Sweet Sweet Sand

Yes, I realize that I am not posting as often as I did on my last trip and that is because I have kinda just been taking it easy, hanging out, not doing much.

This past week, we went to Huacachina, the desert oasis about 1.5 hours from Pisco. There really isn´t much to Huacachina expect hotels and sand dunes, oh there is a small lake. Huacachina is the place to go for sandboarding which is what I tried. I can´t say that I won the battle with the sand dune, it was victorious. Now sandboarding is similar to snowboarding, minus the cold, hard snow and lift. So if one wants to try sandboarding they must climb to the top of the sand dune (or pay $15 to have some guy take you for a spin in doon buggies that destroy the environment which I passed). So my tour guide and I rented sandboards for a whopping $1.25 each, mine was the finest in sandboarding equipment complete with velcro straps to hold my feet in place.

I had visions of my feet flying off of this sandboard as I ride the sand...

So my fabulous friend & guide Ademir points to the dune that we are going to climb and I told him where he could go (and I wasn't being polite). We weren´t starting on small dunes, the grand daddy 200 meter dune he expected me to climb. And I did. And I almost died.

I thought climbing the mountains during the Inca Trail was hard, and they were. But have any of you tried to climb a sand dune that looks like a mountain....meaning it´s not rounded at the top, but pointy. It is not easy and certainly not fun. But up we climbed.

Ademir made it to the top in about 15 mins, I on the other hand did not. With each step it felt like my feet were sinking into the depths of the earth. Picture walking on a stair climber - you don´t go anywhere, but you feel the burn in your calves. Well after one collapsed lung, I could hardly walk and with each step I felt like I was going to fall down this sand dune. On one side was the valley of about 20 other dunes just as tall, the other side was the back of a hotel. Either I was going to crash into the side of a building or die in the valley. It wasn´t my day to die.

I made it to the top, looking like who knows what. So after about resting for an hour, I am ready to put my feet in this board to maybe go down this dune. We walk to the launching point and as I peered over the edge, I could not see the ground, it was a straight down drop to the bottom . and people went down this thing. My teacher gave me some pointers and said he´d meet me half way down and goes flying off soaring down the dune like an eagle in flight. I was memorized by the grace and agility he exemplified while gliding down this dune. Then it was my turn...

I am sure I do not have to tell you that I did not express the same skill as Ademir and if only he had a video camera to record me and my lack of skill on the sandboard. It was actually easier for me to go down the dune than I thought, on the sandboard not my butt. However, the turning was a bit difficult and when I started going too fast and could not turn, I made myself fall. Then I started to tumble and flip over which I'm sure was very amusing for Ademir to watch and by the time I got to the bottom he was laughing his ass off. It took longer than 20 seconds to get down this dune because I kept falling and the last 50 feet I rode down with my butt on the sandboard - Hey it was hard!!

Did we climb up the dune for round 2 - I think you already know the answer...no.

I did save about $300 in spa services because the sand exfoliated every part of my body.

I am back in Pisco now and tomorrow I think I am going to start working with Hands On and helping with some clean up. I am meeting them tonight to find out what projects everyone is working on.

Chau