Blogs from Puno, Peru, South America - page 14

Other than reading about Lake Titicaca in Guiness Book of World Records as being the highest navigable lake, (I loved that book when I was in seventh grade) I knew little about that region and didn't really understand all that it had to offer. Originally, I wanted to go to Puno as a starting point to head over to Bolivia, but given the short amount of time I had, negligible Spanish, and the tiniest bit of fear, I decided instead to explore the region of Puno, the lake, and a group of people I had heard of who lived on "floating islands." I was intrigued. I began by taking my trusted "Cruz del Sur" from Cuzco to Puno on a Friday afternoon so that I could visit Lake Titicaca and see some of the surrounding terrain ... read more

Alright, so it's been a really long time since I wrote one of these things, but I had to get this off my chest, no matter how hairy it is. (Yes, my chest and the story.) What can I say about border crossings? One thing I can´t say is that they´re not without their...entertainment. I think there are a couple of ways to judge this. Entertainment at expense of the traveler and entertainment for the traveler. In one respect, the excitement that comes from the new adventure forthcoming which brings a flurry of imagination to the traveler. What different foods will I eat? What mountains and deserts will I cross? What will the people be like? Much different from their neighboring countrymen? Will transportation be a pain in the ass? For the border police, entertainment at ... read more

7.00a.m. 23.5.2012 - After having some lessions on Pisco Sour making - Elder said you haven't been to Peru unless you eat Guinea Pig - so we shared one between us - wasn't that psyched up for it - but it really was a couple of mouthfuls - bit like quail - not much meat and a lot of bones. Anyway we have tried it!!!! Can't believe we did that !! lAlso John tried a Alpaca steak which he thoroughly enjoyed. 22.5.2012 Headed off at 9.00a.m. in three cyclos down to the wharf area in Puna to catch our motor boat out to the floating islands of the Uros people, it was absolutely fantastic, there are groups of families who live on these floating islands, there’s a president and he presides over the community on each ... read more

After an eary start to get out of La Paz before the trouble started we farewelled Cory as he took Heather and Linton to catch the bus to Puno we ground our way up the 1600 meters out of the city only to fight our way through the markets of Samo Alto. After clearing the city traffic we stopped for a smoko break at a nice new Plaza. We arrived to catch the ferry to find quite a que, so after about half an hour we were each allocated our own Ferry Barge, why we could not get all of us on on is beyond my comprehension, so is was game on to see who would get ther first. Allan was able to drop his back wheel down between the gaps in the decking, he had ... read more

We arrived in Puno to a downpour. As suspected, there were tons of hostals within a block of the terminal and after a little shopping we settled on one for $20 soles ($8 USD) in total. Oh how I love these prices. No restaurants were open nearby so we went back to the terminal and picked up some bread and fruit. We met a nice english speaking guide there who recommended a hostal closer to the main square, also for $20 soles. Tuesday (27th - 1 month in to our trip!!!) morning I talked to a tourist information place while Sarah organized. And after Sarah filled herself with a pre-breakfast snack of bread and fruit. The view from our hostal window showed shambles, chaos, colors, tons of different kinds of taxis, dogs, people...just chaos. From the ... read more