Location:
Ica is located in the central coast, the south of Lima, 406 meters above sea level (1332 feet).

Distances:
From Lima : 325 kms. (202 miles ) .
From Paracas: 75 kms. (46.6 miles).

Population:
216,870 inhabitants approximately.

Climate:
Its climate is warm, it has an average temperature of 23 C. It never rains.

History:
In Ica, there were important preincan cultures such as Nasca and Paracas.
Ica was founded on September 30, 1563. Ica was the first city where was seeded the grapevine and was manufactured the wine and liquor of grapes, that were exported to the Spanish colonies in America, through the Pisco port. The liquor of grapes was also named 'Pisco'.

When Liberator General Jose de San Martin arrived at Perú, he unloaded in the Paracas Bay, now known 'Independence Bay' and established his patriots headquarters in Pisco.

Description:
Ica has different landscapes, such as: farming fields, deserts, Huacachina lagoon, buildings of republican times, picturesque and lively towns, and its beautiful spring climate.

Afro Music Dancers
Photograph: PromPerú

Nasca Lines:

They are located in the desert of San José and Socos, in the province of Nasca, department of Ica.

It is the most important archaeological place in Peru and in the World. It is a place full of mysteries and mysticism. They were designed on the ground of Pampas San José and these immense lines and figures can only be seen completely from a plane. Paul Kosok, their first investigator (1927), considered them 'The biggest book of astronomy in the world'.

The most suitable hypothesis is that those lines would be observatories of astronomical cycles, used by farmers of Nasca Culture to control and know the meteorological agrarian cycles. The German scientific Maria Reiche, who was dedicated to the investigation, has supported this theory and preservation of those mysterious lines that were named 'Cultural Patrimony of the Humanity' by UNESCO.

This group of geometric, trapezoidal and zoomorphic lines and figures have an area of 350 km2 and there are figures that have 1.1 kms. Length and 0.4 kms. Width.