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Published: October 19th 2008
Today was a LONG day, filled with bus rides and lots and lots of waiting. Fortunately the ending was well worth the wait.
We arrived at the Cruz del Sur bus station VERY early for our 7am trip and were able to board the bus shortly after arriving. The bus was SO nice! Definately more comfortable than any other bus, train, or airplane I've ever been on, which was especially nice since the trip was going to be almost 5 hours. The entertainment was a bit weak (old movies...Chasing Liberty and Bloodwork), but I spent most of the trip alternating between staring out at Arequipa and its neighboring towns and trying to nap (unsuccessfully), so it didn't matter.
The bus stopped right in front of our hotel, the Las Dunas Resort in Ica, so we gathered up our things and went to check in. The people from Buganvilla Tours were waiting for us when we arrived so we quickly dropped off our bags and headed back to the lobby, only to find out that we had to wait for the next Cruz del Sur bus to arrive before we could leave for Nazca. We boarded the tour bus and
Arequipa
Or somewhere nearbywaited, and waited.... until finally the rest of our group arrived and we were able to start the two-hour trip to Nazca. We stopped along the way to look at the Palpa Lines, which are actually older than the Nazca Lines but were very hard to see from where we were standing on the side of the road. We then went to the Maria Reiche Museum. Reiche was the German archaeologist who researched the Nazca Lines and mapped the area of all the figures. She is responsible for their preservation, and even after her death in 1998, her team continues to come to Peru every seven years to clean the lines and ensure their preservation.
After visiting the museum we stopped at a tower to look at the only two Nazca lines that you can see from the ground, the Tree and the Hands. They are still quite difficult to get a clear look at and you will see the difference between the photos I took of these figures from the tower and those I took from the plane.
From the tower it was on to the airport for our flight over the Nazca Lines. We assumed (ha!)
Arequipa
Or somewhere nearby that the flight arrangements were already set and that we'd be boarding the plane as soon as we arrived. However, to our dismay we found out that we'd been booked with an airline (there are several available) that only seemed to have one plane and were told that we'd have to wait almost an hour before we'd be able to take off. We sat impatiently and watched other people come and leave before us. Finally, at about 4:30pm, we were able to board our plane and take off for the 45-minute excursion.
Although it hadn't seemed it at the time, it was well worth the wait. The Nazca Lines are AMAZING!!! The pilot turned the plane right, then left, then right again so everyone could see everything as closely and as clearly as possible. If you get airsick, you might want to consider this before taking the flight, because your plane will be ALL OVER THE PLACE, up, down, and sideways. I loved every second of it!!! It was definitely one of the highlights of our trip.
After landing, our tour guide took us on a tour of the Nazca Aqueducts of Cantayo, a series of underground aqueducts
Arequipa
Or somewhere nearby that were constructed 2000 years ago and are still used today.
By this time we were starving so our tour guide dropped us off at a restaurant in Nazca called El Porton. I had Milanesa de Pollo (breaded chicken) and it was SO GOOD! Our driver was waiting outside for us when we finished to take us back to our hotel in Ica. It was a long two hours back and I dozed off for most of it. By the time we returned to our hotel it was almost 9pm. We ended the night with free pisco sours at the bar (this seems to be a normal offering at most of the hotels here).
Tomorrow we are off to Ballestas Islands and the Paracas National Reserve!
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