Hello Blog numero dos.

So, I shall begin where I left off on Saturday. Met the group no probs at 4pm, good mix of people inc. Australian, Irish, Polish, Kiwi, Canadian etc. I am the only Brit! Then Eddie my roommate and I, went to get settled in our room before heading out to the Plaza for dinner. Had a lovely meal with the group, and the guide Wilfredo who is a character! Had Cebiche, the local delicacy which is NOT guinea pig, but raw fish with chilli etc. It was very spicy so I had to have a few Pisco Sours to wash it down. Pisco Sours are amazing! They are this great cocktail with brandy and lime I think. Lethal though!

Sunday we went for a walk in Downtown Lima in the morning. We travelled there by local bus which was an experience. A crazy she male threw herself at our feet and started hyperventilating, and sucking water out of a plastic bag! You can imagine my face, I really couldn´t hide my horror! We went for a tour of the parliament building, and saw the main plaza. Lima was not too impressive, if I am honest, and it was boiling hot but had to be done. We went to a meat market and I saw way more of the insides of chickens that I would have cared to. The whole skinned pigs looked like dogs also which was disturbing. After this we went back to the hostel, and picked up our rucksacks ready for a 5 hour bus ride to our next stop Pisco. This was a public bus also, and I had the pleasure of a woman breast feeding next to me. Luckily I had the views to distract me, and they were playing Titanic on the bus so this took up some time. We arrived in Pisco about 7pm in time for some dinner and more Pisco Sours! Eddie and I were a little shocked to discover our window was not in fact a window, but inside the remains of what looked like a lift shaft. A pidgeon, or Peruvian alternative, did not much like it so he decided to die on our ledge. So that was nice! It was room 13 after all... Pisco was a pretty interesting place. It was hit by a big Earthquake 3 years ago that killed 1000+ people, and it has not recovered. It is pretty much ruled by feral dogs, so I spent my time dodging them!

Next day we were supposed to wake by 6.30 to meet at 7.15. Our alarms, however, decided not to work, and the clock ceased to work from 3.30am onwards. So we were hugely late and skipped breakfast. I hate missing breakfast so this was pretty devestating for me! It is the number 13 I tell you... We met the others though after throwing on some clothes, and caught the bus to the port. Here, we were going on a boat to the Ballestas Islands which are the ´Galapagos Islands´of Peru apparently. They were very impressive! It took about 15 mins to get there, and we saw Penguins, Seals, Dolphins and lots of other birds. These islands were pretty interesting, as they use the bird poo that accumulates there... Guana... as fertiliser throughout the whole of Peru. The workers from the Highlands come only every 7 years to clear 2 metres of the stuff. So you can imagine the SMELL! I was nearly sick, plus with the rockiness of the boat. It was well worth it though. Following the Islands, we got a mini bus to take us to the Sand Dunes. We stopped off at some vine yards on the way to see how Pisco was made etc. I stupidly hadn´t been drinking enough water, so this nearly killed me, and I had to dig out various painkillers. We then arrived at the Sand Dunes about 2pm. We paid, and boarded a sand buggy which took us all over the plains. Have a look at the pics on my profile! It was out of this world. The guy drove so fast, and down some of the steepest slopes imaginable. I was sat in the front, and the adrenaline rush was amazing!! We then did a bit of body boarding down the slopes on the boards. So much fun! After this, we were absolutley COVERED in sand, so we went to a local swimming pool to cool off. There was a natural oasis in the desert which was literally out of this world. The pictures speak volumes! So we had had an exhausting day! We found our hostel in Nazca, and then went out to a Plantatarium to learn more about the Nazca lines in preparation for our trip the next day.

Ok, so that brings us to today! It is Tues I think! We got up early this morning and caught a bus to the local airport. Now, it is not an airport but a shack. From here, we were to board a 6 seater plane to take high up to see the Nazca lines. Look up the lines on google, as I cant explain. They are surreal, and basically a phenomenan that nobody really understands. Various shapes of animals, and anthromorphic figures etched into the sand. Extremely ancient, the work of the Nazca people. I panicked boarding the plane, and started to have second thoughts when the pilot didn´t even check our seat belts or tell us any instructions. These planes are tiny!!! There was also a fatal crash in January with tourists on board... I found this out just before... anyway I did it! It was fine, very scary but well worth it. The lines can only really be fully appreciated from the air anyway and amazing! Basically, all 8 of us, have been suffering with sickness the last few days. It is unavoidable, as our stomaches are not well suited to the food here etc etc. So we weren´t feeling 100 percent this morning, and the flight nearly pushed a few of us over the edge. The sickness bags were reached for, but luckily it was only 30 mins (which was enough Ican tell you!). The plane tipped SO much, and did not feel safe at all! The pilot just wanted to make sure you saw these lines if it was the last thing you did...

So that brings you up to date. We are still in Nazca, and off to the Inca Cemetary at 2.30pm this afternoon. Then we catch a local public bus tonight to take us to Arequipa. It is 7 hours which will be fun.. I just hope there are no more breastfeeding mothers. It is hard to relax also, as I am constantly clutching my belongings. Looking forward to Arequipa and the natural springs!!

Hope I haven´t bored you too much! Lots of love, Em xxxx

p.s. the pictures pretty much sum it up!