On our way to Nasca we stopped off for a few hours late afternoon in Huacachina - a small oasis outside Ica, consisting of a lagoon featured on the back of Peru's S50 note and surrounded by mountainous sand dunes. Took a sunset dune-buggy ride and were able to go sandboarding with some very serious sandboarders from Chicago. The driving was hairy at times but fortunately the buggy didn't flip!

Rocked up late evening to Nasca and confirmed our early morning flight in a 6-person cesna for the next day - advised to leave breakfast until after the flight ...
The flight was incredible with great views of the mysterious, huge Lines in the desert below. There are different theories about why or from when the Lines exist or who constructed them. A personal favourite is the theory of the Lines being representations of shamans' dreams brought on by hallucinogenic drugs! Either way spread across a 500 sq km rock-strewn plain, they form a striking network of over 800 lines, 300 geometric figures (geoglyphs) and some 70 animal and plant drawings (biomorphs). The most elaborate designs include a monkey with an extraordinarily curvaceous tail, a spider and an intriguing figure popularly called the astronaut. Undiscovered until a routine ancient-irrigation research flight by an American scientist, the Lines were made by removing sun-darkened stones from the desert surface to expose the lighter soil below.

Nothing much else happens in Nasca. Filled the rest of the day with a trip to some interesting aqueducts and yet more ruins.

Culinary highlight was a trip to Rico Pollo for a generous portion of Lomo Saltado and some dark red maize juice.

Onward journey to Cuzco via a very hot and smelly night bus, 16 hours - good job the Lonely Planet advised us to wear our thermals!