Paracas and Nazca

Remember how I went to Paracas and Nazca the weekend before my week-long trip? And how I didn't have a chance to update my blog before I left?

Here's that missing post! It's going to be brief, because after writing a post on Arequipa, I'm tired and ready to go to bed.

On Tuesday, October 27, we visited Paracas. It's located on the southern coast of Peru and is known for its massive national reserve and wildlife. The national reserve is a beautiful stretch of desert, notable for its yellow sand dunes located next to red sand beaches. Just off the coast of this reserve are the Islas Ballestas, a rock outcropping known for having huge numbers of pelicans, flamingos, tern, penguins, sea lions, and more.

Paracas

Paracas National Reserve

Yellow sand dunes next to a red beach next to a turquoise ocean



Islas Ballestas. All the black spots on the rock are birds





Sea lions!

Really cute sleeping sea lion

Beach filled with sea lion mothers!

Then on Wednesday, we went to Nazca. We spent the morning climbing the Cerro Blanca, the highest sand dune in the world, then sandboarded down. It was really difficult to hike up it, but it was so worth it. Then we went to see the Nazca lines, a series of massive geoglyphs etched into the desert. We didn't fly over them because the prices were raised recently and I didn't have my passport on me. But we went to a mirador, a three story high tower overlooking the lines. Then we went to a nearby hill and watched the sun set over the lines, which was a wonderful experience.

At the top of the Cerro Blanco

The tree, my favorite of the Nazca lines