Puno- 4:45 PM

Today has been a long travel day. I knew it was coming but actually experiencing it is very different than reading it on an itinerary.

Our wake up call was at 7:00. We got dressed and had our suitcases out the door by 7:15. We then headed downstairs for breakfast. I made sure to eat a lot because I knew our lunch today would be a "box lunch" which would mean I probably wouldn't eat much of it. I even grabbed a muffin and slice of marble cake to take with me.

We boarded the bus right after 8:30. We were bombarded again by vendors trying to sell us handicrafts. There was even a guy selling pictures of us that he took when we arrived at the airport in Cusco. How did he find us?!

We got on the road for about 15 minutes until we stopped to switch buses and get on a jumbo bus. It even had a nice bathroom on it, along with 3 fold down flat screen TV's. We got in the bus and claimed the best seats: the ones in the middle with a lot of floor space right before the stairs.

We then began our long journey toward Puno. I enjoyed looking out the window at the scenery. I definitely took many naps until my back started hurting. Edgard out on a documentary about the Incas and Machu Picchu. I watched most of it but definitely missed the last part.

Our first stop was to the ruins at Raqchi. We visited the "Wiracocha temple" that according to the old chroniclers was built by the Inca Wiracocha in honor to the Supreme God of the Incas: "Apu Kon Titi Wiracocha," which I believe to be the sun god. We had about 20 minutes to look around and go back to the bus. The crazy lady in the group that we call Ms. Hannigan, because she looks like the crazy lady from Annie, was ahead of us and we noticed she was hiding behind some of the ruins. She said "I was changing out of my long underwear because it got warm!" We thought it was weird that she didn't change in a restroom like a normal person. She was also wearing her crazy fishing vest that she bought on the train to Machu Picchu. She has definitely been the source of our entertainment. Sometimes, we also like to call her Cooky or Cookaburra.

We made our way back to the bus. Cooky needed more time to shop, even though she's bought a crap ton of crap. We eventually all made it back on the bus and got on our way.

We drove a while longer until we reached "Abra la Raya" which is a point in the mountains where the elevation is 14,000 feet. We got out to take pictures. It was cold and windy!

A few minutes later, we stopped so Edgard could point out where the Amazon river starts. We got out and took a picture... Just to say we were actually in the Amazon river.

We got our "boxed lunches." They included a Peruvian "hot pocket" with chicken, an orange, water, juice, a slice of cake, and 3 pieces of candy. I nibbled on mine a little bit but gladly accepted the pretzels and Rice Krispie treat offered to us by some group members.

After another couple hours of nodding off, we stopped at a rest stop. There were snacks and crafts and drinks. I didn't feel like buying anything but it was nice to stretch.

After the rest stop, we had 2 more hours to Puno. I enjoyed watching the scenery of the highlands until we finally reached Puno and saw Lake Titicaca. We got off the bus and walked a block to out hotel. We quickly got our keys and headed to our room. It was a huge room with nice sized beds and a mini fridge. Mimi wasn't hungry but I said I wanted to check out the menu at the hotel's restaurant.

I went to look but was quickly ushered in. I sat down and ordered a soup, a steak dish, and fruit for dessert. They were all delicious, especially the beef in a red wine sauce with veggies and fries. Mimi came downstairs after I failed to return after 5 minutes. I told her how I was quickly brought in and given a table. She went back upstairs while I finished my meal, which was one of my favorites of the past few days. It took a while for me to pay but I was so full that sitting and digesting were just fine with me.

I got back to the room and took a shower and was in bed right after 8. We found the movie "Wedding Crashers" was on in English so we watched that for a while. We both started to get bad headaches. We thought sleeping might help them go away. By 9:15, it was bed time! We were definitely looking forward to exploring the floating islands early in the morning.