All That Glitters Isn't Necessarily Gold
The privately held Museo de Oro del Perú (Gold Museum), for decades the most visited museum in Peru, was part of a must-see museum triumvirate in Lima only a few years ago. But that was before the National Institute of Culture and the Tourism Protection Bureau declared just about everything in the museum -- some 7,000 or more pieces -- to be fake. The massive collection, mainly consisting of supposed pre-Columbian gold, was assembled by one man, Miguel Mujica Gallo -- who, curiously enough, died just days before the investigation into his collection was launched. Although the museum was expensive and poorly organized, all that glittering gold -- augmented by hundreds, if not thousands, of ceremonial objects; hundreds of tapestries; masks; ancient weapons; clothing; several mummies; and military weaponry and uniforms from medieval Europe to ancient Japan -- certainly caught many a visitor's eye over the years. It's pretty difficult to recommend visiting such a fraudulent collection today, however. The museum is located at Av. Alonso de Molina 1100, Monterrico (tel. 01/345-1292; daily 11:30 a.m. - 7 p.m.; admission S/30 or $8.50 for adults, S/15 or $4.30 for students). A taxi is the most direct way here; coming by colectivo involves taking at least two buses along Arequipa to Avenida Angamos, changing to one marked UNIVERSIDAD DE LIMA, and asking the driver to let you off at the Museo de Oro.

Bonito Barranco
Although it's a residential neighborhood and not immediately thought of as a tourist sight, apart from the small Museo de Arte Colonial Pedro de Osma, the charming seaside district of Barranco is one of the highlights of Lima. Its serenity and laid-back artiness is a contrast to the untidy and seedy character of rest of the city. A stroll around the tranquil side streets of brightly colored bungalows is the best way to restore your sanity. It's little wonder that artists and writers have long been drawn to Barranco. Beneath the poetically named wooden footbridge Puente de los Suspiros (Bridge of Sighs) is a gentle passageway, La Bajada de Baños, which leads to a sea lookout and is lined with lovely squat single-family houses, spindly trees, and stout cacti. During the daytime, the barrio is decidedly tropical, but at night the area is transformed into Lima's hot spot, with locals and visitors flocking to discos and watering holes -- much to the dismay of local residents who don't own a bar or restaurant.

Archaeological Sites in Lima
Lima is hardly the epicenter of pre-Columbian Peru, and few visitors have more than the museums featuring ancient Peruvian cultures on their minds when they hit the capital. Surprisingly, there are a handful of huacas -- adobe pyramids -- that date to around A.D. 500 and earlier interspersed among the modern constructions of the city. The archaeological sites are junior examples of those found in northern Peru, near Chiclayo and Trujillo. If you're not headed north, Lima's huacas, which have small museums attached, are worth a visit.

In San Isidro is Huaca Huallamarca (also called Pan de Azúcar, or "Sugar Loaf"), located at the corner of Avenida Nicolás de Rivera and Avenida El Rosario. The perhaps overzealously restored adobe temple of the Maranga Lima culture has several platforms and is frequently illuminated for special presentations. It's open Tuesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; admission is S/5 ($1.40) for adults and S/3 (85¢) for students. Also in San Isidro is the Huaca Juliana, a pre-Inca mound dating to A.D. 400. It's at Calle Belén at Pezet and keeps the same hours as Huallamarca; admission is free. Huaca Pucllana is a sacred pyramid, built during the 4th century and still undergoing excavation, in Miraflores at the corner of calles General Borgoño (Block 8) and Tarapacá, near Avenida Arequipa (tel. 01/445-8695). It has a small park, a restaurant, and an artesanía gallery. From the pyramid's top, you can see the roofs of this busy residential and business district. It's open Wednesday through Monday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; admission is S/5 ($1.40) and S/3 (85¢) for students.

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Unfortunately, these sites occasionally do not keep consistent hours, so you might find yourself staring through a chain-link fence if there's no one on hand to let you in.

It's A Zoo
Lima's Zoologico (zoo) and Parque de las Leyendas (Legends Park), Av. La Marina s/n, block 24 (tel. 01/464-4282) are worth a visit if you're traveling with kids. The park, in the San Miguel district between Centro and Callao, tries its best to represent Peru's three crucial geographical regions: selva (rainforest), sierra (highlands) and costa (coast). There are some good exotic Peruvian and South American fauna, such as condors, macaws, jaguars, llamas, and alpacas. The park has a playground with go-karts and some amusement park rides, and it's a good place for a picnic lunch. The zoo and park are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; admission is S/6 ($1.75) for adults and S/3.50 ($1) for children 3 to 10.

For a complete listing of what to see and do in Lima, visit the online attractions index at Frommers.com.

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