Day 13: Voy a tener uno de todo, por favor.

Our Friday the 13th in Lima started out with a bit of a headache.  After schlepping all of our luggage from the Best Western to the Radisson, Nick left for a meeting and Susan and I waited for the person to come take us to customs to ship our samples.  Firstly, the person was 45 minutes late.  Secondly, traffic in Lima is horrendous and it took 45 minutes to get to the airport.  Long story short, the process was uncomplicated, but involved a lot of signing and waiting and driving and grumpiness from me (I hate traffic so much – even if I’m not driving).

After returning from customs, Susan and I semi-checked in at the Radisson.  My room was ready, but hers and Nick’s wasn’t ready yet.  So we decided to go to lunch at a restaurant near the Radisson.  We went to Alfresco and it was absolutely divine.  Every dish they brought out of the kitchen was exquisite.  Everything smelled amazing and looked beautiful.  Susan had a sea bass dish with a tarragon cream sauce and vegetables.  I had tuna medallions in a coconut almost-curry sauce with mushrooms and asparagus.  Absolutely delicious.

After lunch, we finished checking in at the Radisson.  I have never been so excited for a hotel before.  The room is fairly simple in terms of furniture, art, etc.  But the bathroom is huge, the bed is comfortable, and I have a view of the ocean from my window.  This is a great way to spend my last night in Lima.

Because lunch at Alfresco was so incredible, we took Nick there for dinner.  Nick and I split a “From the Grill” appetizer, which consisted of octopus, squid, tuna, salmon, shrimp, mussels, and scallops served with chimichurri and spicy yellow sauces.  Nick ordered the same dish Susan had for lunch, and I went with a grilled salmon over mushroom and spinach ravioli infused with lavender.  Hello, amazing.  Melt-in-your-mouth delicious.  We finished up the meal with the dessert sampler, which had five small tastings of different desserts they offered.  My favorite was the suspiro de limeña, a rich caramel, creamy pudding/custard-like dessert.  I’m definitely going to be making that at home.  Mmmmm.

So this is my last real night in Lima.  Which means I have to pack.  But also means that in about 25 hours, I’ll be on a plane back to the good ol’ U.S. of A.  Bittersweet, it is…