Monday 24 September 2012
HOTEL ROSARIO DEL LAGO
ALLE RIGOBERTO PAREDES
COPACABANA BOLIVIA
TEL (591-2) 862 2141
After we returned from our reed island trip, we collected our bags in Puno and were taken across the border to Copacabana, Bolivia. It reminded me of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid! The dust and rocky road surely belonged in some western. We changed our Soles to Bobs and started recalculating money. Surprisingly this is our best hotel yet, and master chef quality meals. We overlook Lake T. We'll walk along the beach tomorrow and then head to Sun Island overnight. Our little legs climbed to 4000m again today to view over the town. Will sleep well! And we did. After breakfast we went by launch to Sun Island - a pleasant trip of 1.5 hrs. Just one other lady traveller on board. We've been extremely lucky with our tours and transits. For Over 80pc we have been the only clients! We had to take just a back pack with enough for overnight and were give a boxed lunch. Sun island is very pretty and remote. A haven for the Eco friendly backpacker or hippies seeking their spiritual side! Imagine waves/surf of fresh water lapping onto a sandy beach; a sacred rock and inca ruins of a monastery and too many terraces to count. First up we saw a little museum of Jacques Cousteau's 1968 expedition to Lake T, where he discovered several Inca relics and calculated the lake's deepest point to be 280m! After an initial walk across the beach, through the local village, school and farms, we climbed a trail through what would have been 3 archways (spiritual way) and saw lovely views of the island. We opted for the shorter walk, but steeper climb, to Eco Lodge. The boat pulled up and we jumped onto some rocks and started to climb, stopping every now and then to let the donkeys or Llama to pass. In the evening we caught the sunset and a fantastic lightning show thru the snow capped mts beyond. Greg took a photo of the highest lighthouse in the world - 4150m above sea level. Unfortunately overnight I wasn't well but managed to get thru the next day as we returned to Copacabana, picked up our bags and caught a bus and ferry and bus to La Paz, although I slept most of this time!