Ballestas Islands sea life galore!

Peru – July 20

I’ve gotten in the habit of not sleeping the night before we have to make an early wake up and this night is no exception.  Needless to say, I wake up at 5am, 5:30 and then 6:00 and decide to go ahead and get up and get some coffee.  I get the kids up and going and we are ready for our pick up right on time.  We were under the impression we would be riding on a large bus like previous tours, although it quickly becomes clear that we are traveling in a passenger van to Paracas which is the embarkation point for the islands.  After a rather uneventful ride, we arrive and follow our tour guide to the port.  We are given arm bands and are corralled among hundreds of other passengers toward the dock….not sure how they know everyone is together in our group, but at least we five are still together.  We board the openair boat and are soon realizing we have underdressed for the weather.   Most days we have spent have been warm to hot during the day and then chilly to cold starting around 3pm, however, this day has started off grey, overcast and cold so being on the water makes it all the more bone-chilling.  We ride in the boat for about 30 minutes before the tour guide makes a good attempt at describing the sea birds nestled into the rocky outcroppings of the islands…..the little sound system they use is no competition for chatter of the birds, the hum of the engine and the lapping of the waves against the boat.  We see pelicans and then see the tiniest penquins hugging the faces of the jagged rocks.  They have to waddle-hop to climb up the steep inclines.  Next we move on to another island to see the sea lions and seals playing in the water and sunning themselves on the rocks.  The one eyed cormorant seems to be something exotic as the guide keeps marveling over them and how they all fly to the same spot to eat.  After about two hours of touring around the frigid waters, we return to the dock and grab a bite to eat before driving back to Ica for a relaxing afternoon.

Fun on the Dunes of Huacachina

Peru – July 19

Woke up after a wonderful night’s sleep….finally!  Made my way upstairs to breakfast and was nicely surprised.  Great coffee and  a large selection of items for our “desayuno”.  We take our time getting going and finally decide to head to the oasis, Huacachina, today to see what all the hype is about.  A short taxi ride and we are there.  This is pretty cool.  Small cobblestone walkways under the palm trees fringe a small lagoon.  There are a few hotels and lots of places to eat.  We amble around for a while enjoying the cool breezes underneath the shade of the palms.  We enjoy a popsicle and then find some nice vendors selling handicrafts that we browse through before opting to hit the dunes.  We find a driver that is willing to take us on a thrill ride to the top of the dunes.  We negotiate a deal and are off.  The kids are pretty ho-hum about our adventure until we get going.  This machine is the biggest, loudest, strongest, widest machine I have ever ridden in.  It cuts through the soft sand like butter and powers up and over some mountain size dunes…..this is awesome!!! We bounce around for a while and then the machine stops at the top of a large dune.  We get out and get ready to do some sand-boarding.  First Sam goes down the hill and then Annie…now its my turn.  Whoooo….I can’t believe I’m sailing down the dune head first.  This was an amazing ride…like sledding down an enormous hils face first.  We finish traipsing around the dunes, sometimes going totally vertically up a hill and then steeply down the other side in the dune buggy.  After the thrill ride, we head back to Ica a short 10 minute drive away.  Hang out for a while and then have a great lunch at a local diner where the daily menu is ceviche appetizer and then braised chicken, rice and salad with a drink all for the incredible price of $2.50!!  After lunch,   Annie, Paulie and I head out to seek out a market just off of the Plaza de Armas .  We make our way through the crowded and dusty streets to the market, but it is not what we had in mind.  Instead, we find the most wonderful oranges at a stand on the side of the road….we stock up.  As we continue walking through the Plaza de Armas, we find a travel agency…..not hard to find a travel agency as they are on every block! and get all the details to visit the Ballestas Islands tomorrow….our last big outing before returning to Lima. We get some pricing to go to the islands, but opt not to commit to the first offer we get.  Returning home, we rest up and then off to dinner.  Paulie and I return to the travel agency to secure the deal and we are scheduled to be picked up at 6:30am for our trip….UGH.

