Balcony tour of Lima, the city of the sky!

Hello everybody! I hope that you are all very well, today I am full of inspirations and I want to tell you a little about some balconies that you can find in the centre of Lima and my opinion, the balconies that are 100% the best in the city.

When you walk through the centre of Lima you are going to find infinite balconies of different styles such as Baroque, Rococo, Republican and Neoclassical. I will tell you that my favourite are the Baroque balconies since they are overloaded with carvings.

I tell you that Lima was a city full of balconies, so much so that they look like cities in the sky where people went and made balconies part of their lives, for example women looked through them without being seen and also during the carnival, balconies play an important role because from the second floor, boys would shoot the girls with a water pistol and vice versa. No one was safe!

The balconies represented Lima's idiosyncrasy and there are Arab influences that came to Lima through Spain in colonial times and became an icon of my beautiful Lima, one of the main reasons why Lima is considered a World Heritage sit by UNESCO.

The balconies are without a doubt icons in the city of Lima and so much so that they were signs of power and economic wealth since there was no family that did not have at least one balcony that was respected in its construction and facade.

Lets start with the trip of my favourite balconies!

The balconies of the Palace of Torre Tagle: "the best in Lima"

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Address: Jirón Ucayali 363. Lima Centre

The first balcony I want to show you is the Torre and Tagle, known as one of the best balconies in Lima and I could even say that it is the best of all that remain. This balcony was built in the 18th century and it currently belongs to the Chancery of Peru. It is a colonial house with its baroque designs on the second floor and one balcony is bigger than the other. It can be found on Ucayali street and luckily for us, this is a pedestrian street so you can take a photo without any inconvenience when you pass through there. If you go at night, you will also find the two balconies lit up and they are a delight to see since everything possible is being done to keep valuing the history of the balconies in Lima. Let's be part of the change in history!

The balconies of Goyeneche Palace: "a French style"

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Address: Jirón Ucayali cuadra 3. Lima Centre

This Palace is located in front of the Palace of Torre Tagle and it is a yellow building with green balconies, just like the previous one dating from the 18th century. However, the main difference of these balconies is that they now have glass windows to make them look more modern. The two balconies of this house, are on each side of the main door and the building is currently owned by the Credit Bank of Peru, also known as BCP, which gives money to restore it. At the moment the house can only be appreciated from the outside, but just looking at it from the outside is so amazing, so as we say in Peru, kill two bird with one stone! Since the balconies of Torre Tagle are on one side and Goyeneche on the other. Then if you want to continue with your journey, you can cross the Abancay Avenue to what we know as Capon Street or Chinatown, a picturesque and busy place in Lima. If you want to know more about Chinatown you can click here, where I have made a post about it.

The balconies of the Archbishop Palace: "neocolonial balconies"

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Address: Jiron Carabaya Cuadra 2 in Plaza Mayor, also known as the Plaza de Armas of my city.

When you see these balconies, you will think that they were built in colonial times but that is a mistake! These balconies were built in the republican era and at the start of the 20th century. There were built with baroque influences because they wanted to keep a style that became really familiar in Lima in those times, a neocolonial style.

The Archbishop's Palace is also in the Plaza de Armas and it is very easy to get there because it is located next to the cathedral. At the top of this palace you can fine the first Archbishop of Lima, Santo Toribio de Mogrovejo, which you can see in the first image. Today the Archbishop Palace is a museum with religious art and sculptures of the Virgin Mary. I also want to clarify that the Archbishop Palace has always been here, since Lima was founded. However the current front, dates back to 1924.

Unlike other museums in the centre of Lima, the museum of the Archbishop Palace costs 20 soles. You could say that it is the most expensive museum in the centre, similar to that of Casa Aliaga. But in my opinion I suggest that you just look at it from the outside and take a very good photo as a memory of Lima, plus from there you can appreciate the Plaza de Armas and if you go at noon, you are lucky! Since you can enjoy the change of the guards, that they do in the Government Palace with 'los húsares de Junín' to the national anthem. Get the camera ready! And enjoy the free show.

