During this tour you´ll receive an understanding of the history of the Nazca culture, seeing the mummies of the ancient necropolis of Chauchillas, learning about the methods of creating the region´s famous ceramics from a local potter using the same techniques that have been in use for thousands of years, and witnessing how gold miners have traditionally adapted to the area´s extreme conditions since colonial times. (Due to the cemetery´s proximity to Nazca, most travelers opt to combine this tour with a flyover of the Nazca Lines.)
After being picked up in your hotel at Nazca, we´ll head south through the desert for about 3km to the cemetery. During the tour you´ll see how a painted resin applied during burial rites, as well as the dry climate of the Peruvian desert, have left the cemetery´s mummified human remains remarkably well-preserved. Despite a thousand years of age, bodies still retain hair and soft tissue such as skin. Although most of the valuables have been sacked by tomb raiders, the mummies and archeological artifacts left behind and on display today gives us priceless clues to ancient Nazca cultures.
We´ll see the sights in Chauchillas before returning to Nazca for a visit to an indigenous potter versed in the local tradition. At the cemetery you will have already seen some samples of the beautiful polychrome ceramics, painted with at least 15 distinct colors, which characterize the Nazca civilization. Here, we´ll learn about more about the production of the famously complex multicolored ceramics that locals have been creating for 2,000 years. To add to our new knowledge of pre-Hispanic Peruvian techniques, we´ll then make one last stop to watch local miners using the same traditional method which was used in colonial times, a process involving large mortars, water, and quicksilver, to extract gold for artisanal purposes.
The 4th annual International Culinary Fair of Lima, Mistura 2011, is taking place right now at Parque de la Exposición in the center of Lima as foodies from around the world gather for good times and good food. The event will be continuing through to the 18th. Throughout the year Peru has been combed for vendors and chefs of quality and there are more than 1800 products available at the market. One of the big themes of this year's event is "fruits of the Amazon", although you'll find products native to all regions of the country.
Sacred Mt Pachatusan, whose name is quechua for "He Who Sustains the Earth", has the honor of being a preferred site for traditional pre-Columbian rites- such as offerings to the Apu (Mountain Deity) or Pachamama (Earth Mother), purifications, and Ayahuasca ceremonies- as well as the site of one of Peru's largest pilgrimages, the Lord of Huanca.
Sanctuary Garden is an area of privately-owned property within the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu zone. It boasts recently discovered archeological sites including Inca terraces, irrigation canals, shrines, storehouses, towers, tunnels, and more, in an area that still has not been fully explored. Part of the Inca Trail Network crosses this area as well.