We spent our first day in Puno wondering around the main street with many stores to visit! We ate in the afternoon at a great little restaurant called Colours, but by the later evening, I wasn't feeling so hot... spent a good portion of the night on a fairly uncomfortable bed, very sick! The next morning, I decided that we should still go on the island tour as our time in Peru is quickly passing, and the alternative to the long boat ride was to stay in the crummy bed all day - yuck! So off we went - slowly! I think I slept a good portion of this day - the ride to the port, the ride on the boat between islands, and any other time we were able to stop for any period of time! That being said - while I was awake, it was pretty great to see the culture! Very different from our own. This photo is leaving the port of Puno on a gorgeous morning!
Our first stop was on the island of Uros, completely made of reeds! The ground was a bit mushy, but not wet. We had a lesson on how the islands are made from the President of this particular island, shown in the photo below! Each year has a new president. To build an island, when the water is high (I think in spring??) they cut large cubes of reed root and tie them together, or attach to the current island to expand. Large stakes in the root are used to tie each section together - many years ago this was done with a type of grass, which would only last for about 3-5 years, but is now done with nylon rope which will last about 30 years. These ropes are tied to very large rocks which anchor the island in place. On top of this, many layers of reeds are criss-crossed over the entire area. In total the island measures 4 meters thick, and 5 or 6 families live on each island. The president joked that if they decide they don't like the people on a near by island, they can just pick up and move! Homes are built on top of the reeds, and they cook on large flat rocks. They are constantly replenishing the top of these reed islands as the bottoms decay away, which produces a bit of a funky smell.
We took a ride on this elaborate reed boat to another near by island.
It seems these islands are very much tourism based now, with many 'locals' pushing their goods - it may have lost it's authenticity a little over the years, but is still a very interesting site to see!
Back on the boat for a long and very slow ride to Amantani island, where we will spend a night with a local family.
We arrived and met our host family, Louisa and Antonio, dropped our gear, had a quick lunch of quinoa soup and headed for a hike to Pachapapa, the twin peak to Pachamama both located on this particular island, with ruins of a small fort on the top. I was killer tired, and still not feeling the absolute best, so hitched a ride with Chocolate, one of only two horses on the island! They have very little livestock on the island because they can't grow enough grass to feed them. Along with me for the ride, and guiding Chocolate is Alfonso, Dejan kept up to us until we reached the 3/4 mark, then I jumped off and hiked the rest.
Pachamama in the distance from the top of Pachapapa.
After a hike back down the hill, we headed to our host families home again for some dinner, potato soup, salad, fried local cheese and potatoes, then Louisa dressed us all up for a nights festivities - we all met at the local hall for and evening of music and dancing! Fancy that outfit.. dress, blouse, scarf, and hiking boots! Yeee Haaaa!
We had a great night's sleep, I woke up once, and had an amazing opportunity to view the stars at their absolute best - soooo dark the sky, and so bright the stars! I felt like I could reach out and grab them, an amazing sight! In the morning, after a quick wash up with chilly cold water, we headed to the kitchen for breakfast, where I grabbed a shot of Louisa preparing pancakes for breakfast.
After breakfast, we headed back to the port and on the boat heading to Taquile Island, where we hiked a bit more, then had lunch at a local restaurant. The island has several restaurants, but all rotate who receives the guests of the day so that everyone is able to gain both experience and make some money for their families. This restaurant provided us with a small show of their local dancing.
Another long boat ride back to the port in Puno, we grabbed a bite to eat at one of the restaurants on the main street.... a local specialty, can you guess what it is???
It's called Cuy, it is very greasy, and has very little meat, but was an absolute must to try in Peru... still not sure? Ask me when we get home, I want to see your face when I tell you!!!! HAAA!
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