Journey with Sheila: June 2009

Fiona and I were in search of the sun this weekend. We have not seen the sun since the first weekend we arrived in Lima. So when we decided to go to Nasca, we decided to stay in Ica, an oasis in the middle of the desert...a desert like the Sahara. This place was amazing...it was nice and warm and beautiful.

Here is the hotel we stayed in. It has the best pool I have seen in Peru. Most of the "pools" I have seen have been two feet maximum of water. Not sure I'd call that a pool, but this place was great. Nice, clean and had a warm shower.

Below is a picture of the hamburger royal...they put plantains and a fried egg on the burger. Of course I took those off before eating. We also had fresh fruit juice that was fabulous! We had fresh pineapple, banana, and cantaloupe juice. Awesome stuff.

Here was a friend we made. He wanted to eat our food.

So we decided to hit the desert and experience the thrill of dune buggies and sand boards. I cannot begin to tell you how much fun this was. Fiona and I sat in the from seat so that we could see all the action. This was seriously better than any roller coaster I have ridden, including King's Islands, the Beast! You never knew quite what to expect. We went climbing up walls that seemed impossible to climb and went down slopes that we couldn't directly see the bottom. Our driver took hills and turns at speeds that made us scream out loud. What an exhilarating experience. Below are pictures of the buggies we were riding in.

Below are pictures of the desert. Most of the places we have been, including Lima is the desert. However the landscape has looked very much like parts of southern Utah and Nevada. I was really surprised to see that this desert looks like what I imagine the Sahara Desert to look like (based on movies and pictures). As we sped through the dunes, we came to a stopping point and our driver said "ok, we're getting out and you're going to sandboard." So I was not completely shocked by this as I knew sandboarding was an option; however, I just didn't know what to expect. I most certainly didn't think I would be expected to ride a board down a slope that seemed to be about 75 degree angle as well a it was a pretty long slope. Being afraid of heights, I have to say that I was a little nervous doing this, but after a short tutorial from our guide I was sliding down the slope. I made it down the hill without completely wiping out and it was really fun.

Our guide then took us to two additional spots, each spot getting more complex -- longer, steeper and more complex. I actually loved every minute of it. It was so much fun and a lot easier than I thought it would be. Below are pictures of desert, unfortunately I didn't get any of me sandboarding, but there is a very terrible pic of me in the dunes.

We ventured outside of Lima this weekend looking for some culture, relaxation and SUN! We found exactly that in Nasca and Ica, Peru. This weekend was filled with a lot of first time events for me. The first of those events was to fly in a small 5 passenger prop plane, a Cesna C 206. In order to really be able to view the Nasca lines we had to fly over the desert. I was amazed at how easy and smooth the take-off and landing were. I hardly noticed both. Unfortunately the in between portion was the more difficult. In order for us to be able to view the lines and to be able to take photos, the pilot maneuvered the plane to the right and left and flew circles over the 12 identified lines. At one point when I thought for sure I was going to loose it (I was thinking: where is Garth and his spew cup?), I had to just stop looking out the window. All in all, it was very cool. Below are pictures of the Nasca Line experience and we even got a certificate of completion upon our return. Woo who! Click to learn more about the Nasca Lines.