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Published: June 24th 2016
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Arriving in Puno after a long road journey across the altiplano we have our first glimpse of Lake Titicaca - what an evocative sight it was! Even better, when we check into our hotel room we found we had a wonderful panorama across the lake including the Uros Reed islands!! We were somewhat apprehensive as we would be spending two nights and a full day at the continuous highest altitude of the tour, 12500ft, but we had acclimatised well in the previous few days and apart from being slightly short of breath when climbing stairs or walking uphill we were absolutely fine with no significant altitude sickness symptoms.
The following morning we watched a dramatic sunrise, from the comfort of our room, which was a bonus as the outside temperature was below zero!! Later we boarded a tourist boat and headed out across the lake to the Uros Reed Islands. We were made very welcome on one particular island where we were given a demonstration of the construction of the reed islands, a general tour of the reed houses and a welcome dance. Walking on the islands was somewhat like walking on a mattress, soft and springy, on top of
the thick layer of dried reeds. The local Uros people - who were friendly and wore brightly coloured long skirts make a living from fishing and tourism. We all paid 1 nuevos sole (approximately 25p) to have our passports stamped to prove our visit to the islands! We headed out into this immense lake and stopped at Isle Taquile - a small land island home to a small number of indigenous Quechua-speaking families - who wear colourful hand-knitted clothes, the colours indicating if they are single or married. They provided a local tasty lunch for us consisting of Quinoa soup and local trout.
Next morning we headed into the local town of Puno to catch the Andean Explorer train. We spent the next ten hours watching the scenery pass by - with ancient rural scenes and small dusty villages and occasional larger towns - made all the more enjoyable sipping a Pisco Sour or two! Juliaca, a busy town, one hour or so from Puno, proved to be one of the highlights of the journey as we passed through the local market - which was situated within inches of the rail tracks - everything seemed to be for sale
- and as we passed the market spread back across the rail tracks behind the train - a riot of colour and interest. After several hours we stopped for a fifteen minute break allowing a quick peruse through a small local tourist market - a pair of Alpaca wool socks seemed a bargain! As the day progressed the scenery changed to become more mountainous as we approached the Andes. Finally we arrived into Cusco - the gateway to the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu - the scene of our adventures for the next few days.
Accommodation - Libertador Lake Titicaca Hotel
Weather - Sunny & blue skies 22c - cold at night.
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