Huacachina - the oasis of America

Huacachina (Peru)
18 MAY - 19 MAY 2015

When I found out that there was a Saharan style oasis set amongst rolling dunes ride in the middle of Peru, well, nothing was going to hold me back from getting there. Just the idea of it conjured up images of  South American sheiks tripping out on ayahuasca, getting into their arbo-latino-trip-hop mixes as they lay on the banks of lake Huacachina contemplating the existence of minature chihuaha's.

Huacachina - Peru

Huacachina - Peru

....So most of what I imagined didn't exist but hell, it didn't have to, it was still the appearance of the totally unexpected that made our visit a little surreal. I mean even though we knew about Huacachina before our arrival, the marvel of just jumping into a cab, in what seemed to be a typically South American town and then all of a sudden having vast sand dunes appear from virtually nowhere, giving way to a lush oasis, all seemed implausible. But of course there it was, 'Freakin Huacachina' as Inga and I termed it, presented itself like the fabled mirage, appearing on the periphery of our consciousness after a bit of a slog out of Nazca. Quite the show my friends, quite the show.

 Dune bashing & Sandboarding - Huacachina - Peru

                                     Dune bashing & Sand boarding - Huacachina - Peru

The coolest Latvian in Huacachina - oh yeah!!

 Out on the dunes - getting into some dune bashing

Huacachina selfie

Apart from being a hub for well heeled Peruvians to delve into their inner Arab, Huacachina presents itself as somewhat of a hive for adrenaline related activities, specifically sand boarding, dune buggy bashing, sledging, partying, etc.

This is me trying to pull of some Kanye West moves - it looks moronic when he does it, and yeah, it looks moronic when I do it too!

That makes sense....

Rock 'n Roll sandboarding - Huaca-freakin'-China

Huacachina - Peru

Huacachina - Peru

Huacachina at night

On our first full day there Inga & I had a great time blasting across the dunes in a pimped up buggy, boarding down the sand slopes and watching the sun drop out of sight. A hell of a lot of fun and somewhat of a 'fresh' experience. I say that because of the 'unexpected' element. Perhaps not so odd in that this part of the world formulates some of the driest regions on earth. Indeed, only 250kms north you have Lima which is the second driest capital city on earth after Cairo - aridity, lack of rain and sand should be understood to be common here. For some reason, in my head, the sand dunes didn't make sense, but geography should convince me otherwise.

Huacachine provides for a great experience all round. Well worth the stop and more than recommended if you are passing through the area. So don't miss it!

Nazca - walking in a straight line

Nazca (Peru)
17 MAY - 18 MAY 2015

On November 12, 1996, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake hit the down of Nazca, virtually destroying it. Within 12 years however the town had almost been entirely rebuilt, and by the time we arrived in 2015 you could say it had been completed. It goes to show that when there's nothing happening in a town then it doesn't take a lot to get things back to the way they were. As a town in its own right Nazca mimics the environment in which its set, dry and plain.

Aero Paracas - Nazca - Peru

Aero Paracas - Nazca - Peru

Nazca - Peru

Nazca lines - Nazca - Peru 

Nazca lines - Nazca - Peru 

Nazca lines - Nazca - Peru 

We weren't here for the town though. We were here because at about 5pm on Saturday afternoons as a kid growing up during the 80's in Sydney there used to be a show on Channel 7 named 'Great Mysteries of the World'. For years, during that half hour, I was introduced to mysteries such as the Bermuda triangle, the search for Bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster, and of course, the mystery of the Nazca lines. The latter of course fascinated me the most as the angle of discussion always centred on the reasoning behind why these geoglyths exist, what they were meant to represent and who/what was the communication for. Inevitably the theory always slanted towards the notion of extra-terrestrials having managed this piece of work - which too me was fantastic, as anything to do with astronomy, aliens, alien life forms, anything...was of great interest to me. Of course other theories suggest that this could just be 'old school' graffiti with the young guns of the day just looking to express themselves in new and exciting ways - which is cool I say, but hey, where did the alien looking dude come from? What was that idea all about?

 Nazca lines - Nazca - Peru

Nazca lines - Nazca - Peru

 Nazca lines - Nazca - Peru

Nazca - Peru

Nazca - Peru

Nazca - Peru

Of course this is THE attraction of Nazca and there are tour operators everywhere in the town. Unbeknownst to me we actually selected a company with a good safety record, Aero Paracas. Something that probably should have been at the forefront of our mind when flying over the plains as there had been a number of incidents, both crashes and hijackings, which makes the idea generally a little precarious.

Once airborne and away however most of those concerns faded from the mind. The lines however were not as impressive as I anticipated overall. Perhaps it was the our elevation of our flight or the entire weight of expectation but the there was something just entirely underwhelming. Some geoglyths did stand out, such as the 'Spaceman', the 'Spider' and 'Monkey', and from that the idea of what/why and who did not diminish.The burning questions are still ever so valid and create the elevated nature of mystery which brought us here in the first place.

So to you alien creatures that are still looking to communicate, just drop us a Tweet and tell us all about it! We're listening!

Machu Picchu - the Old Mountain

Machu Picchu (Peru)
15 May 2015

Machu Picchu was the capital to which the Incas escaped when Pizarro came rolling into their world during the year of 1532. Over time it become the ' Lost City of the Incas' as it only became known to us Westerners after Hiram Bingham received a few insightful directions from local farmers and stumbled across a site that had been retreating into the jungle for the better part of 400 years.

The 'Old Mountain' sits high in the Andes mountains, occupying a magnificent perch above the Urabamba valley. With the fall of the Incan empire this city (or estate) of magnificence covered itself in a magic cloak and hid in plain sight for some time until it was pulled out of the trenches.

