Nazca Lines and sandblasted teeth.
Astronaught or 'Owlman'?'Astronaught right, ok, wait, wait, un momento, left side only, Astronaught left'! It only took these few words from the rayban wearing pilot and I was almost sick. What was I doing? Banking rather steeply to the right, then the left over the Nazca Lines in a rather little 6 seater plane. All before breakfast. Word of advice, when banking steeply to the right (or left for that matter) in a little plane, don't be trying to focus on the little digital display of your camera. Its not good for the stomach. The astronaught was the first of the heiroglyphs we flew over, so I was in a bad way for the rest of the trip. Fortunately it was only about a half hour flight.
The Nazca lines are best viewed from the air in the early morning light, with the low level sun casting shadows across the raised edges of the lines. We had the cheap tickets, again, and went up at about 8am but still had a decent view of the lines although our photos don't really do them justice.
Nobody is quite sure what the lines are for. Some are dead straight and run for miles into the horizon, possibly indicating points of equinoxs or soltices. Others are graphic respresentations of animals, birds, insects and mutations of the aforementioned. It is believed that they may have been used for religious purposes although this has never been proven. There is also the belief that as most are continuous lines, they were some sort of processional tracks. Mike and a fwe others think it is an alien landing site but I'm thinking a kind of punishment made for 'bad' people who were made to go and 'walk the line' in the midday sun when they misbehaved. Depending on the crime, the different lengths of line were to be walked. No one else has a proven theory after years of research, so why not, ey!
Anyway, I've dumped a whole lot of photos in the photo section under Nazca Lines (just to be organised) if you want to see some badly composed images - I wasn't well remember and wasn't quite looking at what I was taking a picture of.
Seeing as how we were up bright and early, we decided to get going (after I'd recovered a little from the motion sickness, Mike's used to flying Microlights so faired better than me). Huacachina, a couple of hours up the road, was our next destination. So what's to do there, I hear you ask. Well sandboarding for one thing, or if you want some real excitement (and the possiblilty of getting motion sickness again) hire a dune buggy. As we'd arrived late in the afternoon, we seemed to have missed the groups of buggies going out. Fortunately the restaurantuer where we had lunch talked us into hiring our own buggy and driver.
So the three of us pile into this thing that slightly resembles a thing out of Mad Max, only colourful. And off we go. Crazed Peruvian driver to the left of me, crazed Mike to the right. No windscreen. We take off, sedately pulling out of the little oasis. Then we hit the dunes and the driver gives it some. Mike is now deaf in his left ear with fingernail marks in his arm. I'm screaming and swearing like a trouper as we tear around the dunes climbing to the ridges then dropping face first over the edge. How we didn't roll it I have no idea. We stop for a minute to take some photos and admire the view, but that's not what we're really hear for so it's strapped back into the buggy and off we go. By this time, I have a mouthful of sand, it's hard to keep the stuff out when you're grinning so much. Then it's time to try to sand boarding. We'd seen some people treking to the tops of dunes dragging the board behind but being the lazy people we are, our driver parked at the top of a rather steep dune, waxed our boards, strapped us in and pushed us over the edge. Now, I can snowboard just fine but I'm not sure whether it was that I hadn't for more than two years, or that sandboarding is quite difficult, but the first attempt didn't go so well. By the time you go to get a turn in, the wax has worn off your board and you literally have to point the thing straight down the dune to get any momentum. Needless to say, I fell over a bit, filling up a few pockets on my cargos with sand on the way.
The Nazca lines are best viewed from the air in the early morning light, with the low level sun casting shadows across the raised edges of the lines. We had the cheap tickets, again, and went up at about 8am but still had a decent view of the lines although our photos don't really do them justice.
Nobody is quite sure what the lines are for. Some are dead straight and run for miles into the horizon, possibly indicating points of equinoxs or soltices. Others are graphic respresentations of animals, birds, insects and mutations of the aforementioned. It is believed that they may have been used for religious purposes although this has never been proven. There is also the belief that as most are continuous lines, they were some sort of processional tracks. Mike and a fwe others think it is an alien landing site but I'm thinking a kind of punishment made for 'bad' people who were made to go and 'walk the line' in the midday sun when they misbehaved. Depending on the crime, the different lengths of line were to be walked. No one else has a proven theory after years of research, so why not, ey!
Anyway, I've dumped a whole lot of photos in the photo section under Nazca Lines (just to be organised) if you want to see some badly composed images - I wasn't well remember and wasn't quite looking at what I was taking a picture of.
Seeing as how we were up bright and early, we decided to get going (after I'd recovered a little from the motion sickness, Mike's used to flying Microlights so faired better than me). Huacachina, a couple of hours up the road, was our next destination. So what's to do there, I hear you ask. Well sandboarding for one thing, or if you want some real excitement (and the possiblilty of getting motion sickness again) hire a dune buggy. As we'd arrived late in the afternoon, we seemed to have missed the groups of buggies going out. Fortunately the restaurantuer where we had lunch talked us into hiring our own buggy and driver.
So the three of us pile into this thing that slightly resembles a thing out of Mad Max, only colourful. And off we go. Crazed Peruvian driver to the left of me, crazed Mike to the right. No windscreen. We take off, sedately pulling out of the little oasis. Then we hit the dunes and the driver gives it some. Mike is now deaf in his left ear with fingernail marks in his arm. I'm screaming and swearing like a trouper as we tear around the dunes climbing to the ridges then dropping face first over the edge. How we didn't roll it I have no idea. We stop for a minute to take some photos and admire the view, but that's not what we're really hear for so it's strapped back into the buggy and off we go. By this time, I have a mouthful of sand, it's hard to keep the stuff out when you're grinning so much. Then it's time to try to sand boarding. We'd seen some people treking to the tops of dunes dragging the board behind but being the lazy people we are, our driver parked at the top of a rather steep dune, waxed our boards, strapped us in and pushed us over the edge. Now, I can snowboard just fine but I'm not sure whether it was that I hadn't for more than two years, or that sandboarding is quite difficult, but the first attempt didn't go so well. By the time you go to get a turn in, the wax has worn off your board and you literally have to point the thing straight down the dune to get any momentum. Needless to say, I fell over a bit, filling up a few pockets on my cargos with sand on the way.
See Mike, this is how you do it! Our everfaithful driver was there at the bottom to pick us up and tear up some more dunes. We got some more boarding in, finally getting the hang of it, and more photos. Mike was also allowed to drive a bit and did very well, not rolling it once. And although I'd stopped screaming so much, I think the driver had no intention of letting me anywhere near the driver's seat.
After about two hours, it was time to head back to the oasis. But just to make sure every orephus was full of sand, we stop once more, this time its head first on our bellies down the dunes. What a giggle.
Yep, Mike managed to keep it upright!Half an hour to empty pockets, boots, ears and mouth of sand, we jump on the bikes for one last dash for the day, this time to the coast. It's time to see the ocean again.
posted by Michelle at 11:01 pm
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