13.09.09 - 14.09.09 Huacachinero Hotel, Huacachina

Huacachina is an oasis resort in the middle of the Peruvian desert. It has been, for many years, attracting holiday makers because of its unique situaton perched around a tiny lagoon, with gigantic dunes in every direction. After we arrive off a five hour bus journey from Lima, we relax by the pool for an hour or so before our optional excursion, dune-buggying and sand-boarding. The dune buggies themselves are loud monsters of vehicles with huge tyres, no chassis and a domed roll cage just in case. We're strapped in tight and zoom off to the entrance to the dunes on the other side of the lagoon. It makes a hell of a racket but it can get up to speeds of 80kmh plus. Our driver, we learn, is a thrill junkie as we rocket up the face of one dune after another and down the other side, sometimes at an incredibly steep angle. It's like a giant rollercoaster only it's the momentum of our vehicle which is gluing us to the side of some of the immense sand mountains.

We arrive at our sand-boarding slope having been sand-blasted to oblivion on our ferocious journey. We take turns to slip and slide down, some having more success than others. Our outing is aptly timed to capture the sun setting over the far off dunes before rumbling noisily back to our hotel to wash out the sand which has made it into every oriface!