Monthly Archives: August 2020

Far below the immaculately tended park perched spectacularly atop Lima’s sea cliffs, wetsuited surfers once again dot the shimmering South Pacific. For a fleeting moment, as beams of sunlight pierce the “winter” cloud cover and locals jog, workout or just take in the view, it is easy to forget that Peru remains in the grips of what may be the most intense Covid-19 outbreak in the world. Officially, there have been more than 28,000 deaths, in a population of 31 million. But when all fatalities are taken into account, including those without a…Read more …

LIMA, Peru – Learning that my neighbor Pepe had died from COVID-19 was shocking. Equally so was the news that he had first tested positive a month previously, in early July. No one in my small apartment block had been notified. Pepe was in his 50s, with health problems and a professional carer. Even at the best of times, he rarely came out of his apartment, the only other one on my floor. It was only by chance, bumping into his devastated sister in the hallway, that I learned of both his passing…Read more …