Changing of the Guard, Lima, Peru Postcard

Guards perform a ceremony as they change at the Government Palace in Lima, Peru. The building is the president of Peru's official residence. The milky white sky is typical of Lima. The citizens of Lima call it "donkey belly" color. Known as the Government Palace of Peru and also the House of Pizarro, the Peruvian government headquarters was built in 1535 over a huge Indian burying ground Waka that had a shrine of Indian chief Taulichusco. The first palace was a modest two-story pile of adobe. The palace has undergone many transformations over the years. The current structure was completed in the 20th century by President Oscar R. Benavides during his second government in the 1930s in the style of neo-baroque French-inspired architectural design. The first Government Palace was built by Francisco Pizarro, the governor of New Castile. When the viceroyalty of Peru was established, the palace became the viceroy's residence and therefore the Peruvian government's headquarters. The main architect of the palace was Ricardo de Jaxa Malachowski. The palace is a stately government building with a set of ornamental guards, shown here. A large wrought iron fence that surrounds the building and lines one side of the Main Square (Plaza Mayor).