Lima vs Province

I have spent the last month or so in Perú for my wife’s last medical school rotation. We spent the first four weeks in Lima, a city I am fairly familiar with at this point. Now we are up in the mountains in a city called Huancayo. They are common in many ways; language, currency, food, etc. But there are stark differences in climate, accent, cost of living, and creature comforts.

Having lived in Peru previously I am familiar with the distinction between the capital and provinces. As a missionary, I lived 18 months outside of Lima, so in many ways Huancayo is more comfortable and familiar to me. In Lima I could live roughly the same way I would back home in the states. Anything I could want or need was close by, while province living is different. This dichotomy is something to keep in mind when you travel. Are you seeing the real country?