent to Peru, the second one is in Wisconsin and the other although created by Charles Rumsey resides in Plaza Mayor in Trujillo, the hometown of Pizarro.

Nestled within the district of San Isidro lies a beautiful park called El Olivar this park is full of Olive trees and dotting the surroundings is a library, an early 20th century mansion, a lagoon and the local municipal building. During the time of Spanish colonization the park stretched to 27 hectares and by 1730 had 1,500 trees the original Olive trees are said to have arrived from Seville, Spain in 1560 by Antonio de Rivera. By 1828 the amount of trees supposedly recorded reached to 2,338. 

This park has two legends one of which is that when the Spaniards left Peru after the independence of 1821 they chopped the trees down within the park for revenge but from the trunks left behind the trees regrew (the damage can still be seen today).

And secondly, It's said that St. Martin of Porras planted an olive tree in this park, and when the newly married couples sit beneath the tree, their love will be eternal. Due to financial issues in the 1920s parts of the park were sold off and people then built homes around the park, the park now has 23 hectares and before 1931 the park was private and was surrounded by high walls however, in 1931 the government made it a public place where anyone could enjoy its beauty and it was officially announced a National Monument on the 16th December 1959. Just like in the time of the Spaniards olives are still harvested from this park and can be still used to make olive oil.  

Not only does this park boast a wide variety of trees but also thirty species of birds can found here, so if you wish sit and relax, go running or go bird watching this park is perfect....I'll write more about this park soon!