14 April 09

We have finally made it back into civilisation...we are in Lima!

The last few days (Easter weekend!) have been spent in places in the middle of nowehere - all great places - and so there has been amlpe opportunity to relax and just do very little! A nice change...although we really missed eating Easter eggs on Sunday :(

Obviously, its been very hard to update the blog, as we havent had access to any internet, so here's a quick rundown on what's been happening:

Puerto Inca

From Arequipa we made our way down to sea level (finally) to a random place called Puerto Inca (its amazing how the scenery changed from greenery and mountains to rocky desert). It is an ancient Inca fishing port.

I wasn't too impressed with the place when we arrived, as it was basically a small bay surrounded by desert with NOTHING else there (besides one hotel whose toilets we were allowed to use...thankfully). It looked like a dive!

We would camp on the beach for the next 2 nights.

P.S. Putting up a tent in the sand sucks.

To my surprise, the next day was fantastic - the sun was out in full force! We just made it a day of relaxing on the beach (you forget about the all the rocky desert and dark sand), swimming (some people - way too cold for me, although I made it in for 3 minutes until I couldnt feel my feet anymore), eating ice-cream, reading...etc. Tim even hired a kayak and made friends with a couple of sea lions!! They were adorable and super playful!

I got sunburnt.

So, what we at first thought would be a boring place turned out to be pretty cool and an excuse to do absolutely nothing! Oh! We had a cocktail party the first night, but I was still feeling a little off so I didnt really get too involved in the festivities (shock horror!) but Tim made up for the both of us :)

I must say, I slept horribly as the roll-mats we had were useless and so it felt like we were sleeping on cement. Plus, we were on a slight slope...ha ha ha...which made it hard not to slide down!

Nasca

Im sure you´ve all heard of Nasca? Its where all those symbols have been drawn in the desert floor and no one can explain how or why they are there...

Well, we got to visit the little town AND to see some of the lines (and to camp some more)! Some people chose to fly over the lines, but the thought of a 5-seater plane didnt really entice us too much. Plus, it wasn´t the cheapest activity...

On the way to Nasca (just to backtrack) we visited Chauchilla Cemetery which is a 500-year old cemetery of the Nazca civilisation which was dug up by Spanish grave robbers years ago. The preservation of some of the bodies was incredible due to the lack of rain and intense heat, so much so, that many of them still retained their hair and skin! It`s probably one of the strangest places I`ve been to so far...hundreds of bones still lie scattered around the cemetery. Its quite chilling... The backdrop of the cemetery boasts the largest sand dune in the world! Its over 2,000 metres high!

Where we camped in Nasca was actually really nice. We used the grounds of a hotel and so, got to use the pool...it wasn`t the best though. For some reason, it didnt have a filter...?? Anyhow, we cooked up a storm that night, drank plenty of red wine and chilled out around the campfire which Tim and Brendan got sorted for us. Thanks boys!

Huacachina

From Nasca we trucked to Huacachina - a real oasis in the middle of the desert! Its completely natural of course, and its hard to believe that amongst the sand dunes is the little paradise.

We camped again! haha But, Ive really been enjoying it - minus the lack of hot showers! Grrr...

Again, we were able to use the pool (which had a filter) and got to enjoy some tasty drinks in the sunshine.

AND we got to go sand-boarding!! It was the first time I`d ever done it and I want to do it again!! We had a 9-seater dune buggy (with a roll cage - tee hee) in which we hooned around in (of course, WE didnt drive) and it was SO much fun!

Due to my miniature stature, I made it the furthest down the dunes!! ha ha. I even got air off one of them!! Tim was proud! LOL It was such an awesome afternoon...the company even timed it that we finished just as the sun was setting..ahhh, so beautiful! Who would`ve thought sand could be so wonderful :)

I LOVE SAND-BOARDING!!!

Paracas

On our way to Lima, we stopped at another little fishing village called Paracas. The coastline along the way was spectacular. I was soo tired...

We hopped on a little boat which took us out to the Ballestas Islands which is also known as ´the Poor Man´s Galapagos´. We saw all kinds of birdlife and hundreds of sea lions!! The sound they make is intense. I wish I could have jumped in the water and swum around with them...especially with the little pups!

We were told that the bird poo these birds leave behind is very valuable indeed! Every so often, the poo is collected (in some places it was metres high!) and then used as manure. Oh God, the stench!! It was awful. I`d hate to be the `poo scraper´.

No one was crapped on (thought I might throw that in, as we were told to expect a poo on a shoulder or two!!!) LOL.

Lima

So, now we´re finally back in the city. Its not very impressive, although the plazas are quite pretty...I dont understand why Australia doesnt have any amazing plazas..hmmm...

We are heading to the casino tonight! YEEOOWW!!! Lets hope for a win!!