Manolos is not a big deal or a must. It caught my interest because MANOLOS I had seen in Panama City Panama many years ago, (1970's) and I was surprised to walk up upon it in Lima. But it is a nice cafe and food is pretty good. The main strip which takes you to the park like in downtown Miraflores, up from the Larcomar area on the cliffs is where Manolos is. But for you, it ISN'T a must. But, you did ask for some tips and better more than less. I think to visit the Catacombs in Convent of San Francisco is a MUST because you will never experience anything like it anywhere. The tour is so cheap and very well organized, English speaker. The art work fabulous and history awesome. So try it like this...

1. Larcomar mall in front of the Mariott hotel where all the neat shops are and restaurants, HAVANNA is a must IF you like coffee, and cafe style places. The view is excellent from there. Lots of other places to see in there. But the mall in general is a must and you really can't miss it.

2. The catacombs in downtown Lima is a MUST.

3. If you can do it, the restaurant I mentioned on the beach LA ROSA NAUTICA, but its not a MUST, especially if you are more or less on a budget or prefer non-seafood.

4. If you like dancing and partying, they do what they call PENA (sounds like PENIA since I don't know how to put the Spanish accent symbol over the "N" on my computer.) This is a local POW WOW of dancing, eating and drinking. Like a loud cantina, smokey, and very unhealthy, I don't recommend it unless you don't mind the atmosphere. Around 25 years ago that would have been cool, but in my time and age, I prefer the intellect enviroment and cleaner air space. These you find the best in downtown Lima and any cab will take you to any of them but this is a great way to get a feel of the Peruvian spirit of having fun.

5. The fountain park the other guy here was mentioning about, I was there too. It's great. You gotta go at night. WATCH WALLET, because there is lots of people. That is in another part of Lima from the Plaza Nacional area. I couldn't tell you exactly how to get there but again CABBIES know where to take you. It's incredible if you like that sort of stuff. Have you been to Vegas at the Belagio? Something like that but in much grander scale inside a park that does everything with fountains.

6. Do buy some Peruvian knitted hats made from LLAMA, and if you pay more than 2 bucks, for one, you paid too much. I like to get about 5 or more at a time for the best deals. Like 5 at 2 bucks a piece. There is another area not far from the Palacio Nacional that sells junk like wallets and hats and Peruvian arts and crafts, great deals.