For most visitors to
Lima, the nearest they will get to
El Callao is Lima airport, which is located in this province of Lima. The historical centre,
Miraflores,
San Isidro and
Barranco are the districts best known to visitors to
the city, and unless you arrive by ship, you will possibly not think of visiting the actual port of
El Callao, and its district of La Punta. This was not always the case, the port was once very popular, but with the wrong people. Pirates, including
Francis Drake and
Jacon Clerk dropped in from time to time. These unwelcome visitors convinced the Spanish viceroy at the time to construct the fortress of the
Real Felipe, which still stands and is now a naval museum. Walking down to the sea from here, you go pass Rovira, a restaurant founded in 1907, and arrive at
Plaza Grau in memory of Admiral Miguel Grau, a national hero in Peru. In the port you can board a boat to
Isla Palomino, home to a colony of sea lions.
Isla San Lorenzo, another island about 4 kms. from the port, was the place from where pirates attacked the port and is now a naval base. El Callao was also the place where the first railway of Peru, and the second in Latin America, was constructed and home to the first fire station of Lima.
Tintin and
Captain Haddock also visited the port of Callao in their adventure
"The Temple of the Sun".
To get to
La Punta, you can walk through the district of
Chucuito, which still has some houses painted with bright colours, similar to the Boca district in Buenos Aires, but it´s possibly safer to catch a taxi. By the way, don´t be alarmed by the tsunami warning signs - unless you hear the alarms!. La Punta is the place where the affluent families of El Callao have historically lived and you can infer this by the large and well kept houses and it´s four rowing clubs. There is also a wetland populated by hundreds of birds.
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| El Callao |
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| El Callao |
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| Admiral Grau |
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Monet´s favourite flower...in Lima
MATE but no chess
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Shaken, not stirred...and with chicken
Lima to Asia in one hour
The Maltese falcon found in Lima
A story of nymphs and satyrs...and it's not about politicians
An English vampire in Peru
Lima flower market
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