Isla Ballestas - David Attenborough eat your heart out!

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So . . . Today we had a trip planned to Paracas to see the famous Ballestas Islands which are renowned for their wildlife and can only be visited by boat. We had an early morning bus to catch from Lima to Paracas-Isla Ballestas at 4am which meant us only getting a few hours sleep in our hostel reception before our 3am pick. The bus journey headed south down the coast and was probably the most comfortable bus ride ever with big, reclining seats which pretty much went into beds.
All tours start at 8am and as we were running a little late on the bus, we only just made it with our tour guide trying to make us run with our oversized bags to the pier.

The speed boat was FREEZZZZZZZZING - The first site we came accross was the geoglyph of the Candelabra/Three Crosses which is incised in the sands on the big rocks. Similar to the Nazca lines which we plan to see later this week, no one knows how it got there or when and why it was formed.
We then continued for a further 20 minutes in the boat until we reached the first of the isles. They are basically rock formations /cliffs coming out of the sea with absolutely thousands of differnet birds, including; Pelicans, Penguins, Redhead gallinazon and the peruvian boobie. As we continued to circle the islands and move in closer the smell of guano (bird crap) was horrendous. However, the spotting of numerous sea lions made it all worth while. Apparently 20 Tonnes of guano are collected a year and used as fertillser, gross!! The trip was made complete on the journey back, when we spotted pods of dolphins splashing around, which was amazing to see in the wild.

We only had half hour to explore the small town of Paracas which consists of a few local shops (we are proper travellers now, according to Vic's, as we bought woven wristbands) restaurants in shacks and about a thousand dogs (there a millions in Peru) before we had to catch another bus to a town about an hour away called Huaccachina . . . . .

x

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Comments

[Farsh]

Lovin it, Lovin it
Truly memorable blog's you guy's. You really do look like you are having the time of your lives. You were so right to go, and the blogs and Skype's make it much easier for us to keep in touch, and put our minds at rest. We look forward to the updates on your progress, and I am beginging to wish that we were with you. Everywhere looks fantastic, and the sight of the dolphins in the wild must have been spectacular. I have been plotting your progress on the maps, and your research into places to go seems to be really paying off. Looking forward to seeing your Nazca lines pic's. Are you going by plane to view them? Hope that you are managing the back-pack Vic and Scott is being the perfect gentleman and helping you loads. Stay safe and carry on with your great adventure, we look forward to the next instalment with great anticipation. Love Mum and Farsh xxx

[Wolfgang Wirschinger]

Perou and around
Indeed, a very charming report. Reminds me of my own travel experience so many years ago. Then, in 2007 my son Simon (aged 19) was in CHILE for a social year; there he experienced all the areas I didn't reach. Thank yor very much, Wolfgang from Bavaria/GERMANY