The Highest Lake

Whoa, this coca tea must be working because the Lake's are high here in Puno, Peru! Actually, we are really high as we've been staying close to Lake Titicaca since we arrived here on Sunday. The lake is located at 12,000 feet so it's no fooling that it is high. When you look at the lake it is so enormous it looks more like the ocean or something more vast. The altitude hasn't effected us too much as we had plenty of time to acclimate ourselves while hiking to Macchu Picchu and living in Cusco which is located at 10,000 feet or so.

Our bus ride to Puno really cemented the fact that we have embarked upon the "Gringo Trail" as it is known here in Peru. Some refer to it as the "Yankee Trail" but since I hate the Yankee's I'll settle for being a gringo. All the foreigners here are on the same circuit that includes: Macchu Picchu, Cusco, Lima, Lake Titicaca, Arequipa, Nazca. Maybe not in that order, but, those are the hot spots to hit apparently. The bus ride here was long but it was broken up by lots of stops at a variety of tourist haunts which included a few churches, good views, and a pre-Inca museum. We arrived here in Puno in the evening and settled into our hostel.

We left early the next morning to get our boat to visit Uros Islands and Amantani Island in the large lake. After a short ride, we arrived at one of the reed islands. It was amazing to learn about how the islands were developed and constructed. An extended family lived on the island we visited. After a short informational shebang by the guide, we were instructed to visit the homes of the islanders and to shop at their stalls. Then, we took a short ride on a reed boad to another island that had a few restaraunts, a mini-market, and small huts to spend the night in. It was an amazing experience as I'd only seen photos of this way of life. However, the islands of the Uros area are INCREDIBLY touristy that it was also a bit unsettling to visit.

After a longer trip, we arrived at Amantani, which is another, larger island in the lake. The trip was pretty uneventful and I've got a cold, so, I just slept most of the way. When we arrived on the island, we were met by 10 women dressed traditionally. They were either knitting or spinning thread while we were doled out to their care. The women on this island dress in 3 or 4 calf length skirts, elaborately embroidered white, collared shirts (embroidered by their husbands), sandals made of tire tread, and long, black, embroidered head shawls. It was quite a scene to see these women perched on the cliff above the beautiful shore waiting to invite a bunch of strangers into their families for the evening. Well, we were given to Clara and her family. She was nice and welcoming. After a heafty hike up the hill, with many stops to rest along the way, we arrived at her home. We met her sons, Mario and Jimmy, and helped peel potatoes for lunch. After lunch, we met up with the tour group for a walk further up the hill to see the Inca Temple called Patchatata. It was impressive as were the views. The island is comprised of 8 communities that live by the credo: "I help you today and you help me tomorrow." It is a system that seems to work as the people trade goods and help one another out. However, most of the men and boys work off-island to make ends meet.

After the walk, we went back to Clara's and her sister, Nancy, fixed us dinner. Then, it was time for the traditional dance and fiesta! As you can imagine, Peter and I have had enough dancing for the year - our wedding and the salsa class! But, we donned the traditional dress that was pressed upon us - the tight belt that Nancy strapped me in was pressing on my rib cage and it was hard to breathe! - and we were off for the community center. A group of talented adolescent boys provided beautiful musical accompaniment as we were taught the traditional steps. Luckily, they were easier than salsa. The twirling skirt moves reminded me of being a kid. It was fun. We were tired after a short while and headed home with Nancy for a sleep.

The next day, we were off for the smaller, more isolated isle of Taquille. I never imagined in my wildest dreams that we'd ever get there, folks. The boat ride from Amantani to Taquille was quite a gut churner. The morning was windy, rainy and the waves were about 2 feet high. I know this sounds kind of ninny, but, the boat wasn't the Titanic. It was slow, low to the water, and semi-seaworthy, at best. But, our captain was confident and off we went. Did I mention I had a cold? Did I tell you that I was under the effects of Nyquil? Let's just say this ride was pretty rough. We kept churning over the waves. Every so often, one big one would crash over the bow of the boat and splash the windshield. That was so very confidence building. The trip was supposed to take an hour. After about 10 minutes, I was ready to swim. At least 8 of the 25 folks on board left the comfort of their seats for the refreshing, open-air seating on the back of the boat. Apparently, a pre-req for that seating was a ghostly white face and a fist clenching a plastic bag. Delightful. After the last sorry soul headed for the puke deck, I decided the only way I could endure the trip was to close my eyes. I figured it'd make me puke or calm my nerves from looking out to the churning lake. Thankfully, it calmed me down. It gave me fertile space to pray. My prayers became more intense as I could hear the motor working away. Along with the sorry excuse for the motor (think lower octave lawn mower!) I could hear a metallic banging every so often. I didn't waste time worrying about what that noise could be as I was distracted by the creaking and cranking of the wooden walls of the vessel. Needless to say, we arrived on Terra Firma safely and if it weren't raining heavily, I would have kissed the ground. Peter's only comment was: "Boy, if we had to stay on that boat any longer, I probably would have been sick."

After a rainy, but delightfully stable, walk around the island we arrived at the main plaza. There was a photo gallery and a small cooperative of artensial crafts. This island is more isolated and the people maintain their traditional dress. The men wear stocking-like hats. If the hats are half white, that means the man is single. If they are all red, the man is married. Single men do not carry the small pouch for coca leaves. The men also wear embroidered belts, short pants and little vests. The women of the island wear clothes similar to the ladies on Amantani. The men and women of this island only marry folks on the island and there is less off-island contact. It was an interesting trip. I don't think I've ever been happier to be anywhere given the trip we had to get there. Our trip back to Puno was long but the scenery was pretty. We were tempted to sit on the deck above the main cabin but the sun is so intense here, we opted to stay inside.

We arrived back in Puno to meet our Travel helper, Roxanne. She gave us our tickets for the bus ride to Copacabana, Bolivia and the Islas del Sol y Luna. We inquired if the rumors we heard from a New Zealander on our Lake trip were true about the $100 fee for Americans to cross the border to Bolivia. Her face fell and she said, "You are Americans?" We told her we were and she said that it would cost us $200 for the two of us to spend the night in Bolivia. We said no thanks. That's an awful lot of dinero to fork over for one night. So, we changed our plans to a privately guided tour of the sites south of Puno instead. Yesterday, we were treated to a tour of 3 churches and an Incan Fertility Temple. Very interesting. One of the churches has been neglected for the past 400 years (sadly) but it had no roof. So, tall grass was growing on the floor of the church. It was beautiful. It was like the natural sacred was melding with the humanly constructed sacred space.

Well, we are off for Arequipa tomorrow morning. It is the second largest city in Peru. There have been strikes in that town for the past few days and the roads have been blocked off. However, we were told that the farmers have resolved their problems with the powers that be so we should be good to go tomorrow morning. I hope so. Puno was nice but not our favorite. We are also ready to be at a more reasonable altitude and warmer, less extreme temperatures.

Hope you enjoyed reading. Hope all is well.

Love,
K & P