[vc_row][vc_column width="1/6"][/vc_column][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Our first full day in Nasca and we had 2 trips booked. The first to see the ancient aqueducts and some Inca ruins, the second was to see the ancient pre-Inca temple that was built by the Nasca people when they made the lines.
So, first stop, aqueducts. What were they?
Umm. A means of diverting and collecting water when water was scarce is what we picked up. To be fair, they were quite impressive when you think how long ago they were built but actually, they didn't require any more than 20 minutes of our time.
ancient aquaduct
Next stop - some Nasca lines. This was much more interesting. Carved into the desert rock just outside the present day town, our guide took us to an area which was extremely hot and at the bottom of a small mountain. We climbed about 100 feet up and looked down on the huge carving.
He described it as a giant tapestry and pointed out a giant needle and 2 giant reels of thread. He told us they were carved deep into the bedrock and as there was so little water here, they have never been washed away.
Also the dust devils that pop up every now and then, have a habit of following the lines and clean them out. They stop the sand filling them up and obscuring them. Fascinating how they do that. Don't believe us - it's true though!
Our final stop of the morning trip was to see some Inca ruins. More interesting than the ruins which we were not allowed to go into because some people had scratched their names into the walls...spoiling it for everyone else, were the sheer amount of fruit trees growing all around. Our guide pointed out mango, banana, fig, avocado, and many more we can't remember the names of. If you were homeless it would pay to live in the car park here - you would never go hungry!
wonderful food at last
Just enough time for a lovely lunch (Nasca has some of the best vegetarian food we have had in Peru so far!) and a quick nap - all that heat is so tiring - before it was time to head out again.
Another guide - Raoul - collected us in a car and drove us out into the desert. Yes we were in the middle of nowhere with a complete stranger again but it's funny, everyone you meet in Peru is just so sweet and sincere, we trust everyone we have met so far.
We arrived at the pyramid of Cahuachi about an hour before sunset.
Cahuachi Pyramid has a fascinating history and considering it gets hardly any advertising or attention, Wikipedia has pages and pages of information about the site if you care to look. The site dates back to about the same time the Romans were invading England and covers over half a square mile. It was a temple and the focus of many pilgrimages, rituals, sacrifices and burials.
the pyramid site at sunset
Archaeologists have been excavating it for many years now and as excavations are still going on, we were not able to walk into it or get too close in many places.
However, where we could get to and what we could see was enough for Raoul to get excited about.
Raoul was an interesting chap. He was full of theories and explanations for many different things about the Pyramid including the link to the lines, aliens, and the power of the human mind.
He was very passionate about his beliefs and not afraid to share them with anyone who would lend him an ear.
Turns out Raoul had also been the guide when the young couple we met in Bogota - Laars and Marie - had come to Nasca. He had been recommended by them so we gave our ears to him to see what he had to say.
Well it turned out to be quite a lot and with the sun going down rapidly, we had to keep interrupting him to move him along so we could a) get some nice photos and b) make sure we were not stranded there in the dark!
our guide Raoul
But actually, he was also very knowledgable about the Pyramid and he really brought the whole thing to life for us.
The sun finally disappeared and we headed back to the town in the dark.
Maybe not as magnificent as many other Peruvian sites, but Cahuachi really impressed us and we were really glad we had taken the time to come here[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width="1/6"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]View this photo album on Flickr[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
Next stop - some Nasca lines. This was much more interesting. Carved into the desert rock just outside the present day town, our guide took us to an area which was extremely hot and at the bottom of a small mountain. We climbed about 100 feet up and looked down on the huge carving.
He described it as a giant tapestry and pointed out a giant needle and 2 giant reels of thread. He told us they were carved deep into the bedrock and as there was so little water here, they have never been washed away.
Also the dust devils that pop up every now and then, have a habit of following the lines and clean them out. They stop the sand filling them up and obscuring them. Fascinating how they do that. Don't believe us - it's true though!
Our final stop of the morning trip was to see some Inca ruins. More interesting than the ruins which we were not allowed to go into because some people had scratched their names into the walls...spoiling it for everyone else, were the sheer amount of fruit trees growing all around. Our guide pointed out mango, banana, fig, avocado, and many more we can't remember the names of. If you were homeless it would pay to live in the car park here - you would never go hungry!
Just enough time for a lovely lunch (Nasca has some of the best vegetarian food we have had in Peru so far!) and a quick nap - all that heat is so tiring - before it was time to head out again.
Another guide - Raoul - collected us in a car and drove us out into the desert. Yes we were in the middle of nowhere with a complete stranger again but it's funny, everyone you meet in Peru is just so sweet and sincere, we trust everyone we have met so far.
We arrived at the pyramid of Cahuachi about an hour before sunset.
Cahuachi Pyramid has a fascinating history and considering it gets hardly any advertising or attention, Wikipedia has pages and pages of information about the site if you care to look. The site dates back to about the same time the Romans were invading England and covers over half a square mile. It was a temple and the focus of many pilgrimages, rituals, sacrifices and burials.
Archaeologists have been excavating it for many years now and as excavations are still going on, we were not able to walk into it or get too close in many places.
However, where we could get to and what we could see was enough for Raoul to get excited about.
Raoul was an interesting chap. He was full of theories and explanations for many different things about the Pyramid including the link to the lines, aliens, and the power of the human mind.
He was very passionate about his beliefs and not afraid to share them with anyone who would lend him an ear.
Turns out Raoul had also been the guide when the young couple we met in Bogota - Laars and Marie - had come to Nasca. He had been recommended by them so we gave our ears to him to see what he had to say.
Well it turned out to be quite a lot and with the sun going down rapidly, we had to keep interrupting him to move him along so we could a) get some nice photos and b) make sure we were not stranded there in the dark!
But actually, he was also very knowledgable about the Pyramid and he really brought the whole thing to life for us.
The sun finally disappeared and we headed back to the town in the dark.
Maybe not as magnificent as many other Peruvian sites, but Cahuachi really impressed us and we were really glad we had taken the time to come here[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width="1/6"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
