I cant think of a name for this entry, so this will have to do

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Rich here

we decided go to Copacabana to check into a swanky hotel for ridiculously little money (30 dollars a night for the best suite, cant complain). Only problem was, when we got there they´d ballsed up the reservation, and politely explained "no, it was for yesterday (in fact, beforfe the reservation was made), why didnt you come yesterday?" hmmm, thanks.

so the main reason for bothering to go to gringo central in the first place was still born. To make up for that, we decided to go to the magnificent Isla del Sol, the center of the Inca official religion (only the high level one, relating to the Inca himself, the other minor deities that were, and still are, worshipped round here originate all over the place, strange trees, interesting looking rocks, holes in the ground etc.). It is here that the sun was born, the 1st. Inca Manco made his ascent from the underworld and the creator god Viracocha returned to the waters of Lake Titticaca. This legend was going to prove a bit of a problem. Viracocha was a tall, white, bearded deity and he went into the sea. When tall, white bearded people came out of the sea and started swanning around in the 1530s, people thought he´d come back. The chronicles are not clear on how long after the Spanish started causing chaos people stopped thinking they were gods, but it probably wasnt until after they´d kidnapped the Inca, ransomed him for just about all the gold in the empire and then killed him anyway for good measure. oops.

The boat trip to the island was at about 6 knots, and took AGES. Once we arrived we were subjected to the WORST museum of gold imaginable. I would have thought, to warrant that name, it might include some gold but no. An eclectic mix of broken pottery and skulls in a room no bigger than my lounge. Great. Then we set off and trudged oround the island for hours without the faintest idea where we were going, although there were some pretty good ruins.

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Photos

lake titicaca
yeah, i suppose thats quite a big lake, but ive got a bigger one at home

Inca ruins
no arches then

arty stuff
courtesy of Jen

strange fly thing
dont know what it is, but it was carrying an ENORMOUS spider and its green, which makes it great

lizard
i also found a dead lizzard FULL OF MAGGOTS!!!!
BRILLIANT!!!

I AM THE CREATOR GOD
this is me standing on the rock the villicocha was supposed to have descended into the sea from. why this undistinguished rock became the center of a religion is anyone´s guess