1. It's got some of the world’s finest dining — at affordable prices.



(powerplantop/Flickr Commons)

Lima regularly has several restaurants ranked in the global top 100, and you won’t be breaking the bank if you visit them.

2. There are some of the best waves known to surfers anywhere.



(surfglassy/Flickr Commons)

There are breaks for all levels, but the most spectacular are at La Herradura beach.

3. For ceviche, Lima is the capital of the universe.



(powerplantop/Flickr Commons)

Many restaurants here offer a dozen or more types of this classic, marinated seafood salad. Don’t forget the cold beer!

4. Raincoats are almost never needed here.

Lima is second only to Cairo as the largest desert city on planet Earth and, despite being chronically overcast some eight months of the year, it almost never rains here.

5. The city is completely flat, so it's (almost) perfect for cycling.



(Ernesto Benavides/Getty Images)

Just watch out for Lima’s drivers, which are some of the most reckless and aggressive in the Western Hemisphere.

6. Thanks to the Amazon and Andes, Lima has some of the most original produce in the world.



(James Byrum/Flickr Commons)

The street markets are filled with delicious, exotic ingredients you have probably never heard of before.

7. Chicharron sandwiches. 'Nuff said.



(Flickr Commons)

This is Lima’s wake-the-dead hangover cure — a strong coffee with a chicharron (fried pork) sandwich, with thick slices of steamed sweet potato, chili sauce and marinated onions.

8. Piracy.



(Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)

If bad quality, dirt cheap DVDs, $10 Rolexes or fake Nike threads are your thing, you are very much in the right place.

9. Or, if you prefer genuine products, there's this totally insane mall.



(Antonio Atalaya/Flickr Commons)

Larcomar mall is built into a clifftop overlooking the Pacific. This has to be one of the most scenic malls you’ll ever shop in.

10. It has this exhibit at the Larco Museum.



(Flickr Commons)

The ceramics from the pre-Incan Moche civilization are positively pornographic.

11. The “menu.”



(Flickr Commons)

These tasty, nutritious and lovingly presented two or three-course set lunches typically cost about $3 or $4. This particular "menu" includes stuffed avocado, rice and mincemeat with raisins and spices. The drink is chicha morada, made from purple maize and sweetened with sugar.

12. Its hipsters are more hip than your hipsters.



(Martin Garcia/Flickr Commons)

This leafy, Bohemian neighborhood is packed with colonial architecture, cool dive-bars, classic seafood restaurants and the occasional hipster night haunt.

13. The Andes are like, right there.



(Magnus von Koeller/Flickr Commons)

A crazy, three hour drive will take you up 15,000 feet — to a region of remote mountain wildernesses full of breathtaking treks.

14. Another six hours and you will be in the Amazon.



(Mariusz Kluzniak/Flickr Commons)

15. Dolphins.



(Flickr Commons)

Out at the break, as you wait to catch a wave, dolphins do still hang out with the surfers.

16. You don't have to fear sharks.



(Christian Córdova/Flickr Commons)

Unlike most of the world’s other great surf spots, shark attacks are all but unheard of here.

17. There's this amazing clifftop park to hang out in.



(YellowSingle/Flickr Commons)

The Malecon overlooks the Pacific and is the perfect place to while away an afternoon — or catch the sunset over the ocean.

18. Oh, also, you can go paragliding from the Malecon.



(Martin Garcia/Flickr Commons)

19. There are many, many ancient mysteries. It's heaven for the History Channel.



(Ernesto Benavides/Getty Images)

The remains of this mysterious pre-Incan city, called Pachacama, built around 2,000 years ago, are just a short drive south of the city. Andean civilization never developed writing so today very little is known about the heavily eroded collection of adobe and stone temples and pyramids.

Simeon Tegel is GlobalPost's Senior Correspondent for South America. Follow him on Twitter.