The bus journey was hot and long. We stopped half way at the highest point of the journey 4400m! You could tell we had ascended as our ears were popping and our mouths were dry again!

Before getting on the bus Katerine and Achim had brought us all lunch bags with cake and chocolate treats in! It was such a lovely surprise and we were all very pleased!! Most of the journey I wrote my diary as Ed slept and they decided to put a film on that never got to finish which was a little annoying!!

When we finally arrived in Puno our private bus was missing so we had to wait around for a new one! We checked in and went for a wander around the market for a gift for our home stay the next day! Ed and I brought a lot of fruit as the children don't get much on the islands. We then popped to the supermarket for essentials and then straight to dinner we were starving!

At dinner tonight some wanted to share a guinea pig to try. Kat and I stepped out and decided against the idea! It was horrible to see I didn't particular enjoy when Pedro our guide ate both it's heart and it's brains yucky!! Ed claims it tasted nice like chicken shock!!

After dinner we headed back to the hotel and went our separate ways, Ed has felt better now for a few days but I'm still unsure I'm 100%!!

We met on the morning of the 17th early for breakfast and had a bicycle type tuc tuc ride to the boat port. It was a little scary when we almost got hit by a bus but all great experience haha!! We jumped on our boat and headed out onto Lake Titicaca!!

Our first stop was the floating islands that take 50 years to build! The population of these islands is just 2000 and numbers are declining! We hopped off our boat onto one families floating island made from the lake reed. It was strange we swayed with the water and were shown around their tiny houses and given a demonstration of how they build on water. We could hear the rats which was a little off putting.

After we hopped on their reed made boat which was daunting and sailed for 10 minutes to reach another island filled with markets! We had a mooch about before jumping back onto our boat which took us to Tequila island.

The journey took a while so we sat on the top of the boat in the sunshine playing cards! Once we arrived we had to walk quite a steep path to the islands square. The population again was only 2000 people and had different rules to the rest of Peru! If these rules were broken they were exiled from the island. Their main laws included don't lie, don't be lazy and always help others. We visited a local restaurant which we tried traditional trout and explosive tea (mint with coca leaves). All the restaurants offer the same dish as then there is no competition. The locals wear particular outfits if they are taken or not so they know who they can potentially marry. All in all it was a strange experience.

We took a nice walk to the other side of the island where we boarded our boat. I tucked into my favourite Peruvian chocolate bar- Sublime and noticed our bags had been moved and some fruit we had brought for our families had been stolen! Our guide was furious with the boat staff and when getting off the boat we arranged a new one for the next day!!

Once we arrived for our home stay Ed and I were introduced to our family which were lovely. They had two small children! They led us to the school grounds where the children played football against our boys at 4000 feet above sea level. The boys were out of puff but still won yey!!

Our families dressed us in traditional clothes and my Peruvian mama plaited my hair. We were taught dances by following the locals it was so much fun! We waved goodbye and went our separate ways to our families homes.

The little girl stayed with us it was very cute. We were led to our room which was lovely and cosy. We freshened up and headed to the kitchen. We communicated in Spanish via our helpful translator book and helped
the lady pick some peas and prepare the dinner table with the children.

We sat with the children whilst the mother sat by the oven, cooking away. We enjoyed a yummy vegetable quino soup and then potatoes, cheese and veg it was delicious. Sadly we didn't get to meet the father. We sat communicating for a while and then headed to bed. It was now freezing cold. The lady left the water on for us to wash our faces and use the bathroom. We jumped into our beds wrapped up and was off in no time!

We awoke early to donkeys and cows making strange noises haha! We helped mama peal potatoes and make this fried eggy bread. It was tasty! I managed to get it everywhere! We ate breakfast with the children and watched them rush to get ready for school. The little girl had her hair washed in the garden and combed into pretty plaits. The father said hello and apologised for his absence he had been at his mothers.

Once the children had left we helped milk the cow which was something I've always wanted to try. It felt super strange! After we led the cow and it's baby towards the sheep pen where we put ropes round all the sheep and walked half an hour away to fresh grass. It was fun along the way we saw lots of lambs and baby piglets!!

On our way back we filled a blanket full of straw and had to wear it on our backs to climb back up towards the house. As the mother prepared lunch we offered to wash up. The chickens sat with us and were so thirsty we kept giving them water. Ed helped the lady carry fresh water from the lake back up to the house.

The houses garden looked out onto the school playground and when the children began what looked like a daily dance the mother came out to watch, she looked very happy. The children was adorable dancing away.

We ate lunch which the mother had made with the milk we had helped get from the cow. We then signed the families guest book and wrote a message thanking them for letting us stay!! The mother had made knitted animals and we decided to purchase 2 to remind us of our time on lake Titicaca.

After saying goodbye to the families and meeting again on our boat we all spoke about our different experiences and headed back towards Puno. It was good to know we were heading back for a warm shower and a cosy bed!

Once we arrived we caught transport back to the hotel and the boys headed straight out to watch the Spain vs Chile game. Us girls all decided to shower and sort ourselves out, we met an hour later and went for ice cream. It wasn't mouth watering Messinas we used to get in Bondi but it was still gorgeous in today's roaring sunshine. We made it to the second half of the game and caught up with everyone.

After the game we went back to relax and keep out of the sun for the rest of the day as I think we had, had our fair share!! We met up later for dinner. Callum and Fiona didn't come but Pedro and the Germans did and we set off for another chicken restaurant. We enjoyed a show whilst we ate and watched traditional Peruvian dances, my favourite was the eagle!! The Germans headed home fairly early and we stayed with Pedro. I couldn't help but think what our lake Titicaca family were doing. As we were leaving for Bolivia tomorrow I brought the lads a chocolate bar each for the journey with the last of my money.and we walked home. After we said our goodbyes and got to sleep early for our 7am bus tomorrow.

We met again at breakfast after packing and checking out. We filled up and headed to the bus station where Pedro filled everyone in on the precautions we have to take when crossing this shady boarder. We were told to watch our passports at all times and not to acknowledge him as a guide as the police would arrest him. We had a long journey and finally arrived at the boarder for 10am where we had to queue for half hour to get through! Things were very shady and we were happy to get through! We were now in Bolivia and only 5 hours tome difference from home.....