(Part 1 of a summary from my trip to South America in late July 2015)

On July 20, myself along with 4 friends flew from New York to Lima, Peru for an 8-day stay in Peru before heading to Chile for another couple days. This was my first trip abroad and I was excited and a bit nervous to see how I would fair navigating foreign cities while surviving on my five or six years of Spanish from high school and college.

After landing in Lima, we made our way to the Miraflores District and checked into La Casa de la Nonna, an airbnb we booked prior to arriving in Peru. From the moment we arrived, Giancarlo, the General Manager and his staff could not have been more helpful. One staff member went so far as to open up Google Translate on his laptop when my request to have clothing washed and dried was lost in translation. An added bonus was the complimentary breakfast served every morning for those wishing to eat. This was far from the array of bagels, cereal and donuts that sit out for hours at most continental breakfasts found at American hotels. The breakfast at La Casa de la Nonna was cooked to order and accompanied fresh fruit and an unlimited supply of coffee and tea. I could not be happier with the service my friends and I received at La Casa de la Nonna and would recommend it to anyone traveling to Lima.

On their recommendation, we had dinner at Astrid & Gastón, a Peruvian style restaurant housed in an old hacienda style house. We also ordered pre-dinner drinks and appetizers at Cala, a restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean with excellent views of the sunset.

During our stay in Lima, we rented bikes and rode along the coast and went sand boarding approximately 45 miles south of downtown Lima. We booked our day of sand boarding through Sandride. Our three Sandride guides were very patient as they took time to fit us with boots and snowboards and took even more time to get us down the dunes. Check them out if you’re in Lima and looking for an exciting day outside the hustle and bustle of Lima.