To steal a line from the Lonely Planet guide, '...It's the most famous archaeological site on the continent, a must for all visitors to Peru. Like the Mona Lisa or the pyramids, it has been seared into our consciousness, though nothing can diminish the thrill of being here'. It's the reason that relatively lazy tourists will wake up at 3am in the morning and prepare themselves to watch the sun rise over this awe inspiring site. There's an inherent sense of wonder, reverence, incredulity. For a lot of people its a once in a lifetime experience and the pinnacle of their journey, not just to Peru or South America, but indeed anywhere.

Machu Picchu - Peru

In the same fashion both Inga and I were raised by our intrusive alarms at around 3am, giving us enough time to get ready, obtain our entry tickets and walk the 15-20 mins out of town to the park entrance. Walking along in pitch black we were assisted by the more prepared gringos who has brought flash lights or head lamps for the morning journey. As these beams of light bounced on the road both in front and behind us, we managed to be guiding relatively safely to the park entrance, where a relatively long queue had already formed prior to opening.

This immediate group was formed by either the most energetic, the most frugal or the most naïve. Generally it was for those that didn't want to put the either the $12USD one way or $24 USD return fare to the entrance gates of Machu Picchu. For me, I had not choice. I had a Latvian with me that was extremely energetic, frugal, a touch naïve and also looking for an opportunity to encompass defacto exercise into their sightseeing. This translated into a relatively fast paced and taxing climb from park entrance to gate entrance. A solid 50min stair climb at somewhere above 2000mtrs - no expresso needed this morning, this was more than enough of a wake up call. Never the less our ascent was impressive. Not impressive enough to have beaten the hoards that had taken the minivan option to get up, which essentially was our goal too, but impressive enough to have made it past most of the 4:30am hikers.

The gates to Machu Picchu open at 6:00am. From there it's a free-for-all.

 Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

Tourists swarm. Unknowingly, unwittingly, unfathomably. Everyone aims to get the 'sunrise' photo, perhaps without knowing what 'that' photo should actually look like or where the prime vantage point for 'that' photo is.

Inga & I were of the same elk. Unclear and muddled. We somehow found a spot that provided a well recognised view and stood long enough for the clouds to clear enough to capture something impressive.

...and let me say, Machu Picchu is impressive. It's all sorts of majestic, ethereal & breath taking.

I've seen a lot of impressive places in my time and can say that Machu Picchu only ranks behind Angkor Wat in terms of impact and magnitude. The setting and the associated endeavour for humans of that time to have achieved what they had on this site is prodigious.

Inga and I spent a few hours walking around the site. Absorbing, taking photos, discovering. We then attempted to make our way to the start of the hike of Machu Picchu mountain, which somehow we bypassed and instead made the ascent to the Sun Gate. Impressive in its own right and a view that provides a sense of scale, but, not it was not the hike that we expected, and not the permit that we paid for. We eventually found the entrance to 'Montana'...and here's where my life took a serious turn.

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

The climb to the top of Machu Picchu mountain is recognised as being challenging. A steady 2.5hr-3hr round trip that when taken at a 'steady pace' will leave you relatively fatigued and craving a soak plus a cold beverage of your choice. There are also closing times for entrance to the trail - allowing for people to get safely up and off the top of the mountain by 2pm. Inga & I had arrived at the trail head at around 11:20am.

We attempted to sign-in for the walk at that time but the guard of all things 'montona' related was going by the book - 'No start times post 11:00am' - we argued of course, we advised that our levels of fitness were very good and that we'd be up and down before most of the people with a 20 min lead on us. This 'discussion' continued for sometime. Indeed I had given up on the idea and was walking away from the trail whilst Inga continued the barrage of assurances that 'we' could do this, and do it within the allowed time.

 Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

By around 11:35am the guard was beaten into submission and we were given the green light. The gates to hell were thus made open.

Now when Inga and I hike we never cruise leisurely, we treat hikes, especially those that rise in elevation, like workouts. This hike was basically a straight climb of 621mtrs landing at the final summit of 3051mtrs. Of course when we launched we also had a point to proof, we attacked it like a damn Crossfit session.

Montana Machupicchu - holy hell, what a climb

I was wrecked!!!!!

This guy - this was the personification of my inner will - it was GONE

It was PUNISHING!!!!!

The backpack that I had on probably had 5-7kg in but it felt as though I was carrying 20kgs. We stormed those stairs like a 2 man battalion on a mission to oblivion. Coming on the back of the 50 min walk in the morning this 1hr 10 stair climb brutalised me. Inga being the little mountain goat that she is skipped away in the last 10-15 mins of the climb and I was left to deal with my exhaustion, stubbornness and jelly legs for the last push.

I have NEVER, EVER, felt that PUNISHED by any form of physical activity before. By the time I made it to metre 3051 my legs had a mind of their own, my shirt was soaked and I needed to be propped up by the 'Machu Picchu Mountain' sign. I was quite literally WRECKED. It's a feeling that I'd never encountered before or since. The view to Machu Picchu was only a secondary concern at this point - the permanent earthquake below my hips was the main thing I needed to contend with.

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

We were only at the summit for what felt like 15 mins before being told that we needed to make our way down, which we did.

Somewhere around 1:30pm we returned to the gatehouse and encountered the 'Gate-master'. Somewhat smugly we showed her the photos of us at the summit and it was with absolute pleasure that her reactions of disbelief supported what we already knew. We were both STUBBORN & AWESOME in equal parts!

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

Machu Picchu - Peru

For the rest of the afternoon we made our way through the labyrinth of alleyways, structures and amazing masonry. Inca architecture is a wonder in its own right and the manner by which they managed to design and incorporate the architecture so as to merge ever so seamlessly into their environment is a testament to their ingenuity and genius.

 Machu Picchu is a marvel - and forever will remain one of the highlights of this journey.