Our next stop on our way south was the Nazca Lines. Officially known as geoglyphs, they’re a series of geometric patterns carved in the desert about 1500 years ago. The amazing thing is that despite being basically trenches (and only about 6 inches deep) they’ve lasted for an incredibly long time.

This is part of one of the figures near the Pan-Am highway.

The best way to see the figures is from the air, but climbing this tower is cheaper.

That night we camped at the Hotel Puerta Inca. With a swimming pool and a palapa right on the beach it was probably one of the best established campgrounds that we’ve seen.

Each morning a few guys would arrive and gather seaweed that had washed ashore. They were taking it to the town of Nazca where they could sell it for 50 centavos (about 20 cents) per kilo (dried) to a factory that makes soaps and beauty products.

Gathering seaweed

The next morning I went for a hike along the coast.

These guys must survive almost entirely on dead fish and birds, as nothing lives on the land.

After a long drive inland from the coast, we arrived in Arequipa and began moving into our apartment here.

Quinn and Jen do some painting in the back yard.

Jen met another worldschooling family online who are also happen to be staying in Arequipa. We met up in a local park one day to let the kids play. They are the Tupy family — Michelle, Matt, Emilia (10), and Matt (4) — and they document their travels both on their And Off We Went Facebook page and web page.

Michelle’s two kids Matt and Emilia have fun with Quinn in a bouncy castle.

We rented a boat and paddled around the duck pond in the park.

Arequipa’s leafy Plaza de Armas

At a mirador overlooking the city.

We visited a small zoo that had various members of the Alpaca family. Here’s the definitive guide.