Hi Mtn, I have not been to Lima or MP but have been on the South America forum at several travel sites looking at language schools for DS2. A quick search on one of them turned up this post that might be of interest. It's only a year old and concerns families with kids / what to do in Lima.

Here is a link that might be useful: Things to do in Lima with kids

You can take a look at what Tauck does in Santiago...they go to a winery and ride a funicular....

In Lima they go to a museum of pre Colombian art...

We spent 8 years as expats in Buenos Aires when I was a kid ... only good memories from that time.

Lima is a major capital city! If I were going to be there just once in my life I would spend a couple of days there, poking around the capitol and other important buildings, visiting the main square and its church, which, as a Latin American city, Lima surely has, querying about an open market that is tourist friendly, and looking into any Christmas celebrations that might be taking place. One doesn't have to be Catholic, or even Christian, to enjoy these things. They just give a close look at a very important part of the culture. Peru also has a thriving local craft industry, if you like to collect on your travels. The concierge at your hotel should be able to recommend tours and reputable guides.

My parents visited Peru and Machu Picchu a long time ago, before it was popular. They were intrepid travellers and loved every minute of their South American experience. They always travelled on their own, and regarded any inconvenience, bus breakdown, etc., as a challenge to be overcome with no fuss. They brought back beautiful pictures of Lima!

Both are major cities with many tourist attractions...

Here is a link that might be useful: 36 hours in Lima

..and Santiago

Here is a link that might be useful: 36 hours in Santiago

Thanks, Kudzu. I love the "36 hours in..." series and always check those. But, again the problem is I have never seen one that says "don't bother spending 36 hours in ...", LOL.

Sable_CA, I travelled pretty extensively internationally before I retired with the kids, and I have seen plenty of capital cities I would not want to vacation in. A lot of them are disappointing because they are so Americanized. Just a bunch of tall buildings in many cases.

Agreed, pretty much all of these SA cities will still have a large square, an old church, craft sellers, and a museum or two. It is hard to tell which are worth one's time. Bravo for your parents for being such intrepid travelers! With three kids in tow, one could hardly call us intrepid, but we do our best to authentically experience the places we see.

Chispa, How cool that must have been. I admit I added BA to the itinerary because I've always wanted to go; otherwise we'd have stayed on the Pacific side.

Annie, That is one of my tricks, too, is to see where organized tours head to. Sometimes, even then, it's hard to tell if they stop somewhere solely from logistic necessity.

KSWL, Is that a GW forum? How interesting? Why does DS2 want to to that?

FWIW, it finally occurred to me to google "is it worth visting Lima, ... Santiago". Pretty lukewarm (especially if you leave out local replies). I think we will actually do Valparaiso instead of Santiago, and limit Lima to the minimum layover time of a day or so. I also have a neighbor who works for a co. with offices in Santiago who is getting me some info.

Thanks, all

Re Lima - from a friend who has family there and visits often:

ÃÂ Astrid y Gaston is the grand dame of Lima restaurants. ÃÂ The ideal is to do a tasting menu. ÃÂ

Most of the high end places have tasting options and relative to US prices they are somewhat reasonable. ÃÂ Malabar is another big place to hit, it's focus is Amazon ingredients and it's well worth visiting.

ÃÂ In general for American tourists I'd suggest mostly high end places. ÃÂ The lower end is harder to get to if you don't speak Spanish, and can be less safe for Americans.

ÃÂ A good guide - ÃÂ http://www.theworlds50best.com/regional-spotlights/peru/

ÃÂ There several major museums, mostly focusing on Peru's history.Barranco is the main arts area and it is a lovely place to walk around during the day. ÃÂ The center of Lima has several great cathedrals. ÃÂ

Also, a gold museum and archaeological museum.

Thank you, neighbor girl! How nice of you to inquire on my behalf!

That's a forum at fodors.com, it is an invaluable trip planning resource! Ds2 is one of those people who has no facility for languages, and by that I mean NONE. He has taken (and passed) years of Spanish in high school and two semesters of college Spanish and he cannot speak a word of it. Our DD is fluent in Spanish--- she was an excellent language student and has lived in Miami and Phoenix, where she spoke the language often--- and she is baffled at his complete non grasp of it.

Unfortunately, his degree requires four semesters of language. He is totally stuck on semester three....he has signed up for it and dropped it four times. (You read that right, 4.) We are now in damage control mode to try to find an alternative for these last two language classes.

(Before anyone weighs in with expressions of disbelief that parents are this involved in a college student's course planning, this is a brilliant young man who has a few very targeted, specific learning disabilities that stem from a near drowning at age three. Doctors told us after his accident they were not sure he would ever even learn to read. We have had to be more hands on with this kid than the others because of his unique history and condition.)

You're welcome! We are going to Santiago in October. Please share any info you might get from your neighbor if you don't mind.

KSWL,
Oh my, that sounds extraordinarily trying. Thank goodness he (along with his family's support, I am sure) was able to defy the odds. Languages do seem to be a "knack"; hopefully he can find something that clicks for him! They say girlfriends/boyfriends who speak the target language are the best solution, LOL!

Neighborgirl,
What takes you to Santiago, I am curious?
Here is what I got from a work colleague my real life "neighbor" :

Places to Go:

1. Downtown including Casa de la Moneda(our White House)/Plaza de Armas/Mueso de Bellas Artes/ Cathedral, etc.

2. Plaza Mulato Hill, which has an excellent food alternatives and it is close to downtown. Recommended by night

3. Cerro San Cristobal Hill to get to the Virgin. You can get a very nice view of all of Santiago.

4. Bellavista neighborhood. This is one of the bohemian places in Santiago with a lot of nice restaurants and nightlife. Recommended by night.

5. Isidora Goyenechea street. This is a very fancy street with also good restaurants and bars.

6. Paseo el Mañío Vitacura. With excellent gastronomic offers as well.

Restaurants:

1. Nollita (Plaza Mulato Hill)

2. Liguria Luis Thayer Ojeda (www.liguria.cl). If you want to understand Chile, you need to go there. By far, the best option.

3. Mestizo restaurant (www.mestizorestaurant.cl). Nice option over Parque Bicentenario in Vitacura neighborhood. Especially for the evenings in summer time (Dec/March)

4. Coquinaria (www.coquinaria.cl). Located in the same building that the W Hotel, it is also a very good option.

5. Tierra Noble. Excellent Chilean food in an elegant way.

6. La Mar (www.lamarcebicheria.cl). Amazing Peruvian food.

PS I have heard great things about the colorful seaside town of Valparaiso. Some source say it is an hour from SLC, some say 2?

Mtrnrdredux: We're going on a specialized tour arranged by our local botanical society. So, we're flying into Santiago (from the west coast) and will be there a few days and then going to some outlying areas. Looks like some great restaurants in Santiago ! If you have any real interest in the specialized itinerary happy to email it to you. Suspect your kids wouldn't be that interested though.
NG