Nazca Lines and Huacachina Oasis

On Peru's coast there was a first. It was somewhat calm and Kai could bring himself to play a round of speed badminton with Silke. Although our technique is not yet fully developed, it was still fun. After the match, unfortunately, we looked like two breaded schnitzels and grains of sand can still be found in the Maggi to date. The next morning we set off towards Nazca. Just under 400 kilometers - a relaxed day trip. Well, if not for this wonderful detour "Desivo" that came along. On the way we met two Spaniards in an old VW bus, they told us about a landslide on the Panam. The local police have set up a detour through the mountains. This was 80 kilometers long and in bad condition. Well, the information of 80 kilometers was correct, but the description "bad" mocked the condition of the road. This dirt road was really bad, compared to Ruta 40 it was a piece of cake. We needed 1 ½ days for the 80 kilometers and our average speed was a phenomenal 16 km/h. Afterwards, we were shaken, had a few more bruises and were pretty exhausted.

 But Maggi did not survive the bumpy ride unscathed either. The weld seams of the luggage rack were all torn. Well, there was only one thing left to do, disconnect the battery and sharpen the welding electrodes. At that time we were or rather Kai was pretty frustrated, so there are no snapshots of this action. Please forgive us. However, we got rid of the frustration again and can now laugh about this welding action on the beach.

With a little delay, we finally arrived in the vicinity of Nazca. First on the agenda was a visit to a cemetery from the Pre-Incan period. Very impressive, but also a bit spooky. Bones were scattered around the round path and therefore we decided to find another place to sleep.

The next day we made a stop at the Nazca Lines and the Palpa Image Carpet. The small planes did not make a trustworthy impression on us, so we opted for the two observation towers. Our conclusion: nice and interesting to look at, but we had seen better things on our trip.

In contrast, the Huacachina Oasis was an unexpected highlight. The journey there was a torture though. At times, the police blocked the access to the oasis due to high traffic and there was chaos in the oasis as well. This led to our first accident. Don't worry, nothing serious, we grazed a waiting car with our tire - allegedly 😊. Maggi didn't mind this contact, but we left marks on the other car. Thanks to the tourist police, the matter was quickly resolved, we paid the injured party 30 soles (about € 7.80) and after a round of "shaking hands" the police escorted us to a safe sleeping spot. The next day we climbed a sand dune, a pretty sweaty affair.

As a little compensation, we treated ourselves to a pitch at the "Eco Camp". Fantastic! There was a pool with a Pisco bar and a nice breakfast buffet in the morning.

As you can never get enough of Pisco, it was time for another visit to a winery. The tour was nothing special, but the tasting afterwards had potential. The food was also very tasty, even if it doesn't look like it.