Ica Things to Do

1 more image

More mummies!!!!

While in South America, I never tired of mummies, elongated craniums or pre-inca and inca potteries.

The ground floor of this nice museum is full of them and also has some magnificent woven inca clothes. The cloth is so fine and the colours so vibrant, you won't believe your eyes. Their master piece was stolen a couple of years ago, which is a great shame but what is left is more than worth the visit.

The second floor is a display of Spanish period furniture and paintings. Not my cup of tea but nice enough.

Outisde, behind the museum you will find a more or less derelict model of the Nazca lines with a little tower to see it all.

Entrance was 11 (5 for students) soles in 2005 + 2 soles photo permit if you want to take pix (no flash)
Picture 1: a mummy
Picture 2: Woven poncho

Things to do in Nazca

The Nazca Lines
In the Nazca region, scattered over 500 square kilometres of an arid plateau between the Nazca River and Ingenio River, exist huge representations of geometric patterns, animals, humans figures and thousands of perfectly straight lines that go on for kilometres.
The images on the ground are so huge, that the only way to fully observe them is only from the sky. Its real purpose is unknown, nobody actually knows who made them or why?
Flying over the Nazca desert you can marvel looking at the perfect shape of a monkey, a spider, a while, a lizard and various types of birds, including humming birds, sea birds, and the mighty Andean Condor. These strange figures are more than 2000 years old, and they are known as The Nazca Lines. For further information we highly recommend visiting http://www.mysteryperu.com/co_nazca_lines.html , and also check out at the Nazca Lines map at http://www.mysteryperu.com/assets/mapa_nasca.jpg

The Palpa Lines

According to recent archaeological studies the first drawings were made in the Valleys of Palpa and Rio Grande. It is said that 3000 years ago our ancestors used the flat surface of the mountains and the slopes of the hills to draw huge geometric figures and human representations. Archaeologist today believe that the figures were made to pleased ancient gods, who apparently were believed to control the forces of nature, such as; earthquakes, drought and floods.
Nowadays visitors may observe all these wonders of the past, flying over the zone on our small aircrafts, specially designed with large panoramic windows and good comfort to take great pictures. For further information we highly recommend visiting http://www.mysteryperu.com/co_palpa_lines.html, and also check out the Palpa Lines map at http://www.mysteryperu.com/assets/mapa_palpa.jpg

Written by: Enrique Levano Alarcon.

Ica its a small but pleasant town. Visit the Huacachina Lake and the Ica Museum, very interesting. In the sand dunes of Ica is possible to make sandsurfing. The town has also a small market of handicrafts.

There are several ways to see the Nazca Lines. There is a tower along the PanAmerican Highway, from which you can see two of the formations.

However, to really see the lines, if you're so inclined, your best bet is to take a flight. Tourist flights run out of Lima, Ica and Nazca, in order of price.

We booked a flight on AeroCondor from the Las Dunas Sun Resort in Ica, at a cost of $140 per person (credit cards accepted). We were taken by bus to the hotel's airfield, where we waited in a comfortable seating area (no pre-flight video, though I did see a video room...). After taking care of airport taxes ($5 per person) and giving passport numbers, etc., we boarded a 12-passenger plane and took off. The flight down to Nazca was easy enough - mostly over brown mountains. Once we got there, we turned around in the air and the pilots began pointing out the drawings, first banking the plane for the people on the left, then again for those on the right.

Of the six of us, 2 really got sick and the rest of us felt a little green by the end of all the turning. I took ginger capsules before I left, and had some crystallized ginger to chew on as we flew. But still, it was a little gut-wrenching. Most of the drawings are easy enough to spot, although there are many "lines" across the desert, for what purpose, I don't know.

The flight lasted about an hour and a half, and after the twisting and turning, it was a smooth ride again back to Ica. A souvenir shop is on site if you can manage it after the flight.

Note: Best to plan on a morning flight - we had reserved for the afternoon, but when we arrived in town they said they didn't have any more room for us that day.

Well, if you have such a question, then do not miss to visit a wine/snaps family-factory producer.
We have been to El Catador, the most wellknown of the city. (just ask on the street and take a taxi to the factory, that is outside the city, off course!)
They will be more then glad to show you how they do produce the wine and the snaps.
After a 2 hours "tour" where you will learn all the steps of the process, you will be drive to taste all their kinds of wine and snaps.
It was so cool, but keep in mind not to go there at 09AM!!!
There is also a nice small shop there where to buy some sample, but with NO pressure form the owners.
They are so nice!
The visit costs just 3USD each.

The best way to appreciate the Nazca Lines is to view them from above.

We took a "flightseeing" tour of the Lines, and we learned quite a bit about the Nazca Lines, the people who designed them, and Dr. Maria Reiche who brought the Lines to the attention of the world. The small airport in Ica is really cute, and doubles as a learning center. We watched a great video there, before boarding our plane.

The plane we used was a Cessna, and the pilot flew very low (around 2000 feet) over the lines, dipping and banking and turning all the time so that we could get the best views possible.

There were hard candies in the seat pockets in case we felt nauseous - which I did (might be a good idea to take a dramamine or some kind of travel sickness medication before doing this). That's why I wasn't able to share any decent photos - I was too busy concentrating on seeing the designs but not throwing up in the plane!

All in all, it's the best way to go and I would recommend this adventure to anyone who thrills to unanswered mystery....

Note: I have more info on this in my "Transportation Tips" section.

El famoso "Caballo de Paso" es una sub raza equina, originaria de Perú, que desciende de aquellos traídos por los españoles duarnte la conquista.
Se criaron cruzando los desiertos peruanos, originando una forma peculiar de caminar, moviendo simultáneamente la pata delantera y trasera del mismo lado. De hecho, los más finos, se supone que son capaces de tener una marcha de cuatro pasos.
Entre los lugares más importantes de cría de estos caballos están Lima, Trujillo e Ica.

Alberga la venerada imagen del Señor de Lurén, la que fue recuperada de un naufragio en 1570 frente a las costas de Ica. Patrón de Ica, congrega a miles de peregrinos durante la Semana Santa y el tercer Lunes de Octubre en tradicionales procesiones. Gente devota le atribuye muchos milagros.
La iglesia data de 1943