Moving North to Ica

Peru – July 18

We are slowly making our way up the western coast of Peru along the PanAmerican Highway that runs south through Chile and North through Lima and all the way up to Alaska!!!  We depart Nazca en route to Ica, about 2 hours north by bus.  This time, we are enjoying a VIP bus ride courtesy of Cruz del Sur, once the only bus line running inside of Peru.  Very cozy ride replete with Wifi, Movies, Music and Games from the comfort of our overstuffed leather lounge chairs.  We arrive in Ica right on time and make our way to the hotel we have reserved online.  Upon arrival, they seem to have no record of our reservation, however, they have rooms and it turns out we get a better rate anyway.  After settling into what we all agree is the nicest hotel yet, we take a short walk to the Plaza de Armas and eat a lovely lunch.  Back at the hotel for the night…..we are LAZY people.

God's Eye View of the Nazca Lines

Peru – July 17

We were awakend, after our first good night’s sleep, by the telephone in our room buzzing.  Turns out our guides to take us to fly over the Nazca Lines had arrived about 2 hours early…..hmmm.  We told them we were not ready and they said they would return at 10:30 to pick us up.  After getting ourselves together, we wait in the lobby and are soon picked up and driven to the local airstrip.  There is a bit of a mix up over our ticket voucher, but we soon get it straightened out and are then told we will have about an hour wait.  We take the time to watch a very interesting National Geographic documentary on the Nazca Line and some of the theories surrounding them.  The lines were made in the shapes of animals and plants, but also there are some geometric forms.  Theories as to their meaning include offerings to the Sun God, celestial communications and navigating the patterns of the sun as it swept across the desert.  Some of the images were thought to be incorporated into ceremonies.  As the Nazca culture (or the Inca’s for that matter) had no written language, it is now up to archeologists to try to piece together their meaning.  Whatever they meant, they are huge drawings on the surface of the desert….some of the images measuring over 600 feet in diameter.  We are called to the tarmac and make our way to the very tiny plane that will fly us over the lines as they are really only visible from the air….which makes the fact that they were made all the more impressive.  The pilots instruct us that he will be dipping the wings of the plane toward the figures below which means those seated on the right side will see them when the plane banks rights etc.  As the plane is so small, the turbulence tends to make you feel queasy and once in the air, Sam looks like he’s not feeling too good.  The figures are somewhat difficult to make out on the desert  floor , but once you spot them, they are immistakeable.  After the seeing the “Whale” figure, we are off to the “astronaut” which is kinda weird to think that these lines were made around 500 AD???  It is awesome!!! Next is the hummingbird, the dog, the condor, the tree, the spider, the monkey, the parrot, the flower, and the albatross.   After about the third figure, we notice that Sam is making good use of the airsickness bag….poor guy.  Good thing the flight only lasts about 35 minutes, and once we are on the ground, Sam is looking pretty green.  We all feel a bit queasy but it was a once in a lifetime experience and we are all so happy to have been able to see these amazing sights.  We have a late lunch after everyone’s stomach is back to normal and and early night.  Tomorrow we are off to Ica.

Luxury bus to Nazca

Peru – July 16

After a relatively sleepless night, we get up very early in order to make our bus to Nazca.  We have booked with the company that has the “yacht” of buses…..fulling reclining seats with foot rests, wifi on board, movies on the screen and breakfast and lunch service all for the incredible price of $35 per ticket for a nine hour ride.   Looks like I have finally unlocked the secret of budget travel in Peru J  The trick is to bypass all the middle men and go directly to the bus station to purchase from the source.  A little online research will show you which companies go the route you wish and generally all of the towns we have visited have a central bus station…..just an FYI in case anyone plans to travel independently in South America.

As you can imagine, the majority of the day was spent on the bus described above so not a whole lot to report.  Upon our arrival, we were met at the station by Luis, the son of the hotel owner who whisked us the few blocks to our hotel for the next two nights.  A very new place that seems only partially inhabited.  We settle in and then walk to the “Boulevard” ….the heart of Nazca where the restaurants and shops were still lively at 9pm.  Dinner was typical fare and home to watch…….you guessed it,  “The Big Bang Theory”.  Tomorrow we will take flight……..(cliff-hanger)