Huacachina and Belleste Islands
Huacachina,
Peru
Friday, September 19, 2008
Our bus to Ica worked out fine. Slept some more...Iīm getting good at sleeping on buses! We were met in Ica when our bus arrived and we all piled into a taxi (all 4 of us had to squeeze into the back seat). We were told the road was being worked on and that we couldnīt drive to Huacachina in the taxi but had to take the Dune Buggie. So, we moved our luggage and buckled ourselves in. The buggie made a lot of noise as we pulled away. We drove on a road for a bit and then were all of a sudden in the dessert, surrounded by sand dunes. It was pretty amazing, and slightly scary. When we went over our first big bump I might have yelled at Jan, asking him what on earth he had gotten us into!!
After driving through the desert for a bit we could see a beatiful oasis, with trees and a lagoon. It was pretty amazing among all that sand (we later foundout that it was not quite so in the middle of nowhere. The next morning, on our way back to Ica, we took a taxi the whole way, along a road that seemed ok and was not surrounded by sand dunes. We asked why the car could go today and were told something about the construction going on in the afternoon only...I think it is just a more dramatic way of bringing the guests in!)
Our hostel was almost really nice but was just slightly dirty. I guess it has something to do with all the sand but there was also lots of bottles of oil and it seemed greasy, maybe has something to do with repairing dune buggies or something. They told us we would go sand boarding later in the afternoon, maybe around 3. We walked around Huacachina a bit. It was really beautiful. The sun was shining. We at lunch at a restaurant right on the lagoon.
After lunch we went back to the hostel and were told we were leaving right away for our sand boarding (it wasnīt even 2! Itīs amazing how plans are constantly changing in this country on these tours!) The sand boarding was crazy! I actually did enjoy it. Riding in the buggie was like being on a roller coaster, only a little more scary because a guy was driving it and didnīt always have his eyes in front of him. We would go over these huge hills and then go flying down!! So scary!! The sandboarding was actually less scary then the buggy riding. I rode down on my stomach and did not attempt to go standing up. Jan, an experienced snow boarder, went standing up the whole time. Martine tried standing up once but then went on her belly the rest of the time. Alesso went back and forth. It ended up being just a little over an hour (we had been told it would be 3 hours) but this was one time I didnīt mind that the tour didnīt end up being what we were promised! I didnīt mind cutting it short.
We headed back to the hostel but asked our guide to let us off a little before we got there so we could sit by the lagoon for a bit. We layed in the sand, enjoying the sun. We had been told there was a pool at our hostel. There was, but it was under construction! Of course! Unfortunately, youīre not really supposed to swim in the lagoon (the water isnīt good for you) so we just layed out and enjoyed the sun. Jan and Alesso walked up some really tall sand dune but Martine and I just relaxed, and tried to communicate but neither one of us speaks Spanish that well (and her Italian accent when speaking Spanish was VERY difficult to understand).
When the sun went down it immediately got cold so we went back to the hostel. I showered but I donīt think I will ever get all of the sand off of me as I was COVERED from head to toe in sand. We booked a tour for the next day to go to the Balleste Islands (the Galapagos of Peru!). The islands are in Paracas, near to Pisco. It required a 5:30 am departure (this is not a week of sleep for me!!)
The next morning we took a taxi to catch the bus to Pisco. In Pisco we were met by the brother of the owner of the hostel we stayed at in Huacachina. We took a bus to Paracas, where our boat left. The ride was sligtly disturbing as the there had been an earthquake there last year. It looked like a war zone, with rubble everywhere. A little bit had been rebuilt but not much and there were just stones and fallen down buildings everywhere.
Our tour was a three hour boat ride around islands. It was a very overcast day which wasnīt so nice but we did see some pretty cool animals, penguins, sea lions, lots of birds, and some star fish. The islands are covered in bird poop and are apparently cleaned every 7 years. They harvest all the poop and use it for fertilizer! The penquins were adorable, as were the sea lions. Although some of the other birds were pretty cool looking, I was mostly just nervous about all of them flying over me and pooping! Jan got pooped on, but just on his life jacket which was good. It wasnīt the most exciting thing I have done but the animals were nice to see. They pack us into a boat though so you couldnīt even hardly take a picture without having a tourist with a life vest in it!
We made it back to Pisco and caught our bus to Lima. It went along the Pan American highway, which is surrounded on all sides by little shops and restaurants. Not what you would expect along the biggest highway. We made it to Lima in the afternoon and checked into Hostel Espaņa, a very crazy hostel with lots of statues and big mirrors, slightly overdone. But, we had a very nice room with a newly redone bathroom and it was only 50 soles for the night. It was in Central Lima, which everyone says is not a nice place to stay but we wanted to tour the old city the next day. After checking in and relaxing a bit we met Merena, another friend from Cusco who is working in a hospital in Lima for a few months, for dinner. It was good to see her and we got to hear lots of ridiculous stories about the horrors in a public hospital in lima!
