PISCO, THE PARACAS NATURE RESERVE AND THE BALLESTAS ISLANDS

The southern coast of Peru is broken by fertile river valleys which bring relief to the parched desert interior and provide havens for humans, birds and animals alike. Among the most important of these is the Pisco Valley, which as well as giving its name to the principal town of the area, also gives its name to Peru's national drink: Pisco brandy!

In the past, this valley helped support important pre-Inca civilizations such as the Paracas culture and today the town of Pisco provides the perfect base from which to explore these ancient cultures and also two of Peru's greastest wildlife attractions: the Paracas Nature Reserve and the Ballestas Islands.

Paracas Nature Reserve and the Paracas Culture

The Paracas peninsula is named for the seasonal Paracas sandstorms. Today, almost the whole of the peninsula is covered by the Paracas Nature Reserve. Altogether, the reserve covers a total of 350,000 hectares and is one of the most important marine reserves in the world. The reserve is home to millions of sea-birds such as flamingos, pelicans and Humboldt Penguins, all of which feed in some of the richest fishing grounds in the Pacific. On a historical note, the flamingos were apparently the inspiration for the red in Peru's flag when it was designed after independence by General San Martin, who landed in the Paracas bay to begin the liberation of Peru from the Spanish Crown.

A string of luxury beach hotels have been built on the edge of the reserve and with its proximity to Lima (just over two hours by car) Paracas is fast becoming one of Peru's best beach resorts. With a year-round climate that is good to perfect, excellent facilities and amazing wildlife on your doorstep, it's definitely worth a few days' relaxation time at the end of your Peru holiday.

As well as wildlife, the reserve is also home to a museum of the Paracas culture (c.700BC) which features examples of this culture's textiles and funerary bundles. The culture's weaving was highly advanced you can see some examples which are amazingly well-preserved in the museum which is part of the reserve. More scarily, you can also see some of the Paracas culture mummies and some of the trepanned skulls which are evidence of the medical inventiveness of the ancient inhabitants of the peninsula.

And while we're on the subject of the weird and wonderful, science-fiction fans should also be aware that the peninsula is also persistently rumoured to have been the site for much of the filming of Planet of the Apes... so if it looks familiar - you know why!

The Ballestas Islands

The Ballestas Islands are sometimes described as Peru's mini-Galapagos and although they don't match the splendour or variety of their northern cousins, they are quite spectacular in their own right. The islands have been eroded to form countless natural caves and arches. In fact, this is where the islands' name comes from - the word Ballesta means 'bow' (as in archery). There are colonies of thousands of seabirds such as pelicans and penguins, and you will also see hundreds of sealions and often schools of dolphins.

It only takes a few hours to visit the Ballestas Islands and this is best done by taking a small motorboat from Pisco. As well as getting you out to the islands themselves, this is also the ideal way to see the Paracas bay, complete with its stunning natural rock formations such as the Paracas Cathedral. You also get a great view of the 'Candelabra', which is either a Paracas culture geoglyph similar to the Nazca Lines or, perhaps more excitingly, a marker to lost treasure left by pirates during the 17th century. Maybe it's worth digging out that metal detector from under the stairs... Either way, we can organise a trip to take you out to see all of it and you can make your own mind up!

The town of Pisco

Tragically, the town of Pisco was hugely damaged in the 2007 earthquake which struck southern Peru. Although the town's principal buildings have now been rebuilt, the reconstruction effort as a whole leaves a lot to be desired and many are still in temporary accommodation. Reasons given for this vary depending on who you listen to, but a mixture of incompetence and corruption on both a local and national level seems to be to blame. Although there were some nice hotels in the town, it's not a great place to visit right now.

Chincha and Afro-Peruvian culture

Another good place to visit if you fancy tasting more of the criollo (creole) cusine is Chincha, an hour up the road towards Lima. Chincha was one of the few places in Peru where African slave labour was widely used and today it is at the heart of black Peruvian culture. There are some interesting places to visit, such as the colonial mansion of the Hacienda de San Jose but it's particularly worth visiting Chincha during some of the area's festivals, such as the fiesta of the Virgin of El Carmen in December, when you get to hear some of the best in Afro-Peruvian music.

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