Las Aventuras del Lago Titicaca

 

Enjoying the first class bus ride

Floating island, Uros

Alex trying to warm up
in Puno

Reed boat on Uros

Inside our guide boat 

And another one bites the dust! Last weekend Alex and I were able to check off yet another item on the bucket list by visiting the world's highest navigable lake, Lake Titicaca. We began the weekend's adventure on Friday night at ten o'clock as we rolled out of Cusco, snuggled comfortably in the first class level of a Tour Peru bus, headed for the Lake Titicaca port town of Puno. The six hour journey landed us in Puno around four o'clock in the morning where we were then dropped off at our tour agency's office to sleep for a few more hours. Puno sits at a high 12,556 feet above sea level and when pouring rain is added to the mix, it makes for quite chilly temperatures. So Alex and I were not only grateful to have more time to sleep, but we were overjoyed when we saw a heaping pile of blankets for us to warm up with. Around eight o'clock we met up with the other thirteen members of our group and boarded the passenger boat that would be our voyage capsule for the next two days as we drifted around three of Lake Titicaca's ninety islands.

Gnawing on totora - it tasted
like celery 

After slowly motoring through the blue waters for two hours, we roped up at our first stop Uros. Uros is one of roughly forty-four "floating islands" or fabricated islands made of a buoyant native lake reed called totora. Originally the Uru people built these floating islands to escape from violence on the main land; if they we ever in danger, the inhabitants could release the wooden stakes at the bottom of the lake and move their island to a different location. Nowadays, these islands are mainly used to attract tourists. (With that said, I should note that I don't know if I have ever felt like such a tourist in my life as when we visited Lake Titicaca.) When I stepped off the boat, it was strange to feel how squishy the reeds were beneath my shoes; it was as if the island had some spring to it. No wonder the kids were running around barefoot!
We gladly accepted an offer to take a ride in the island's reed boat which was powered by a man who pushed the boat along with a tall, slender pole. The man pushing our boat along told us each boat takes about a month to make and everyone on the island helps in the construction of the boat, which they do every two years. After about fifteen minutes we docked back on Uros and were given a presentation about Uros and the other reed islands. Each island is approximately six and a half feet thick and holds roughly thirty people, or eight families. The children are transported every morning two hours by rowboat to attend school and surprisingly, each small house has electricity via solar energy. While visiting Uros was incredibly interesting, it was practically impossible to imagine living in such a place. I thought it was rough growing up in small-town Estes Park, but it really makes me cringe to think about being raised on an island that is no more than twenty-five yards wide. Talk about everyone knowing your business!

Me and our host Aurelia 

Alex at the entrance
to one of the reed houses

After peaking in a few totora houses and purchasing an overpriced memento, we loaded back on the guide boat and hunkered down for the hour and a half ride to Amantaní, the island where we were going to be staying for the night. We were greeted upon arrival by a group of native women, our hosts for the time being, with whom we were divvied up and sent off. Alex and I, along an Irish woman, Marie, followed our host, Aurelia, straight up the hillside to her abode where we were introduced to her husband and son. Quechua is the native language of the island and it was such an experience to listen in on the family's conversations. I have never heard such a language spoken in my life. I've heard Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, German etcetera, but Quechua is so rare that hearing it was like hearing music for the first time; there are flowing words but the language also includes many guttural sounds and pitches. After dropping off our backpacks our group hiked up to the base of two hills that peaked at the top of Amantaní,  Pachamama and Pachatata. Alex and I broke the mold of "lazy Americans" as we were the only two in the group who hiked the steeper Pachamama, or "Mother Earth" in Quechua. The hike followed a stone path boarded by acres of pasture, sectioned off by stone fences and held an absolutely breathtaking 360 degree view from the top. It was this view that really gave me a perspective on Lake Titicaca. All the lakes I have ever been to in my life have been surrounded by massive mountains, hills, trees or some sort of landscape that made the lake seem proportional. Lake Titicaca, however, really felt like it was brimming at the top of the world; like at any second, it was going to start spilling over. It's vastness resembled more of an ocean than any lake I have ever seen, and the islands sprinkled throughout truly looked like the tips of mountains. As Alex and I sat to enjoy the view, we both agreed that, while neither of us ever thought we'd find ourselves visiting Lake Titicaca, we were sure glad we'd made it happen. It is quite an extraordinary body of water.

