RIMAC

quarter and district of the LimaCallao metropolitan area, north of central Lima, Peru. Created a district in 1921, the site was settled in early colonial days. The Puente de Piedras (Bridge of Stone) was built in 1610. Notable colonial landmarks include the promenade and Monastery of the Descalzos (Barefoot Brethren); a building claimed to be the Palace of La Perricholi (Micaela Villegas, the mistress of an 18th-century viceroy), which now houses the Museum of the Viceroys; and the Acho bullring, oldest in the Americas. Outside its historic area, Rmac is essentially a lower-income, residential district with small commercial, industrial, and service establishments. The lower slopes of the surrounding Andean foothills are increasingly covered with pueblos jvenes (young towns), some developing into communities and others stagnating as slums. One large sector of Rmac is occupied by military garrisons and housing. The National University of Engineering (1955) is located in the district. Overlooking historic Rmac and downtown Lima is San Cristbal Hill. Pop. (1990 est.) district, 233,003.