Days 12-14 (cruise days 11-13) - Another full day at sea and then a two night stay in Callao, the main port for Lima. As usual, I did a work day on the day at sea (a Sunday) to free up time to shuttle in to Lima. We docked fairly early morning in Callao and I must say it was not the most esthetically pleasing places to park for the next two days - we were literally right under two behemoth container booms on a busy working pier. Adjacent to us was the naval base so we were in a high traffic and segregated spot.
It would also turn out to be a pretty chaotic affair trying to get out of the port. Although half the passengers had booked tickets (line up to the left) there were no buses to get people out except for those who had booked excursions. And for the people in the other line, who relied on port shuttles (no one is allowed to walk in this area for security and safety reasons), transportation was also a problem. It was not until later that we discovered the reason why - there was one narrow path in with each vehicle being stopped and, often, searched. And the four police officers trying to direct traffic at the entrance was one of the most comical scenes ever with hands waving, whistles blowing, and many raised voices.
It took 1 hour in line before our assigned bus showed up and then another 45 minute drive into what we thought would be Lima. But, no...the drop-off point was a posher neighborhood in Miraflores to an underground mall built on cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Most cruise ship passengers can go to a mall anytime at home, so why here and away from the historic downtown area? Celebrity Cruises will no doubt be fielding a few questions on this because a few people had pre-booked tours and now had to taxi to the main city plaza. My guess was the importance of this drop-off was Paddington Bear or the Christmas decorations. I mean, that has a lot to do with Inca history...right? Or maybe it was for special foot treatment at the mall. I have to say that it was the worst $30 USD spent and I could have gotten a lot of writing done; needless to say, my second day was spent on the ship being work industrious and having a couple online meetings.
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