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Eleanor Griffis is the author of The Lima Survival Kit; A Guide for Foreign Residents
and is also the publisher of the Peruvian Times.com

Getting out and doing something

You'll never find a curling rink or a snow-ski lift anywhere in Peru, but at least in Lima you'll find facilities for almost every other sport you care to name.

The city boasts six golf courses, tennis courts everywhere, swimming pools, several bowling alleys, cycling groups, sailing, a polo club and seven riding clubs, squash courts and the local equivalent of 'fronton', as well as facilities for fencing, archery, scuba diving, fishing, and even cricket. Last, but certainly not least, are the local favorites – soccer and surfing.

Running and walking are also favorites in Lima and you don't need any fancy equipment for that. It's difficult to find an area where there is little traffic, of course, unless you live in La Molina or La Planicie.

“In town”, that is, the San Isidro and Miraflores areas, the favorites are around the Lima Golf course, which is popular in the early morning, from around 5:30am when the Peru Runners meet, and also in the evening; the sea-front Costa Verde, which offers a good stretch from the Bajada Balta ravine in Miraflores along to the end of the bay at Chorrillos; and along the Cliffside 'malecon' from San Isidro to Miraflores and part of Barranco. San Borja, or Chacarilla, offers a great circuit north of Av. Primavera around Av. Velasco Astete, and some people even drive there from other parts of town: parking is easy, it is quiet for the most part and there are even sections thick with tall trees – near the army headquarters, or 'mini Pentagon' (pentagonito). This circuit is so popular, in fact, that protests from both local residents and runners were strong enough to stop a recent attempt by the government to sell the land around the army HQ to build a series of apartment blocks.

If you like flying high, there's always the paragliding group in Miraflores, jumping off the cliff into the thermal air currents. If you've never done that before (and it really is not something I would be inclined to do), the professionals will take you on a tandem flight for around $25 or $30, and you can get more information from Katia and Jose Rosas on www.perufly.com. Paragliding has become a popular sport in several parts of Peru, and must be an impressive way to see the Urubamba Valley in Cusco and similar sites. Well, maybe I'll try it some time -- a man in Europe has just gone on his first paragliding flight, for his 94th birthday.

Although also to do with flying, scale model airplanes is really a hobby rather than a sport, but there are quite a number of enthusiasts in Lima. They meet on the weekends at Km.30 south of Lima on the Panamericana (turn into Campo Mar U on the south-bound lane, and bear left; ask for the 'campo de aeromodelismo'). A good contact is Werner Meier, who speaks English and German and can be contacted at wcmeier@yahoo.com It's a great option for a Saturday morning with your kids.

And if you like speed but close to the ground, there are six or seven car rallyes throughout the year, of which the most famous is the Caminos del Inca, a week-long circuit that starts in Lima and goes east to Huancayo, then south along the backbone of the Andes to Ayacucho and Cusco, to then come down to the coast again and return to Lima along the Pan American Highway. The rally now attracts international competitors, and details on registration, dates, or just to follow the race, can be obtained from informes@perurally.com or by calling the Automóvil Club Peruano at 225-5251 or 224-3222.

For more information on the sports options available, check www.expatperu.com, the South American Explorers club at Piura 135, Miraflores or, of course, the Lima Survival Kit, available at ACAP offices.