After learning about the existence of the Nasca Lines via a Trivial Pursuit questions years ago, I was intrigued to see what they are like in real life.  Around here there are apparently quite a few deserts that are filled with geoglyphs like the Nasca Lines, yet none are so famous and I do not think any of the others have been declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites, so off to Nasca I went to look at lines rather different to those sought by most backpackers in this part of the world.

The best way to see the lines is obviously by flying over the desert in a little plane and viewing them from the air as some of them are over 200m wide and all are located in the middle of nowhere surrounded by land mines to deter anyone from visiting on foot. The only other way to see them is from a small platform located at the side of the highway which allows an oblique view of some of the geoglyphs on a clear day; yes they really did build a highway through the middle of the desert.

At US$60 it is not a cheap activity. Until recently it would only have cost me about $40, but there was an accident involving a pilot who had a heart attack whilst flying, and so now all planes must be equipped with a co-pilot in the event that anything similar should arise again. I was loaded into my plane which was big enough to seat four passengers and was joined by a Peruvian family of two grandparents and a toddler that I am sure was not old enough to appreciate where he was. The ride was not comfortable in any way at all, with temperatures soaring well above anything I've experienced for a long time and lots of winding aerobatics to give us the best view of the lines resulting in the little tyke throwing up - thankfully into a handy plastic bag Grandma produced from nowhere!

Aside from the discomfort of the experience it was really interesting. It is not known for sure where the lines came from, who created them or when they were created. According to the ever-reliable source of Wikipedia "the lines are shallow designs made in the ground by removing the ubiquitous reddish pebbles and uncovering the whitish ground beneath", so that at least explains something. There are hundreds and thousands of lines, most of them straight and not too exciting to look at, but the interesting ones are those in the shape of familiar objects such as a man, spider, monkey, hummingbird and dog etc. My photos don't really do the lines justice, but I have uploaded them anyway. If you want to see a better version then a quick Google search will give you all you need.

As there is not a whole lot to do in Nasca I didn't hang around for too long. I spent one night there just to try and catch up on some sleep and used the hotel bin to get rid of various items that I no longer considered useful, such as jumpers, warm trousers, sleeping bag, walking shoes and other things that are not required for the beach time that I am heading for next!