A Little Tour of Our Beautiful Neighborhood

Here's the street where we live. You can see garbage bags out in front of the houses, right? That's because every day is garbage day.


Some people put their garbage bags in a little metal basket to keep the garbage off the ground.


The garbage truck comes by and then men dressed in green uniforms (with face masks) run and pick up the garbage and throw it into the truck.


Most upper-middle-class neighborhoods like ours have one or more uniformed guards who watch the area 24/7. Some of the guards ride around on bicycles.


Our area is kept extremely clean. We pay 180 soles (US $60) per month for garbage, security, park maintenance, and yard work. One of our yard boys washes the sidewalks, metal fences, and walls. People who have cars pay someone to come and wash their cars regularly. Our gardener keeps the flowers and lawns in tip-top shape. It's really a clean place, in stark contrast to most places in Lima and most cities in Peru.

Our neighborhood "Chifa" (Chinese restaurant) serves delicious food in huge quantities and at very low prices. There is a Chifa in every neighborhood in Lima.

Here is our neighborhood "panaderia" or bread store/convenience store. We stop here for bread (rolls), juice, milk, chicken empanadas (similar to calzones), and other snacks. There's a panaderia on nearly every street in Lima.

Here is the wonderful little park across the street from our apartment building. There's a park like this one every 2-3 blocks in our area.

We walk past this tree, and many like it, every day. This tree has been shaped for looks and for the needs of the family (one side has been trimmed off to make room for the metal garbage basket). Notice the beautiful flowering shrub in the background. Our neighborhood is filled with these shrubs.


Our yard, just inside our security fence. The landscaping is always kept very nice.

You've just had a little tour of our beautiful neighborhood. Now you know why we love it here.