Giant ancient drawings in the desert
The Nazca Lines were made between about 500 BC and AD 500 by removing the reddish surface stones of the desert to reveal the paler ground beneath. Some lines run straight for kilometres; others form figures, including a hummingbird, a monkey, a spider and a figure known as the astronaut. Their purpose is still debated. The best view is from a short flight out of Nazca or Pisco, though a roadside tower shows a few. Nearby, the sand dunes and oasis of Huacachina offer sandboarding and dune-buggy rides.