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Yesterday we tried actual sandboarding for the first time. We got up early so we could be out on the dunes before the sand became too hot. Let me tell you that sandboarding is not like snowboarding. Maybe it's because I'm used to being on a snowboard but I found it much more difficult to maneuver the board down the mountain in sand. That being said, there are only 2 speeds on a sandboard; stopped and really really fast. It was so much fun just zooming down the hill, and I could've kept it up for hours if not for the fact that there are no lifts taking you to the top. I felt very accomplished after climbing a giant dune 4 times and also quite tired.
I did have a very strange experience on top of the dune before my final run. There were 3 people (possibly Peruvian but I couldn't tell) on top of the dune, 2 older adults and a young woman who looked to be in her 30s, who started speaking to me in Spanish. It took me a little while to understand what they were trying to say because all I could make out at first was 'sin ropa' (without clothes) and 'pinturas' (painters). The older woman was tugging on her shirt and gesturing to her camera. At first I thought they wanted me to take a picture of them with the beautiful scenery in the background, but then it finally dawned on me that they wanted to take pictures of ME 'sin ropa.' What's a girl to do but lose her shirt and model for them. They told me it was the custom, who am I to question it? So there I was sprawled out on top of a huge sand dune in my sports bra, hiking pants and snowboard boots smiling for the 3 cameras they had fixed on me. I did a few different poses and they thanked me for my time; I must say it was probably the strangest experience I've had since I arrived. It was fun, but strange. Next time I'll have to charge a fee. If any of you are ever in Huacachina, Peru and see a painting of a curly haired girl in a green sports bra and snowboard boots, be sure to buy it! Hehe.
After I did some sandboarding and a bit of modeling, we hopped back on our bus and headed to a local vineyard in the nearby town of Ica called El Catador Pisco and Wine Cellar. There we were given a tour of the property and our guide explained how pisco is made, Peru's most famous drink. It has been since 1534 when the Spanish brought the grapes over from Spain. Pisco is a hard clear liquor made from grapes, though they also make pisco wine and creme de pisco. The first step in making pisco is to pick the grapes and stomp on them to get the juice, a very familiar step for all my fellow Napkins. The juice is fermented for 2 weeks in large pots made of clay, as there are no oaks in the area (and probably all of Peru) and therefore no oak barrels with which to age their wine. If the goal is to make pisco wine, then the process is almost complete. All the fermented grape juice needs is a little bit of previously made pisco, and voila, delicious wine. If the goal is to make straight pisco, however, more steps are required. After the 2 week fermentation period the wine is moved into a giant stone hole in the ground, which holds 1,600 liters of wine. The wine sits in this hole for only 10 hours, after which it is transferred into a connecting pipe. This pipe is covered with boiling water, which allows the alcohol to separate from the rest of the liquid in steam form. This alcoholic steam is then cooled and condensed into the final product, pisco. They yield 400 liters of straight pisco (42% alcohol) for every 1,600 liters of wine. After the alcohol is removed, the remaining liquid, called 'mosto crudo,' is disposed of as it no longer has any desirable properties.
After this process was explained to us we got to go to the tasting room. This was obviously my favorite part. There we tried 3 different types of pisco wine, 3 different types of straight pisco, and 2 different pisco cremes. Pisco cremes are similar to Bailey's; it is pisco mixed with milk, honey and vanilla. They were ok but not as good as the wine. The Peruvians only make sweet and semi sweet wine so I thought they were all really tasty. I ended up buying a bottle of red that is similar to our Pinot Noir in the states, my favorite kind. Our guide called it the 'divorce wine' because it is not as sweet as the first wine we tried, the 'baby maker.' After the wine tastings we tried pisco, which is pure liquor and therefore much stronger. It's a bit rough to drink straight, I think I'll stick with pisco sours. I got almost double the tastings of everyone else because I am fortunate enough to have a friend that doesn't like alcohol at all. Lauren would take a tiny sip and give the rest to me, so needless to say by the end I was feeling pretty liquored up. The tasting was the fun part, the sobering up was absolutely miserable. By the time we got to our next destination after the vineyard, the Nazca viewing tower, I had a splitting headache and was feeling pretty nauseous. I suppose I have learned my lesson, pisco is not the drink for me (unless it is diluted into yummy pisco sours).
The Nazca viewing tower is a small set of steps with a tiny platform that allows one to look out over a few of the Nazca lines. These lines consist of many large shapes drawn into the sand that were left by pre-Incan indigenous people, some of them up to 2 football fields long. A couple of the shapes include a hummingbird and a monkey, amongst others. There are many theories as to why these lines are there. Some call the Nazca lines the biggest calendar in the world because the lines were dug at different depths and therefore cast different shadows depending on the time of year, indicating the winter and summer solstice. Another theory is that the lines depict the constellations in the sky, and yet another wilder theory suggests that these shapes were used to communicate to aliens dwelling in the surrounding mountains. We could only see a few lines from the viewing platform so it was difficult to get the full effect. In order to properly enjoy them one must take a plane ride costing about $90, so we were happy with what we did see. What I found most interesting is that these lines are drawn in pure loose sand, not carved into rock or anything, and for hundreds of years they have managed to stay intact. Our guide explained that this is because of the lack of rainfall in the area and also something about the wind not fully reaching the ground so as to disturb the lines, he's a little hard to understand sometimes. If you're interested, look it up, they're pretty cool.
After seeing the Nazca lines we had dinner in Nazca, which was cheap and delicious. I had a veggie omelet over rice and it was really good. After dinner the torturous all night bus ride began. I have found that as a tall person I despise any mode of transportation with reclining seats, including planes and now buses. We left Nazca about 8pm and arrived in Arequipa this morning around 6am. You can imagine that none of us actually got much sleep. It's alright though because today we have our 2-day Colca Canyon tour to look forward to, should be fun!
- comments
Mary-Alice So awesome to be able to live vicariously through your blog!
Giana You are fabulous and brave—but, most importantly, so fiiiiiiiierce! Haha, love the sand dune modeling :) I'm so happy/ultra jealous that you saw the Nazca lines! I've read into them a lot and find them fascinating! Also, you're a really good writer!! Reading this makes me feel like I'm right there with you, and I literally laugh out loud. Keep on trekking! Hope you find more comfy transportation :)
myeomanvagabond I'm glad you guys are enjoying it!