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Leaving La Paz, we headed up the steep streets of the city and onto the main highway heading north through El Alto. After travelling for an uneventful 3 hours up, down and through winding roads we caught our first glimpse of Lake Titicaca as we approached the town of San Paulo, where we would have to take a "ferry" across this part of the lake before continuing our journey to Copacabana.
At an altitude of 3,800m above sea level, Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world, covering an area of 8,549 sqkm and a depth in places of 274 metres!
Anyway, arriving at the lake we had to leave the bus and make our way across in smaller boats from San Paulo to San Pedro. We watched in amazement as our bus was loaded on to a small floating platform with a single outboard motor and ferried across. Apparently the passengers used to stay on the bus a few years back, but an incident with a school bus unbalancing and tipping into the lake has since brought about the new system!
Back on the bus and it was a further hour´s journey to reach
our destination for the night, the small town of Copacabana. (The Bolivians claim that this is in fact the first Copacabana in South America and the Brazilians copied the name when naming their famous beach in Rio de Janiero.)
Having checked into our hotel for the night (all included in our tour) we just had enough time to eat a quick lunch at the hotel (of quinoa soup, trout and cold veggies and tinned peaches for dessert) before heading to the town´s port and the boat ride to Isla del Sol.
The boat carried about 60 passengers, all squashed onto chairs you´d normally see in an infant´s school, and was powered by ONE small outboard motor. Hence we were travelling at about 5-10 mph and it took us over 2 hours to reach the island (which had looked so close on the map).
On Isla del Sol we were taken for a walk across the southern side of the island, seeing the remains of the terraces built by the Incas and the remains of a small palace before boarding once again on the boat back to Copacabana.
Unfortunately the journey back to the town was just
as slow, if not slower, and we were both starting to suffer from headaches, brought on by the altitude. Add to this the fumes from the diesel motor and two American´s sitting behind us who talked/complained about their trips at the top of their voices, and it wasn´t a very enjoyable journey.
By the time we reached the hotel again, Suzz was really suffering from altitude sickness so went straight to our room. However, our guide for the trip, Eldi, was really helpful and informed us we could buy tablets to combat the "Sorochi" so she and Av headed off to the pharmacy to acquire some of these. After having the miracle tablets Suzz felt much better but still not well enough to have dinner so Av and the guide had dinner at the hotel, comprising: quinoa soup, trout and cold veggies and tinned peaches for dessert!!
The following morning with Suzz having made a complete recovery, we were taken on a short tour of the town, visiting the local markets and the main church, which has the most elaborate and valuable alter of all the churches in Bolivia. We were also very lucky to see a wedding
in progress when we visited the church - with all the local women dressed in their finest clothes and bowler hats!
After the tour we headed back to the hotel once again to have lunch (quinoa soup.........!!!) and then caught the bus to our next destination, the town of Puno on the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca.
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Lou
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The Happy Couple photo
Right you guys - you can't fool me - that is so you guys getting married in disguise!!!! Who needs Las Vegas when you're in S.America!!