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With La Paz behind us we headed on east to the sacred lake of the Incas - Lake Titicaca. Our first stop was Copacabana (Bolivia) to visit the Isla del Sol. We then crossed the border to Peru and stopped at Puno to visit the Floating Islands, before heading on to Peru's second city - Arequipa.
Copacabana
As ever the journey to Copacabana itself was eventful. The bus arrived an hour early, before we had even packed; the only seats were right at the back with no leg room; and the bus had to cross the Lake on a separate ferry to the passengers, in case the ferry sank (well the bus 'ferry' was just a wooden platform, barely buoyant above the lake's surface - good to know it had all our bags on it).
We arrived at Copa and found a place to stay before booking a trip the following day to the nearby Isla del Sol - birthplace of the Inca Gods. Unfortunately the gods were not smiling on us. We awoke in the night to find that it was raining, not only outside, but also though a hole in the corner of our room! It continued
raining when we woke up to go on our trip. As we joined the rest of our tour group to the island on the boat, it was not lost on us that we were going to the Island of Sun in the pissing rain. Fortunately as we arrived the rain stopped and whilst we walked from one end of the island to the other the clouds cleared too. The trip to the island offered us our first Inca ruins as well as excellent views of the lake and surrounding countryside.
That night we returned to Copa, via the 'Bolivian Floating Islands' i.e. the worst tourist attraction in South America, and found a carnival starting up. After dinner with a few people from the day trip we checked out the party, however the rain returned and soon we were back to the dripping hotel, before heading to Peru the next day.
Puno
We stopped in Puno for just one day to see the Floating Islands. These islands are out in Lake Titicaca and are made entirely of reeds. They are inhabited by a people who are culturally and to some extent genetically separate from the Peruvians who live on
around the lake. The islands are culturally interesting, but are very touristy! Nevertheless it means that the photos are much better, so Trace was in her element!
Arequipa
Peru's second city is a beautiful place, so we decided to splurge on a nice hotel and spend some time exploring the sights. We had a great time in the town and it was a cool place to hang out, but it was spoilt when Tracy had her handbag taken from a restaurant. Despite this one black spot, we still had fun. Whilst there, we also visited the Worlds Deepest Canyon (well second actually, but that sounds less impressive, and from the advertising, Peru's tourist authorities agree). We spent two days in the Colca Canyon, visiting Inca and Pre-Inca sites, admiring the views and watching Condors ride the thermals!
Next up - Cusco and the Inca Trail!
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