Hello from the enigmatic lines of Nazca, 

Not wanting to travel after dark I chose the 11:20AM Viva Bus Line service out of Lima scheduled to get into Nazca shortly after dusk. On the way out of Lima I spotted another replica of the famous Rio de Janeiro Cristo Redentor statue on a distant hill; I'm wondering if the same Brazilian artist is responsible for all the copies. Later about halfway to Nazca we came upon a vast desert expanse covered with tiny homestead shacks made from poles and reed mats that reminded me of the US governments give-away program in Apple Valley California a half century ago. To gain permanent title to the land each homesteader needed to erect a dwelling containing a minimum of about 200 square feet, the majority of the buildings consequently were that size, just as they were on this Peruvian plain. Another passenger on the bus confirmed these were indeed dwellings, though I could see little signs of habitation. 

The bus arrived in Nazca on schedule and stopped for departing passengers on the Pan-American Highway at the edge of town. A short walk got me into the city center. Several hotels are immediately visible and three locals recommended the Hotel Nazca Lines. At $56 it is a good value and one of the three "best hotels in town." The hotel offers free Internet access and I filled some of my leisure hours sitting before the glowing screen. 

This is a town that lives on tourism, though all of the rambunctious teenage activity in the evenings gives a different impression. While the central streets are paved, others are not and a block or two off the main street clouds of dust gust so often the little army of eager shoe shine boys are kept busy with their thirty cent services. The central Plaza de Armas is being renovated and a construction curtain surrounds the entire block. Curious people have cut viewing holes in the cloth allowing the obscured work to be inspected. It will be mostly one large concrete slab with numerous concrete planters... underwhelming. 

During my walks into the areas surrounding the developed part of the town I found myself challenged by many nervous dogs, all of which wanted to alert their owners to my passing. Along the graded dirt roads I see rows of adobe structures and walls. The smells of cooking fires laced with a strong hint of burning corn meal followed me along the dusty road. Farmers worked their land and livestock stood idly in the shade of trees within the adobe enclosures. Some 5 or 6 kilometers east of the town in a desolate area I found the actual "best" hotel in Nazca: the elegant Hotel Cantayo. Located in a secluded area, it is very private and very expensive with rooms rates starting at $125. Surrounded by dusty farms and adobe it appears to have been built within the ruins of an old monastery. The contrast between the squalor outside the high walls and the opulent Spanish colonial splendor inside is striking. 

Much of my time was spent trying to understand the options for transportation up to Cuzco. There are no flights to anywhere... except for the over flights to see the Nazca Lines themselves, of course. All of the many bus services start their runs for any distant city in the late afternoon or evening... not something I enjoy. In the end I decided a 14 hour ride through the night over mountains would be a better choice than a seven hour ride back to Lima with another hotel stay there before catching a flight to Cuzco. 

Naturally, the main reason anyone comes to Nazca is to see the "Nazca Lines." At ground level not much is visible other than large patches of the surface which seems to have been swept clean of sand revealing the underlying contrast of a rocky surface. A few kilometers north of town an observation tower has been erected from which several of the more interesting artifacts are easily visible. However, the only practical way to see the full scope of the ancient efforts is to take a flight in one of the small planes. Several companies offer half hour flights over the plain containing the strange archaeological relics. Our tiny craft held three passengers and the pilot. The $40 cost of my half hour over flight included transportation to and from the airport and a welcome Pisco Sour drink. That flight made the whole trip to Nazca worthwhile. Most of the photos I took from the air lacked adequate contrast to make out the existence of hundreds of lines crisscrossing the plain below. Fortunately, the software I use to process the camera images allows for enhancement and using that produced startling results easily missed with the naked eye.  

So, what do I think happened here? An initial impression suggests the doodle pad of a bored executive or the pen cleaning sheet used by a 1950's draftsman working in ink. Thousands of lines and features, many "drawn" on top of others, stretch over the Peruvian Pampa. Most are merely very long straight lines. Only a few dozen elaborate representations of recognizable subjects can be seen in the jumble. It occurred to me all this work might be the result of prehistoric teenage graffiti artists, each trying to outdo the others. One spiral design might be a representation of an actual engineering solution to getting people down to the water level of wells in those early days. A spider, a hummingbird, a monkey, a lizard are all obvious designs easily discernible, but the majority of the drawings represent nothing obvious... just long straight lines intersecting one another, apparently drawn at random. A good deal of serious analysis and research into the origin and meanings of the Nazca Lines has been conducted, in addition to numberless speculations by amateur archaeologists and screwballs. I'm glad I made the side trip to this mysterious place; the ol' knee needed more time to heal before tackling Machu Picchu anyway. 

I finished reading Anton Chekhov's short story, The Party. It is an intimate look into the lives of the Russian aristocracy in the 1800's. The sensitive portrayals of his characters and masterful development of a simple plot make it clear why his work has gained classic stature. As I think about the effect reading all these old classics has had on me I see a connection with traveling widely. Travel broadens my understanding of our contemporary world and societies; reading deepens my appreciations of the contributions made by earlier eras and cultures. The combination is symbiotic. 

Photos taken while in and over Nazca Peru are here. 

Peace,
Fred Bellomy

Nazca Lines Peru: Rendition of the most famous of the Nazca Lines - The Hummingbird. Art on the wall of the Airline office lobby.

Nazca Peru: View of the pool and gardens at the $56 Nazca Lines Hotel where I stayed two nights.

Nazca Lines Peru: Airline I used for my $40 over flight of the plain containing all the lines.

Nazca Lines Peru: The single engine aircraft we used for my $40 over flight of the plain containing all the lines. This plane looks suspiciously like the one I flew as a student pilot back in 1954... presumably of more modern manufacture!

Nazca Lines Peru: People see a hummingbird in this pattern and it is probably the best known pattern in the entire collection.

Nazca Lines Peru: The Hummingbird, an iconic shot widely seen in stories about the Nazca Lines.

Nazca Lines Peru: Most of the plain is bare, but around the perimeter I see indications of habitation.

Nazca Lines Peru: Most of the plain is bare, but farming is obvious around the perimeter in some places.