We are stuck here in Puno, a small town on the shore of Lake Titicaca. We came here on Sunday night and then took a trip to the lakes remote Islands for two days (blog to follow, i promise) and when we returned Tuesday night theres a strike on all public transport so theres no buses or taxis and the roads are blockaded! Just great! Naomi managed to get a collectivo to take her to the airport at 3am this morning where she flew to Lima to catch her flight home. She said the journey was well dodgy with loads of blockades and the driver kept crossing himself which is never reassuring! However Laura and me are still here and i think were the only tourists in the whole town!
Its not the nicest of towns but its not too big, just a managable size and theres plenty of shops, cheap markets, restaurants, internet cafes, rabid dogs and scary locals to keep us amused. Its pretty much impossible to head back North by bus which means were going to miss all the Winter Solstice festivals in Cusco and I also wont be able to do the Colca Canyon (another trek thats meant to be gorgeous) however tomorrow morning were going to try to get a boat that will take us south to the Bolivian border and then maybe we'll chill in Cocacabana for a while. Theres a cool trek that you can do to the Isla del Sol (Inca birthplace of the sun) so maybe ill get to do that!
Also were hoping it will be a little warmer than here. We are totally freezing! I'm wearing my trackie bottoms, jeans, thermal vest, 2 tshirts, a jumper, a fleece, hat, gloves and scarf, and im still cold! and to top it all, tonight is the coldest night of the year and the locals are celebrating by lighting hundreds of bonfires in the streets so the whole town is full of smoke! fabulous!