114 NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2025 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL BY CURT WHITTAKER n HUACACHINA, PERU LOCAL LENS L arge sand dunes reaching up to 1,600 feet surround the small, artificially maintained oasis of Huacachina [see inset], a village in the Ica province of southwestern Peru. After riding dune buggies and sandboarding down the slopes, we were able to watch the sunset. I like how the photo captures the dunes, almost in motion, with the sun setting behind them. n Curt Whittaker is a Foreign Service management officer, currently serving as the supervisory general services officer in Lima. He will retire from this post at the end of November 2025. He took these photos on May 24, 2025, with an iPhone 16 Pro. Please submit your favorite, recent photograph to be considered for Local Lens. Images must be high resolution (at least 300 dpi at 8” x 10”, or 1 MB or larger) and must not be in print elsewhere. Include a short description of the scene/event as well as your name, brief biodata, and the type of camera used. Send to locallens@afsa.org.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODIyMDU=