Ica

Over the weekend we headed south along the coast to Ica for a cousin's wedding. While there we took the opportunity to visit some vineyards and the desert around the Huacachina.


Bodega Lazo

We went to Bodega Lazo looking to purchase a botija - one of the old ceramic amphorae used to age pisco.

Bodega Lazo, a small artisanal winery and pisco distillery, turned out to be a truly weird place. They still use the botijas, which alone sets them apart, but along with the botijas, the place is crammed with the oddest assortment of brick-a-brack, from pre-Columbian artifacts to old phones, broken radios, swords, stuffed animals, and even a large bust of Juan Velasco Alvarado.

The owner wanted to sell us some of the small fake botijas produced for tourists, but refused to sell us one of the antique ones, even when we pointed out a couple that were lying in the dirt clearly long unused.


Sandboarding

This morning, before heading back to Lima, we headed to the oasis of Huacachina for some fun in the desert.

From Huacachina one can hire a ride in a four-wheel drive sand vehicle for a ride across the desert and over the large sand dunes which surround the Huacachina.

Part of the ride is a stop at a large multi-tiered dune for some sandboarding: