Along Peru’s Southern Coast is a unique region, not really due to its natural beauty but its supernatural or maybe extraterrestrial appeal. Ride a chopper across the Nazca desert and you will find something so majestic, yet so eerily unique and research worthy: The Nazca Lines. The Nazca culture was discovered in the late 1800s. The Nazca people were credited for creating these majestic lines since most of their ceramics and pottery comprise of the same patterns of animals that are seen over the desert. This region is not just about desert and lines. The Nazca culture is very rich and has very deep appreciation of handicrafts.
Going and to Nazca
From Ica, there are small buses of Collectivos that you can ride and it takes around 3 hours to reach the next stop. Fromm Cuzco and Arequipa, there are also buses that drive overnight. You can also reach the area from Lima. When it comes to traveling the area, you need not worry. It is very easy to traverse Nazca on foot but there are also some taxis available at a very convenient price. If you venture to the bus terminal, it would be best to focus on finding your driver to the hotel instead of making deals with shady personalities that thrive in this area.
Things to see
There are some notable areas to visit around town. First would be the Aqueducts of Cantalloc. The Nazca people, even before the time of the Inca civilization, created some aqueduct systems that helped in irrigating some water into the dry land surface. This helped in combating the expanding desert. The system is still used by farmers and there are around 30 of thee aqueducts across Nazca. Of course, the stars of the whole Nazca region are the Nazca Lines. The lines are quite expansive and they cover 500 square kilometers from the Nazca River and Ingenio River. They come in the form of humans, animals and different patterns with incredibly straight details and precise measurements. You can check the observation tower so that you can have a better view of 3 of these structures.
Other details
There are numerous hotels in the area and it is very important to make business deals with them as early as possible and finalize them for your trip. They range from cheap bed areas to more polished commercial hotels. These hotels offer tours across the Nazca area. It is very important to stick with more or less, legitimate tour options. One of the biggest setbacks would have to be dealing with very annoying people at the bus stops and the streets, egging you to join them. They send you to cheap but not pleasing options. Stay firm with your options since if you already reserved your hotel, then chances are, it will still be there. Nonetheless, a trip to Nazca will render you all happy and amazed with all the beauty that is awaiting you over there. You should definitely visit this after your trip to Macchu Picchu.