Puno / Floating Islands

Another really easy border crossing to Peru and an easy 4 hour drive to Puno. However we were at the back yet again! We were sat next to a cool, Argentinian girl who told us loads about Buenos Aires and two Slovakian girls who were cool as well.

We got to Puno and got a taxi to Hostel Bothy, the taxis here are silly cheap, 10 minute ride for 70p! The hostel we stayed in was amazing, the entrance looks like a dive but it opens out into a 3 floor building and has free WIFI, a DVD room, kitchen and the staff are on a different level. Eduardo who works there is so helpful and funny! When we needed to get a bus to Arequipa the the lady who runs the night shift didn't speak English so Eduardo came in and got a taxi to the bus station and got us a really cheap ticket! What a legend you are Eduardo, he even has weights so if you fancy a work out you can. The only annoying thing about our stay was the very loud Canadian's with their late nights and early mornings! Ahhhhhh!

Puno is a city in southeastern Peru, located on the shore of Lake Titicaca. It's also the capital city of the Puno region and the Puno Province.
For the first 3 days we did absolutely nothing and found it hard getting motivated for the tour that was on offer, we couldn't be bothered, I was a bit worried we were getting bored of traveling, but we just had no energy and it felt like we hadn't slept in weeks, The Altitude just zaps our energy and drive, horrible, also Mish got a cold from Copacabana as our room was like a freezer there!

The highlight of Puno on the first 3 days was the food, I don't know if you know but Bolivian food is not nice, actually its crap and it was amazing to eat well again. Puno is only 4 hours away from Bolivia but you can already see how much more wealthy the country is, with its paved roads and nicer restaurants and shops etc. The only bad meal we had is when Mish tried the trout and accidentally ordered it raw and had to hold her breath to eat it!! The best restaurant we ate in was called E.C.C.O, amazing food for cheap and the staff are so professional and the food comes quick, some times in Bolivia the food took over an hour to arrive and you didn't know if it would come!!

On the 4th day we stopped being wimps and booked our tour with Eduardo to the floating islands and to the islands of Amantani and Taquile.

The floating islands are the home of the Uros tribe, one which pre-dates the Incan civilization. According to their legends, they existed before the sun, when the earth was still dark and cold.
There are 47 floating islands that are made from reeds! The islands are anchored to the lake bed, and the residents live in tiny buildings again made from reeds, its incredible to see, the tour guide was amazing and spoke very good English and we got to know how the islands were made and had a bit of time to go around the homes and have a look around the island, its incredible people live on these islands 24 / 7!
Even though I loved the floating islands tour I felt like I was taken just to be sold things as the locals get the children to come and grab your hand and take you to their stalls, I hate seeing children exploited. The Women on these island wore the most amazing colourful clothes.
After visiting the islands we got a 4 hour boat to the island of Amantani, on the way we sat up on the top deck as the bottom was crowded and stuffy. Joining us in the fresh air was Alex from Germany, Nadia from Spain, and Rob and Meagan from Canada, they all had great chat! I knew this was going to be a great trip, its all about the people on tours for me. Alex was a fascinating guy who had just finished his Medicine school exams. Also a keen tennis player, golfer and skier so we got along like a house on fire!!
When we arrived on Amantani we were greeted by our families who we would stay with for one night, actually our family wasn't there as they were making us lunch. We took a 25 minute walk up the hill to the village, I wouldn't take your big back packs if I were you! This lady looked as she was going to collapse carrying it, I offered to carry it for her but she gave me a worried look and didn't want the help, wierdo!!! I even offered again she looked that much in pain! Must of thought I looked like a thief!
Anyway we got the the house and met Señora Blanca, she showed us to our room, we were amazed, 3 beds real nice sheets and duvets. We had lunch then with Blanca and felt kind of guilty watching her slave away at the stove, she produced some lovely Quinoa soup and then rice cheese and vegetables, really yummy! Then minty coca tea which helped with the altitude headaches. After lunch I saw Alex on the football pitch kicking a ball around and ran out there to join him for a couple of hours with some local kids, awesome fun.

