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Shared between Bolivia and Peru and with 8,500 sq m, Lago Titicaca is the largest high-altitude lake in the world, slightly larger than the Lake Tahoe in California but smaller than the incredible salt flats in South West Bolivia (measuring 10,000 sq m). The 4 rivers flowing into the lake from the Peruvian side provide enough water circulation to make it a fresh-water lake, supporting a healthy (and very tasty!) fish population. Looking at the vast body of water reminded me of the Lake Superior in Minnesota, but the landscape here was even more dramatic with snowcapped mountains reflecting on the lake’s steel-blue surface. This region was the original founding place of the Inca and Tiwanacu civilizations, and is a home of some of their most sacred sites, particularly on the Isla de Sol in the Bolivian part of the lake. Here Incas and their predecessors built temples and other ritual sites to sacrifice virgin women and children, capture the positive energy in the stone mazes, and celebrate their origins. Apparently, every year Inca (the Chief) chose dozens beautiful virgin women from Cuzco to be sent to this remote island only to be later sacrificed to his and the God’s
honor. As if this was not enough, 200 children and uncountable number of llamas were sacrificed at the occasion of the death of each chief Incas. It did not make me feel more comfortable with this to know that most of the death offerings were voluntary.
Intrigued by its rich history and awesome landscape, we visited the island on a one-day trip arranged from Copacabana. At the arrival we were greeted by a friendly Aymara guide who showed us the main archeological sites and explained the history of the region. The island has an excellent hiking trail running from the North side to the South, providing incredible views of the lake on an easy, 3-hour trip. Nick and I finally recovered from extremely annoying stomach problems that we acquired in the jungle and La Paz (many thanks to Enterocolin drugs of Bolivian provenience that healed us!) and could enjoy the beautiful day on the lake. Enjoying a view from the hill overlooking the port, sipping on a Bolivian beer, we missed the boat on the way back but when we desperately waved at it from the shore as it was leaving, the captain turned around and picked us up.
We were lucky!!!
Next day we headed for Puno on the Peruvian side and Sue, a Canadian economy teacher with whom we hiked on the island, left for Cuzco. People warned us that Puno is an unattractive town not worth a visit, but we quite liked it. Let’s say that we really enjoyed the food and comfort that Peru, a country substantially more developed than Bolivia (albeit also more expensive), had to offer. Just as we crossed the border, it was so obvious we were in a different country. We had a fantastic lunch right off the main square (I had a juicy trout and Nick a veggie pizza) and in the evening we ventured to a restaurant offering Noveau Andean cuisine where I had possibly the best tomato soup in South America and fantastic lamb chops with plumbs and coca leaves. After two weeks of a very questionable diet, this was a welcomed and necessary treat. In the morning we walked around the town and stumbled across a large demonstration on the main square. Similar to Bolivia, street demonstrations are on a daily schedule here. We had seen demonstrations of second-hand cloth resellers, moms of disappeared kids, and
many others. This one was against the treaty that was just about to be signed between Peru, Bolivia, and Chile, reconciling a century-old border disputes and opening dialogue for more military and other cooperation. Not sure how people can get anything done here id they are in the streets every day…
In the afternoon we took the standard 3-hour trip to the floating islands. These incredible man-made, straw platforms floating on the surface of the lake were built by the Uros people who had previously inhabited the shores of the lake but were in the 15th century forced by the brutal Incas to move on to the lake. Apparently, it takes a whole community and 12 months to build one of these platforms, measuring over 1 meter in height, and it requires constant maintenance as the bottom part of the island quickly rots. The islands are actually quite small, typically housing no more than 5 families, and can be easily moved or even split in half should there be a power struggle in their community. While some Uros still live on the islands, it was quite obvious that many of them just come here from the mainland to follow
the tourists and sell them their handcrafts.
This was the last day for Nick and me traveling together, for the time being at least. Having traveled together for a month, from Buenos Aires to Iguazu, Salta, Salt Flats, Potosi, La Paz, Bolivian Jungle, and finally Titicaca, we have shared many awesome experiences, and parting was hard and little emotional I have to admit. Nick was heading to Arequipa and I left for Cuzco. Chances are we will meet again in Machu Piccu end of May to celebrate Nick’s birthday.
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