Nazca - lines galore

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Unless you were hiding behind a rock for the last 20 years you will have heard of the Nazca lines.

For all those of you who were hiding behind a rock the Nazca lines are a set of gigantic geoglyphs in the Nazca desert. The figures are up to 300 meters long and include animals (such as hummingbirds, dogs, spiders and monkeys), geometrical figures (such as trapezoids, arrows) and other like the astronaut.
The lines were done by the (surprise) Nazca culture between 200 Ad and 600 BC. The lines were created by removing small rocks and rubble which lay strain all over the Nazca desert. By doing this they exposed the slightly lighter coloured soil. Why they did this is still not completely clear. The theories range from a landing site for aliens (a theory from alien mad Erich von Däniken), a great calendar to ceremonial paths to please the rain gods.

The only way to really appreciate the lines is from a plane as the figures are just too big to be seen from the ground. The usual thing to do it to go on one of the many chartered flights. The machines are 3-5 seater Cessna’s or similar planes and last for about 30 minutes. Have a look at the pictures to see the result of such a flight.

I also broke my record for the most time spent in a internet cafe in one day. 6 hours! A couple hours were spent writing travel blogs and replying to emails but I also spent two hours playing a game. Just couldn’t be bothered to look at culture anymore and I had to wait for my bus which left at 10.30pm…

Next stop Arequipa

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Photos

Hummingbird
One of the most famous figures. It is also on the Peruvian coins

Astronaut
Or man with owl head. You be the judge

Various geometrical shapes.
Most of the lines are just lines or geometrical shapes. No one is really sure why they built them but there are many theories

Hand and tree line figures and the viewing platform
For all those who don’t want to afford the USD50 for a flight. You can see the two figures in front of the tower for a lot less.

The flight path
Here you can se the route our plane took and if you look closely it also contains more information about the lines