A Basic Life!


Advertisement
Peru's flag
South America » Peru » Puno » Lake Titicaca » Taquile Island
July 3rd 2007
Published: July 3rd 2007
Edit Blog Post

Arriving at the IslandArriving at the IslandArriving at the Island

Oh dear what has happened to Nick's shades? Bahia de Puno.
In the morning, we were given bowls of hot water to wash our faces heated by the wood-fired stove. We were very pleased to be given pancakes and mint tea for breakfast. We said goodbye to Melissa, who was getting ready for school, and headed down to the harbour with her mother, (who was dressed in traditional costume and was spinning a bobbin). On our way we gained fantastic views of the island and sparkling waters and observed donkeys and sheep being herded into the fields. There was a ranking order on the island, with one family as the dominant leaders, who formed the main decisions about which family each person acquired.

We said goodbye to our mother and thanked her for allowing us to experience this different way of life on the island, and for being so hospitable. Such a basic life in tranquil and idyllic surroundings.

We boarded the boat and took a one hour journey to the 7sq km island called Taquile. The Quechua speaking island seemed to have a slightly better standard of living than our previous island and a long tradition of weaving. The island consisted of several hills of pre-Inca terracing, small ruins
Mud BricksMud BricksMud Bricks

Houses in construction
and a backdrop of the snow-capped Cordillera Real. We walked up the hill through an archway to the main square, passing farm animals and locals selling goods. The square itself was not overly attractive, but the church was pretty and it had fantastic sea views. Here we were bombarded by children trying to sell us friendship bracelets. We walked up a scruffy building and gained good views of the island life happening below, such as the locals selling oranges and barbecued llama, locals chasing sheep and tending their crops.

Then we had look around an art gallery depicting daily life on the island, the pictures taken by the locals themselves. After we visited a local restaurant where surprisingly we had soup, and a main course of either trout or omelette, washed down with a variety of herbal teas.

We took the steep stairway down to the jetty, ready to board our boat for the three hour journey back to Puno. We gained good views of the mountains and lake, edged with reeds and duckweed.

As we arrived we were informed that there was a strike taking place, however we were fortunate enough to obtain taxis back to
Farming TerracesFarming TerracesFarming Terraces

Bahia de Puno
the hotel. There we enjoyed the luxury of a hot shower, and great views from the rooftop. We acquired a few additional food supplies for the following day, and then headed to a gringo restaurant, where we enjoyed good quality pasta dishes. Strangely we bumped into some old members of the group. We then sampled some Lago Titicaca cocktails in the Inca bar during happy hour, before heading back and packing. Another toilet with a slight flushing problem!


Additional photos below
Photos: 5, Displayed: 5


Advertisement



14th July 2007

Looks familiar!
Hi guys! loving the blog - i think you are in arequipa now? we have just come from there and now in cusco, who knows may bump into you in lima or ecuador?!

Tot: 0.172s; Tpl: 0.009s; cc: 19; qc: 81; dbt: 0.1078s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.2mb