Being too cloudy at 8am to go in the small plane over the Nasca Lines we headed for a cemetery down a four-mile dirt track in the middle of a vast desert, hoping the sky would clear. Upon arrival we realised this was no ordinary cemetery, it had been excavated in 1998 to reveal and preserve the bodies of the Nasca farmers who all seemed to have died sitting down in the foetal position! The detailed remains were enough to bring a chill to all of us, particularly Laura who has never been so cold in her life despite wearing a coat, gloves and a scarf covering her face whilst Hannah wore shorts and flip flops! Once we had seen one grave, we had more or less seen them all and decided to walk quickly back to the bus to ensure we didn´t accidently tred on the uncovered bones and chunks of hair which still grow after death. eugh.

Our tour guide Suzy felt the need to describe in meticulous detail the weather every 5 minutes and we found out she was incapable of telling the time on the way to a pottery studio which seemed somewhat like a house upon arrival! Joanna attempted to make a clay pot by following the example of a Peruvian who took great pleasure in laughing at her masterpiece which consisted of a turd-shaped blob. Inside the studio there was a small shop of clay pots, statues and musical instruments which, upon closer inspection, all had huge willies and were positioned in various kama sutra poses!

All starving by this point we went into the town of Nasca (a small run-down market town) where we ordered food in a restaurant and were told by our tour guide to leave after ordering and return once the food was ready! We wondered around and exchanged some money with a dodgy woman on the side of the street (don´t worry our tour leader informed us the currency was real and stood with us whilst the transaction took place - Charles we are learning the best rates!) In typical Emma-fashion she purchased some jewellery and chose not to ask Laura´s opinion knowing her view on rustic items varies drastically from her own!

At last it was time for the plane journey! (Yes, straight after lunch!) Our group of 5 were the first to go up and as we waited on the tiny runway we became slightly more nervous as we had not considered the size of the plane being affected by the strong wind. Once in the air and after smiling for pictures, Emma decided she did not feel so well after the pilot tipped the plane almost horizontally trying to point out lines carved in the ground that made pictures. The smile soon faded and she spent the rest of the journey with her head in a sick-bag throwing up her lunch whilst Laura and Joanna attempted to breathe deeply to keep their food firmly in their stomachs (which they managed but only just)! The rest of the tour were fine but a good half an hour after landing the 3 of us still felt fairly wobbly but the sun was out so we managed to catch some rays.

Now we are spending a couple of hours chilling at the hotel before taking a 10-hour night bus to Arequipa, the white city, where we will be adjusting to the high altitude in preparation for the Inca Trail.