Nasca

South America Day 5

Nazca Lines

After much contemplating and debate, about half the group decided to bite the bullet and sign up for the flight over the Nazca Lines. The half hour flight took us over the rocky plain we had driven along the edge of the night before. Above is the map of the area showing all the shapes carved out by the ancient inhabitants of the area.

They squeezed 5 of us into a light plane with the pilot. (I was hoping the whole time that the local aviation authority kept tabs on the tour operators.) Left to right :- the pilot, me, Kerri, Mike Nic & some random guy.

The above photo of the humming bird turned out the best of the many shapes out on the plain. These shapes are 100s of metres across & were created by the ancient Nazca people. They removed the brown rocks along the shape lines leaving just the pale yellow sand. It's unclear why they did it or how they managed to achieve it considering they had no aerial view. It's quite amazing considering the technology available to them.

There were also some others of significance.

Whale

Astronaut

This one's a bit odd. For a start, it's on the hillside rather than the plain & it's supposedly an astronaut. All the conspiracy theorists will be thinking, WOW, Aliens! I think it's just a bit of a botched attempt at a human. See it how you like.

Dog

Monkey

Condor

Spider

Parrot

This is the tower we had climbed the evening before. You'll also see the hands & tree (if you look close enough). By this time, most of the folks on the plane including myself were feeling a bit woozy. The way to see these shapes from the air is to dip the wing & circle around, then dip the other wing so the people on the other side of the plane can see too. needless to say, air sickness is a distinct possibility. We were all glad to have done the flight, but even more glad to get back on the ground.

Cemetery of Chauchilla

After a lunch in Nazca (somewhat reluctantly thanks to the flight) we were bundled into a local bus and taken out to an ancient Nazca burial ground, the Cemetery of Chauchilla (Cementerio de Chauchilla). I wasn't sure what to expect. I'd envisioned a more modern catholic type cemetery. Nope. It was an ancient Nazca burial ground on a desert plain. Interesting? Doesn't seem so does it? But wait, there's more.......

Just about everywhere we went on the trip was accompanied by a "Local Guide". The cemetery was no exception. Our guide was a bit strange to the point of us wondering whether she was chewing a few too many cocoa leaves. She did get the message across all the same.

Now. About the graves.
The ancients dug 6-8 foot pits & re-enforced them with rock walls to stop the sand collapsing inward. They even gave them timber roofs. Being that the climate in that part of South America is so dry, the locals simply packed up their dead relatives in some cloth & sat them in the brick pits. Apparently they regularly went back to visit them & offer gifts. All very weird let me tell you, but very interesting all the same.

As was the case with the crypt at the San Francisco, the archaeologists has excavated & then rearranged the remains. Not too sure why, but there had also been a lot of grave robbing over the years so some of it may well be a tidy up exercises.

There was one grave left as it was found. This one gave us a true indication of how the graves were left 100s of years ago. Oddly it didn't have a shelter built over it to protect it from further degradation.
As you can see, the pits have been totally filled up with sand. It's as a result of the Nazca stopping visiting the graves & the timber roofs finally giving way or being "recycled" by subsequent locals.

A few of the best preserved mummies have been removed & kept in controlled environments. Pictured is an adult. Short isn't he? The nutrition available for the locals in what is a harsh desert climate is minimal. Consequently human growth is severely stunted. You have to keep in mind that the mummification shrinks the bodies as well.

Remembering that modern medicine has meant that infant & child mortality is a rarity not the norm, it was sad seeing these small infant/child mummies. Again, they're well preserved & kept in glass climate controlled cases.

After the cemetery visit, we were given a chance to take a break. We stopped in the Nazca town, did some grocery/booze shopping, made some phone calls to various family members around the world & headed back to the hotel & more specifically the pool. After a busy & dusty couple of days, the pool was a welcome & relaxing change.
Later in the evening we piled into the local bus with the same local guide to go to a Pachamanca. It's a bit like a Hangi in NZ. They bury the food with hot coals & stones. We figured anything would be better than the dodgy food from the night before.
It was all a bit weird. The guide tried to explain it. Lucky she did because the pit & mound of earth looked more like a fresh grave. This occasion is more for a wedding (apparently, hence the strange look from me along with the drinking).

Eventually after much corny role playing, the chefs opened up the pit. A great cloud of steam greeted us along with the lovely smell of a roast banquet.

Wait for it!

Kerri clearly couldn't wait for it to be served up. Put it down! Naughty.....

Yummy! Just like a big Aussie roast. There were a few types of potatoes and more importantly 3 meats (at least). It was delicious! Add a few glasses of red & satisfaction.
We had some time to kill before an overnight bus to Arequipa so pretty much lazed around the bus station untill 11.30pm when the bus arrived. (More on the bus later).
Before we leave the lowland desert, click on this link to see some more of the photos from Huacachina & Nasca.
The next leg of the trip starts in Arequipa at 2335m above sea level.