The balconies of Osambela House: "a house with different styles"

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Address: Jiron Conde de Superunda. Lima Centre

This house is also known as the house of Oquendo and its origins date back to colonial times. What I like most about this house is its light blue colour which draws attention to the five balconies that can be seen on its front. As well as that fact that when you pass by, you will realise that it is a unique colonial house that has a mini third and fourth floor. How surprising! In a previous article I mentioned that in colonial times you could not build more than two floors in Lima because of the earthquakes, however the owners of this house had so much power that they were able to break the rules of the municipality and so they built the third floor. It says that the owner could see the boats from his company, coming into the Callao port... without a doubt, one of the richest men of the colonial time.

Another point that I wanted to draw to your attention about this house, is that its balconies have different styles, which are closed drawer as well as open chest.

On the other hand, I would like to tell you that inside the house there are some institutions like the Garcilaso Institute as well as Peruvian Academy of Language office. If you find the door open, don't hesitate to go in and browse the things you can find in the house. Inside you will realise that there is no vegetation like gardens as you would find in the house of San Marcos for example, but the house is still very striking anyway, with some vases that can be seen on your tour. This house keeps the influences of a rococo style which means that it is a form of baroque but with a more French style.

The mansion is in the same line as the convent of Santo Domingo and there you can find its museum and also in front there are some galleries where you can buy Peruvian ornaments and other crafts. So if you are are someone who likes to make jewelery and bracelets, this is your place to shop in Lima!

The balconies of the Municipal Palace of Lima: "the balconies that are two floors high"

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Address: Plaza de Armas de Lima

These balconies are the ones that decorate the square of my city and they the biggest that you can find in it, when you see them, you are surprised by their size. They are some of the highest balconies in Lima and they are not colonials, they are neocolonial, dating from the 20th century as a way to enhance the colonial style of Lima. To be more exact, the balconies were built in 1944 and they were designed, not by someone Peruvian, or Spanish... but by someone Polish! This person is Ricardo de Jaxa Malachowski and it is thanks to him that we can find so many monuments and buildings that were built and designed by him which I love so much in my country.

The balconies of the municipal palace are lit up at night and look wonderful. Also on its first floor, you can find a free gallery called Pancho Fierro, who was a watercolour artist who represented the different characters on the streets of Lima. Thanks to him, Lima has discovered many characters such as the 'tapada limeña' who is the woman that whenever she left the house, she covered her face and the only thing you could see were her eyes. Also there are sellers such as the water carriers and fishermen and just a lot of characters, if I tries to tell you all of them, I would end up with an enormous list of people from Lima that have already disappeared. So just take the opportunity and go and visit this interesting and free gallery!

And really dear readers, in Lima you are going to find a lot but a lot more balconies. If you are a lover of architecture, the centre of Lima is a must see, you will pass other balconies and more that you can find in the centre of Lima.

• The balconies of the Consitiutional Court of Peru, which is in front of plaza San Francisco.
• The balconies of the house of Miguel Grau, which is on Jirón Huancavelica street.
• The balconies of the Judge's house which are the oldest in Plaza de Armas.
• The balconies at the arcades which face the Government Palace in the Plaza de Armas.

In the same convent of San Francisco, there is also a capitular room, with the remains of a balcony inside. Which belongs to the Government Palace! Everything related to Peru has a history with a balcony, for example I will tell you about the independence of Peru which was proclaimed by don José de San Martín, from a balcony.

Even in my own house we have a balcony, of course it doesn't have the same colonial style but we have a balcony at the front of my house, which was painted by my dad.

I hope that you have enjoyed this little tour of Lima and that you are encouraged to get to know "the city of balconies", Lima, the city of the kings. Thanks for reading this post, made with all the love that I have for my city!

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