August 29 - 30, 2013 - Lake Titicaca, Peru
August 29:
In Puno a tour agent picks us up and takes up to the office. There we have breakfast and wait for the minibus to pick us up to head to the dock.
We load up on an enclosed boat with about 20 other people. We spend the nest few hours boating on the lake. The views are stunning. Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake. Its at an elevation of 3800m (12500ft). So its pretty cold and even worse when the wind blows.
Our first stop is at a floating island created by the Uros people. 10 families have grouped together to make this one island. Its made completely of reeds. The roots of the reeds provide the base and then layers after layer after layer create the ground. It was a bit squishy to walk on but sturdy. The leader of the community talks to us about their culture and practices.
They survive mostly off of fish and reeds. We got to try a reed. Weird!
And for an extra 10 soles we went for a ride in a reed boat. The boat man told me it takes 3 men 3 months to build one boat. The water is shallow enough that they dont have to paddle rather they push the boat along with long poles. The women of the island even sang us a couple of songs in their local language.
The families showed us their homes and their handy crafts.
After the floating islands we spent another 1.5 hours on the boat to reach Amantani Island. There are several communities and over 2 thousand people that live on this island.
Brittney and I and 3 others got paired with Monica and her family. Lunch was a quinoa soup with potatoes, oku, and cheese. Simple but filling, tasty, and home cooked!
This plant is called muna (pronounced munya). You break off a little piece, drop it in some hot water and it makes a tasty tea!
We met back up with the rest of our group around 4 to hike to the highest point on the island to watch the sunset. With the altitude, the steep incline, and the cold it was a tough little climb. However, as usual, the view was well worth the effort. And the
sunset did not disappoint.
We again had dinner with the family. More soup then a plate of rice and a noodle dish.
Immediately following dinner the family let us dress in their local attire for the community "tourist" dance/celebration. We met back up with the rest of the group again at the community center/school and listened to local music and danced.
August 30:
After a pancake and tea breakfast we headed over to Taquile Island in the boat. This island and steep as well and we hiked to the top of it as also. :-) The group stopped in the city plaza for a rest and to explore the little town.
Afterwards we hiked a little more to a local families house that prepared us a tasty lunch on their sun deck. The was a starter of quinoa soup (this stuff is tasty), lake trout with rice, french fries, and beet root. Just look at our view for lunch.
The family also demonstrated how they use a local plant as a natural detergent to clean clothes etc. They also told about some of their traditions. Like about how its the men the do a lot of the knitting and that they make their own hats. The single guys have white and red hats of high quality to show that they are hard workers. The married men have solid red hats and since they have already proven their worth they are usually of lesser quality. They also practice living together with significant others before getting married. Genius!
It was a 3 hour ride back to Puno.
The 2 day tour was $45US including all the meals, transportation, and accommodation.
The bus from Cusco to Puno was 60Soles.
That night Brittney and I walked around tiny Puno. We also decided to have a whole guinea pig, known as cuy in Peru. It came out de-furred, sliced from head to tail, grilled and presented on a plate. It tasted a bit like dark chicken meat. And despite the numerous bones I really enjoyed it. I tried not to think of our pet guinea pig, Dat, that we had for a while in college.
August 29:
In Puno a tour agent picks us up and takes up to the office. There we have breakfast and wait for the minibus to pick us up to head to the dock.
We load up on an enclosed boat with about 20 other people. We spend the nest few hours boating on the lake. The views are stunning. Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake. Its at an elevation of 3800m (12500ft). So its pretty cold and even worse when the wind blows.
Our first stop is at a floating island created by the Uros people. 10 families have grouped together to make this one island. Its made completely of reeds. The roots of the reeds provide the base and then layers after layer after layer create the ground. It was a bit squishy to walk on but sturdy. The leader of the community talks to us about their culture and practices.
They survive mostly off of fish and reeds. We got to try a reed. Weird!
And for an extra 10 soles we went for a ride in a reed boat. The boat man told me it takes 3 men 3 months to build one boat. The water is shallow enough that they dont have to paddle rather they push the boat along with long poles. The women of the island even sang us a couple of songs in their local language.
The families showed us their homes and their handy crafts.
After the floating islands we spent another 1.5 hours on the boat to reach Amantani Island. There are several communities and over 2 thousand people that live on this island.
Brittney and I and 3 others got paired with Monica and her family. Lunch was a quinoa soup with potatoes, oku, and cheese. Simple but filling, tasty, and home cooked!
We met back up with the rest of our group around 4 to hike to the highest point on the island to watch the sunset. With the altitude, the steep incline, and the cold it was a tough little climb. However, as usual, the view was well worth the effort. And the
sunset did not disappoint.
We again had dinner with the family. More soup then a plate of rice and a noodle dish.
Immediately following dinner the family let us dress in their local attire for the community "tourist" dance/celebration. We met back up with the rest of the group again at the community center/school and listened to local music and danced.
August 30:
After a pancake and tea breakfast we headed over to Taquile Island in the boat. This island and steep as well and we hiked to the top of it as also. :-) The group stopped in the city plaza for a rest and to explore the little town.
Afterwards we hiked a little more to a local families house that prepared us a tasty lunch on their sun deck. The was a starter of quinoa soup (this stuff is tasty), lake trout with rice, french fries, and beet root. Just look at our view for lunch.
The family also demonstrated how they use a local plant as a natural detergent to clean clothes etc. They also told about some of their traditions. Like about how its the men the do a lot of the knitting and that they make their own hats. The single guys have white and red hats of high quality to show that they are hard workers. The married men have solid red hats and since they have already proven their worth they are usually of lesser quality. They also practice living together with significant others before getting married. Genius!
It was a 3 hour ride back to Puno.
The 2 day tour was $45US including all the meals, transportation, and accommodation.
The bus from Cusco to Puno was 60Soles.
That night Brittney and I walked around tiny Puno. We also decided to have a whole guinea pig, known as cuy in Peru. It came out de-furred, sliced from head to tail, grilled and presented on a plate. It tasted a bit like dark chicken meat. And despite the numerous bones I really enjoyed it. I tried not to think of our pet guinea pig, Dat, that we had for a while in college.
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