Celebrations for St Rose This August in Lima, Peru

On August 30th, Peru celebrates a national holiday honoring St Rose, the Americas’ first saint. Even if you’re not Catholic, you’ll find plenty of entertainment- like most of the other religious festivals of Peru, the festivities include drinking, feasting, and dancing, with street vendors bustling about adding color and excitement to the proceedings. Thousands of celebrants will gather along the main streets of Lima to watch processions of the saint’s image accompanied by the flags of the countries of the Americas (a colorful reference to Pope Clement X christening St Rose the “primary saint of the New World.”)

If you’d like to take part in the celebrations, there are two traditional stops you’ll want to make: One is to the St Rose of Lima Sanctuary, her former home, which houses relics and a hermitage she built in the garden. Visitors in search of miracles drop wishes into the property’s well, while others come seeking cures, drawn by the saint’s legendary devotion to the sick. The other traditional stop would be the 16th century Santo Domingo Basilica in the main square, or Plaza Mayor, of Lima, where you’ll find her remains alongside those of St Martín de Porres and St Juan Masías in the Altar of Peruvian Saints.

Your Home Base in Lima

If you’re looking for a fun, comfortable, and economical hostel in Miraflores, Lima, you should give Pirwa Inclan B&B a try. The amiable Pirwa Hostels team is eager to provide you with any info or assistance you need to enjoy your stay in the City of Kings, and there are both private rooms as well as an affordable shared dormitory. The hostel boasts cheerful decor and a TV, movie & game lounge. Enjoy breakfast on the rooftop terrace and challenge your traveling partners to a foosball championship in the patio.

Make it Count- Fun Times in Miraflores!

Miraflores is the area most often recommended for travelers to use as a base from which to explore Lima. It’s easy to see why- the greenest part of the city, it’s a slightly upscale and quite secure but still very relaxed seaside district. It’s popular for its quality restaurants (especially ceviche!), cafés, and shopping, and offers lots of sightseeing and entertainment options. It’s lively, with surfers and sunbathers on the beach, hangliders leaping from the seaside cliffs and circling over the waters of the Pacific, and musicians and performers performing in Kennedy Park.

For a memorable stay in Lima, why not jump off a cliff yourself?… Even if you’ve never hanglided before, you can still take part by flying tandem with an experienced instructor. Another exciting and active way to get into Lima is to indulge in some surfing lessons- they’re inexpensive and you can arrange on the same day if you’d like. There’s a Pirwa Travel Service specialist in each of our hostels that can assist you with arranging excursions as well as inform you about city attractions, arrange transport, etc. If you’d rather make your plans in advance, you can reach them at pirwatravel@gmail.com as well.