Offering ruin on Pachamama

Offering ruin on Pachatata

We returned home to Aurelia cooking dinner on an open fire and our room illuminated with candles... did I mention that we didn't have electricity? As the temperature dropped we found ourselves gathered in the kitchen attempting to warm up by the cook fire and having a broken conversation about what life is like on the island. Both Aurelia and her husband, Vincent,  were born and raised on Amantaní as well as the generations before them. Vincent followed in his father's footsteps by becoming a farmer and Aurelia weaved blankets to sell. While they both have a "job" their main source of income is from tourists, like ourselves. In fact, the entire island of Amantaní is supported by tourists. The families have a system where they rotate hosting tourists, which allows them to share the wealth instead of having only a couple families gain profit. Following a delicious, warm meal, Aurelia quickly dressed us in traditional, colorful clothing and led us to an empty schoolroom where we met up with every other tourist on the island, also adorned in customary Amantaní garb. We danced along to the beat of the three-man-band, holding hands and rhythmically parading around in a large circle. An hour later we headed back to our candle-lit room and hit hay (or should I say "hit the reeds" as our beds were resting on a heap of totora) excited for our adventures to come.

Saying goodbye on Sunday
 morning

Bolivia is in the background

We woke up early on Sunday morning to the sound of pouring rain on the tin roof and frigid temperatures. Hot coffee and steaming crêpes warmed us up and, after being escorted back to the port and saying thanks and farewell to Aurelia, we were back on the boat, rocking through the rough swells toward our last stop: the island of Tequile.    Unfortunately our guide failed to show up Sunday morning so our group was pretty much on our own for touring Tequile. Alex and I, along with some of our new friends, were able to trail another tour group who's guide pointed out the Bolivian port town of Copacabana as well as the Bolivian islands of Isla del Sol and Isla de la Luna. While we didn't get the chance to visit, it was neat to be able to look across the immense lake towards the Bolivian shore. 

Yummy lunch 

By the time we reached the top of Tequile, the weather had done a complete turnaround and instead of drizzling cold rain, the sun was shining hot and bright, without a cloud in the sky.  We enjoyed a delicious, classic lunch of rice, potatoes and fried lake trout and were given a presentation by a "stand-in" guide on various Tequile traditions. One example he shared with us was the different colored hats men wore or different sashes women wore when they were either single, dating, married or divorced. He also told us about the traditional courting procedure of a young couple; if two people decided they wanted to date, their parents would have to meet over this matter and if they agreed on the courtship the couple would have to live together for a year. If, at the end of this year, they were satisfied with the relationship, they would then marry. However, if they decided they didn't want to continue the relationship, they moved out and went their separate ways. 

With a twenty minute warning until departure back to Puno, Alex and I saw this as our "Polar Bear Club" opportunity and scurried down the other side of Tequile to retrieve our swimsuits from the boat. We joined a group of equally crazy Australians and, jumping on an opportunity of a life time, jumped off the top of one of the tour boats into the crystal clear, fifty degree waters of Lake Titicaca. 

Thank goodness the weather was gorgeous, because we were able to sunbathe on the boat during our three and a half hour ride back to Puno. I will say, however, that at 12,507 feet even three applications of sunscreen won't prevent skin-peeling sunburns! 

Upon arrival back in Puno, we enjoyed a delicious cold beer and dinner with our friends until nine- thirty, when we climbed aboard the bus back to Cusco. As we rattled home through the Peruvian streets, I couldn't help but be slightly saddened that another weekend had passed, and while it was an amazing one, it also meant that we only had two weeks left in Peru. 

Thank you all for reading and following along with our Peruvian adventures - I hope your all enjoying and stay tuned for what our final weeks in Cusco will bring!