Huacachina! Huacachina! Holy Huacachina!!!!!!
     One thing I've learned while travelling is to never completely commit to a plan. It's always great to have a rough idea of what you may want to do/see on your trip, but it's best to sit back, listen to what fellow travelers have to say, and enjoy the ride...wherever that may lead you! This time it led us to Huacachina, Peru. We were not planning on visiting Huacachina, actually I had never even heard of this mysterious    "Oasis". But when Aesha mentioned the words "Sand Boarding" and "Dune buggies" and I was all in. Let's do this!!!

Muy Fuerte

     Huacachina is a genuine oasis in the middle of the desert and is surrounded by thousands of sand dunes stretching hundreds of feet high. It is absolutely astounding. It serves as vacation spot for locals and touristas like us. As we left smog infested Lima in the dust,

Pool fun at Bananas Lodge

  we could barely contain our excitement about this mysterious place called Huacachina (I'm still trying to pronounce it right). We jumped in a creaky ass taxi and meandered our way through sand laden streets. We turned the corner and ...BAM!!! We were momentarily awestruck. Is this really an oasis? Honestly, it looks fake. I lived in Las Vegas for several years and this looked like the ridiculous production in front of the Bellagio...only it´s real!!! It gets better...we felt as if we entered the gates of heaven upon arrival at Bananas Hostel Lodge. This is a hostel  folks and it had an awesome pool, bar, and all you can eat BBQ dinner under the starry desert sky. Pretty much unheard of for a hostel. Wow. Now this is what I'm talking about!
  Enter Luis. "Hola bonitas chicas!!! Would you like to go sandboarding and dune buggying tonight at sunset?"...um duh...

Stay Calm Samantha

    The dune buggy ride was freaking insane. Aesha and I took the front seats (obviously) and as Luis took off Aesha and I gripped hands so hard I could feel all of the blood rushing out my hand and into my rapidly pulsating heart. Ay Dios Mio!!!!!       We were hysterically laughing and even as the sand whipped my face I couldn't help but be grateful to be at this place, at this time, having some of the most fun I've ever had in my life. Luis gave us a ride of a lifetime in those dunes, but it was only a precursor for what was to come. The Sandboarding Experience (see left!!).
All I have to say about that is until you have ridden a sandboard down a dune at about a million miles an hour, you simply haven't lived (I'm still finding sand in places sand just shouldn't be). I'm fairly brave but I have to admit that I was scared shitless. It didn't help that there was no talk about safety, how to use the sandboard, how to stop the damn thing, or what we should do when we get to the bottom (yup, we had to walk our fat arses back up..of course we did). I'm so proud of Aesha. She braved those dunes with gusto like I've never seen in her before. Bravo Aesha Rosa Tigressa, Bravo!!!!!!! Oh, and did I mention she brought her Hula Hoop to the dunes? Yes, I'm pretty sure my magical friend will be talked about for many years to come by locals as the "Loca chica en la dunas..."

Muy Bonita!!!

The entire day goes down in the record books for both of us as being one of the most kick ass experiences we've ever had to date. The people at Bananas Lodge were wonderful, hilarious, and slightly perverted...in a good way... It was a fantastic place to stay and I would recommend anyone traveling to Peru to stop at this "Oasis" and spend some time at Bananas Lodge Hostel  and lose your mind in the dunes* see Luis...  
  Next stop...Cusco and the 4 day Inca Trail hike to Machu Picchu!!! Yikes!! We started with an 16 hr bus ride, both of us sick as dogs the whole way, but you'll just have to wait for the details... 
Love, Samantha "Brasilia Loca" and Aesha "Rosa Tigresa"
Stay tuned!!! Here's a quick glimpse at this handsome little city that is the gateway to Machu Picchu.