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Published: April 28th 2008
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Chris and I also went on an amazing tour of Lake Titicaca, the largest lake in South America. We left early in the morning and took a 30 minute boat ride to Uros, which are man-made floating islands where the Uro Tribe still live. The tribe dates back to pre-Incan times. They wanted to live apart from other people to preserve their culture so they made these floating islands out of reeds and have lived there ever since. There are about 40 of these islands in total and we visited a couple of them and were able to take some real neat pictures and talk with the people who lived there. (They seem to love visitors and all of the kids wanted us to come see their houses--also made from reeds--and they took us on a boat ride on a boat that, you guessed it, is also made from reeds, talking to us the whole time about their way of life, people, and culture.) Then we went back to our tour boat for a three hour boat ride to Amantani. Although the boat moved slowly, Lake Titicaca is huge, I think our guide said it is about 100 miles long and
40 miles wide. Once we arrived to Amantani we met with the president of the island and we met some families. Each of the groups in our tour (there were about 12 of us) were assigned to a different family. So, after the we all met, Nelly, from Amantani, took us home with her. We walked for about twenty minutes, through fields and flocks of sheep to get to her house. This island has no electricity, no hotels, and no restaurants. It was very beautiful and very peaceful. Nelly showed Chris and I our bed, and then invited us to the "dining room" for dinner. This structure was separate from the house and had a very small door (Chris had to crouch) a fire with a big black pot and a very small table with three wood chairs. Here they served us homemade soup, potatoes and rice. After lunch, we walked up to the highest peak on the island, which is also the highest peak on Lake Titicaca (over 4000 meters). From the top was an incredible view of the lake, other islands, and the island we were on. We watched the sunset, and then walked back home shivering from
the cold! After dinner (potato/carrot soup served with rice, potatoes, and carrots) Chris and I went to our room (by candlelight) and instead of going to the community fiesta they have every night, where they play instruments, dance and sell their handcrafts Chris and I decided to stay in playing cards and watching the lightning storm. The island, pitch black by 7pm was lit up by beautiful flashes and bolts of lightning for the next couple of hours. As we crawled into bed we noticed it smelt a bit like hay, but did not realize until the morning, that we had slept on a straw mattress!
After breakfast, Nelly took us back to the port where our boat and our group all met and we took an hour boat ride to the Island of Taquile. We walked around and ate lunch there at a restaurant that served us fresh trout on the side of the mountain overlooking the lake. It too was breathtaking. (we went to a restaurant that was about a twenty minute walk from the main pueblo because the restaurants rotate business. One week the town restaurants are open, and the mountainside restaraunts closed, then the next
week they switch). I have some amazing pictures that I will try to send you all soon (go to http://picasaweb.google.es/Karibeaner/PeruAwesomeness if you have not received them). Unfortunately our little point and shoot camera was stolen, but I had my big camera with all of my pictures backed up on DVD, so you will all still get to see the highlights of our adventures.
Here is a website about Uros Islands and a website about Lake Titicaca and the other islands we went to. Muy interesante.
http://gosouthamerica.about.com/od/topdestlaketiticaca/a/floatingislands.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Titicaca
After Puno, Chris and I began our ascent back up through Peru and to Ecuador. We retraced our route almost exactly and, although our bus broke down and our plane was 7 hours delayed, successfully made it back to Cuenca in time for our Monday classes. This trip was a much needed rejuvination and packed full of memories we will never forget. We hope you all enjoy , and as always, thank you all for your continous support and encouragement.
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