According to a 1988 census, Amantani island, has a population of 3,663 Quechua speakers divided among about 800 families. The island is circular and about 9.28 km² in size. It has two mountain peaks, Pachatata (Father Earth) and Pachamama (Mother Earth), with ancient Inca and Tiwanaku ruins on top of both. The hillsides, are terraced mostly worked by hand and planted with wheat, Quinoa, potatoes and other vegetables. Livestock, including alpacas, also graze the slopes.

The temples at the top of the peaks are generally closed during the year. Entrance is permitted on January 20, the annual feast day, at which time the island's population divides in two, with each group gathering at its respective temple. And according to Senora Blanca is a great party that she loves! That evening the group took a 30 minute trek up to Pachatata, to admire the 360 degree views and walk around the temple 3 times anti clock wise, apparently this makes you feel more energized, and younger!!
That evening we had a lovely meal with Blanca and said every Spanish word we knew! So after 3 minutes there was not a lot left to say, the conversation was poor, but her company was very enjoyable and we had a another lovely meal. We couldn't see her wash up so we dived in to help and she looked very happy! Blanca then dressed us up in traditional clothing, Mishee wearing what Blanca was wearing. We have been wondering what these ladies wear under their skirts for ages and we finally found out, more skirts 3 really thick ones! They need to keep warm at such high altitudes, especially in winter. We followed Blanca down to the village hall and danced the night away with a flute band playing, I danced with Blanca and had run out of moves within 10 seconds! She was very fit for a 58 year old and moved very well, Mishee also looked good on the dance floor and it was great the gringos mixing with the locals. The locals do this home stay once a week, a good bit of income for them, its good they don't do it any more than this as they would get silly bored of tourists and dancing to the same band every night.
That night we fell asleep with the rain bleating down on the roof and fell into a very deep sleep! YES!!! We woke up at 7am and it was still raining as Blanca made us pancakes and had a morning coffee, but as we stepped out the door the rain stopped and the sun came out, good timing. We walked down and hugged Blanca and gave her a nice tip and watched her face light up!
We managed to get the top deck again and headed an hour on the boat to Taquile island.
About 1,700 people live on Taquile island, which is 5.5 by 1.6 km in size (maximum measurements), with an area of 5.72 km². The highest point of the island is 4050 meters above sea level and the main village is at 3950 m. The inhabitants, known as Taquileños, are southern Quechua speakers.
Taquile, whose Quechua name some believe was Intika, was part of the Inca Empire and has a number of Inca ruins. The island was one of the last locations in Peru to capitulate to Spanish domination during the Spanish conquest of Peru. Here the people wear different hats to determine their marital status. Also when the people greet each other they exchange coca leaves instead of saying hello. If your late for a meeting or event you have to give coca leaves to everyone to say sorry, so don't be late on this island! Taquileños run their society based on community collectivism, and on the Inca moral code ama sua, ama llulla, ama qhilla, ( Quechua for "do not steal, do not lie, do not be lazy")
We had a walk around the island and stopped for a coffee and climbed back down to the boat for our 4 hour trip back to Puno, again we sat up top and this time 4 Aussie boys were with us and had a great chat mostly about aeroplanes as two of the boys worked for Quantas, a great job as they can travel around the world for very cheap, might get into that, ads the trolley dolly!
That night I organised for all the cool people on the tour to meet up for dinner, we had a couple of drinks in a bar and then took them to E.C.C.O, the man was happy to see me with 10 of my friends! I was under pressure as Alex and the boys kept saying this better be good! I came up trumps though as everyone loved the double burgers and the bottle of Pisco we got on the cheap! Back to the pub across the street and then hit the sack a great tour, we almost didn't do this island tour, but its well worth it, staying with a local on Amantani was an experience like no other we have had and again met some more great people and learnt how others lead their lives.

Tomorrow off to Arequipa!!

Ads and Mish xx