To go sandboarding the hostel loaded us up in dune buggies and drove out into the dunes. The ride was a bit like being on a rollercoaster. 

Sandboarding is essentially snowboarding on sand. After the first run most of us lay down on our boards and went down like we were sledding. Basically it’s awesome. 

The bodega tour was interesting but I can’t say much for Peruvian wine. What are your thoughts on saccharine grape juice?

It’s very sweet, which isn’t surprising since they’re growing grapes in the middle of the driest desert in the world. The lack of water in the grapes is noticeable.  

I do not like drinking Pisco straight, so the Pisco tasting was hard to swallow – literally. I was told on one tour that Pisco is fermented in conical shaped ceramic urns. The urns look birds beaks — pisqu in Quechua.  

I’d always thought the alcohol was named after the town.