Huacacina and Sandboarding

                     Oh Huacacina, the oasis in the desert, how much fun you were. If you have been missing out on beach time because you situated your trip to never really be on the coast of Peru, Huacacina is the place to go. Just a few minutes drive outside of Ica and you´ve landed yourself in this tiny little Oasis where they primarily offer dune buggy rides, sandboarding, and a hostel with a pool.
                     I´m not going to lie, I really only went there for the sandboarding. I opted out of doing sandboarding in San Pedro because a) it was way more expensive and b) you had to climb back up the sand dune to go down again. No thanks. In Huacacina, I paid 30 soles through my hostel to go for a dune buggy ride and sandboarding. Best purchase ever!
                    The dune buggy ride was like being on a roller coaster, but with more jostling. Our driver went up and down the dunes like they were nothing and my stomach flipped over and over again. Originally, I wanted to go in a different buggy and be in the front. But I was glad they put me in the buggy with the backseat as the people were amazing and our guide was really safe. Watching the other group go down, I swear we almost saw so many collisions.
                   When it came time to sandbard, most of us went on our stomachs and the advice was keep your elbows in and use your legs to stop. I was nervous at first and I anticipated eating a mouthful of sand. But it was totally fine. No sand, no hurt elbows, it felt like maybe I´d done it before. But then, the guide showed us our next set. It was going down three dunes in a row that got steeper as you went! Keep in mind we only gone down one medium sized hill by now. I felt nervous again but it was actually super fun and picking up speed wasn´t bad at all. On that ride however, I did lose my new sunnies to the sand but in my mind it was totally worth it! I definitely enjoyed myself and the next few runs were just as fun. A must do in Huacacina:)