Lake Titicaca - Peruvian side

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Leaving our Bolivian tour guide behind in Copacabana, we boarded our next bus which took us to the border crossing for Peru, where we had to walk from one country to the next before getting back on the same bus, and onto the town of Puno, located on the north-west side of Lake Titicaca.

Arriving in Puno, we were met by one of the tour company´s representatives - a very friendly little old man called Lorenzo Rojas - who ushered us into a taxi and took us to the hotel we would be staying in for the next couple of nights.

Our first priority was to obtain some local currency (Peruvian Soles), having only had about the equivalent of 5 pounds in Bolivian currency to change at the border, so we took a short walk to the main square, Plaza de Armas, to find an ATM before strolling along some of the streets nearby. First impressions of Peru were not good. The people didn´t seem very friendly and for the first time in our trip we actually felt slightly threatened.

The following day we were up bright and early for our trip to Lake Titicaca from the Peruvian side. Boarding a much bigger and faster boat, we headed out onto the lake, passing the Tortora reeds and on to the floating islands of the Uros people.

There are about 50 separate floating islands, made entirely from the tortora reeds - they start with a base made from clumps of the reed´s roots, which they anchor in place using poles, then cover this base with layers and layers of the reeds all bound tightly together around the edges. They also make their huts, lookout towers and boats from the reeds. Each island has a family group of around 20-40 members, from grandchildren to grandparents, who earn money by knitting, weaving and making various items from the reeds, which they sell to the many visiting tourists.

Our boat moored alongside one of the islands, Isla Pachamama, where we were invited to "disembark". We were told how the islands were maitained and how they could be moved by up to a kilometre if needed. We were then shown some of the handicrafts being sold before being taken on a reed boat across to another floating island, where the locals had built a pool within the island to hold the fish they catch.

Back on our boat again we headed further into the lake and to the island of Taquile. Disembarking here, we took a walk along a coastal path and up to the small town in the centre of the island where we were given yet another opportunity to buy handicrafts, such as knitted hats, etc, from the villagers. We then stopped for lunch in a small restaurant where we were treated to the delights of... quinoa soup and trout and cold veggies (!!!!), along with an Inka Cola (the local Peruvian soft drink which Suzz thought tasted a bit like Irn Bru and Av thought looked like something far less tasty!!!)).

After finishing lunch, we walked along a different path for another hour or so, and arrived at a different harbour to catch our boat back to Puno.

The following day we had another early start and an 8 hour bus journey to Cusco.

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