Our next destination was to Puno; which was about a 6 hour drive from Cuzco. We had the option of flying, taking the train, or taking a bus. Flying wasn't really an option for us; we didn't want to spend the money. The train would be more comfortable but would take longer than the bus and was more expensive. Being stuck on a bus all day sounded a bit miserable as well but it was the more economic choice, HOWEVER, we found one tour bus that would pick you up in Cuzco, make stops along the way, provided lunch and then end in Puno. It was a little bit more than taking a regular bus but not much and it made sense to have a productive day and learning more about the country rather than just sitting on a bus. So we signed up for the Inca Express Bus.
We stopped at a museum and learned about how the Incas believed in child sacrafice. To be honest, it was interesting but it also was kind of gross and there was not a good feeling there. Our faces show how we felt about it.
Cobble stones in a church court yard
Ruins of an Inca Village. In the picture on the left it shows that they left a section open down the middle of the village. It was built so that the winter solstice moon would shine directly over the space.
Kirsta and I may have started to make up our own facts while walking around the ruins. When coming up to these random square piles of rocks, Krista said, "This is where they did dutch oven"
This is me trying to jump off the wall but I did so very awkwardly because I was still super sore from all the hiking around Machu Picchu. Pretty much I took a giant step and fell down.
Just a cool bike-cart thing I wanted to take a picture of.
Tallest point on this drive: a glacier!
Behind us, the white area between the two peaks, is the glacier.
We learned about Vicunas (Sounded like Coonyas), a type of mammal from the llama family. It is endangered because of poachers; their fur is REALLY expensive (at least that's what all of our guides told us but then they all gave different estimates of how much the fur cost). Our tour guide told us we could pet them but only on the head. Krista only heard that we could pet them and then she pet it's back. I may have laughed when the museum man yelled at her. At least she could speak spanish and smooth it over with him.
A woman selling cheese on a street corner.
A neighborhood we drove through
I took this picture because it showed such a different culture than what we are used to.
Lake Titicaca
We went on a two day trip to Lake Titicaca; the world's highest navigable lake. It was so large that once we were out on the lake I felt like I was in the ocean because you could not see land in any direction (unless it was a island). For our two day trip we visited the floating Islands and then two "stationary" islands; on one of the "stationary" islands we spent the night we a family there.
The funny thing about this tour was that we were never sure if we were actually with the right tour group. When they picked us up from our hostal they stuck us in a taxi cab, with other members of our tour group, and then sent the taxi on its way. Umm... ok... I guess we're not going to worry since we're with other tourist. The taxi showed up at the marina where two ladies greeted us and then just pointed us toward a string of boats. We walked over to the boats and then people just started telling us to get on and then away we went. Not once did anyone ask for our name and check it off from a list. We really were just waiting for a moment when they would do "roll call" and realize that we weren't supposed to be with the group. We lucked out... not once was "roll call" ever taken.
On the boat... Puno in the distance
Floating Islands
The floating islands are actual floating islands, made out of reeds, that small (very small) communities live on.
The leader of this floating island and our tour guide are showing us how they build the islands.
We learned that they have to lay a new layer of reeds every 11-15 days. We also learned that when an island doesn't want a member on their island anymore, they'll simply cut their section off from the island, haha. But sometimes two islands will merge together and create one community and they'll tie the two islands together so that they form together.
One of the homes on the island.
We asked our tour guide where the people go to the bathroom and he told us that they pee behind their homes but if they need to go No. 2 they have a small platform off the island that they go on and then cover the waste in ash.
Some of the cute kids on the island
A lot of travel gets done between the floating islands on these reed boats. We got to take a ride in one.
Amantani Island
This was the first island we went to and spent the night with a family. On the island we had home cooked meals, hiked and went dancing.
This is the home we stayed in. Such a humbling experience.
There were three bedrooms in this home; one for the family we stayed with and the other two for visitors like us. The kitchen was a small separate building, that I had to duck in the doorway to enter, with a wood burning stove; the sweet woman cleaned our dishes outside with the hose. The bathroom was another separate tiny building that was big enough to hold a sink and a toilet. Where was the shower? Oh don't worry, there was a small shower head poking out of the ceiling above the toilet. We truly have so much here in the U.S.
Inside our room
The door into our room and the view from our window
The first meal Isabelle made for us: "salad," potatoes (which I thought some of them looked like roots and/or large larva) and fried cheese.
Isabelle's Home
Sunset on the lake
Dancing in the traditional clothing. It was hilarious; after we ate dinner Isabel and her daughter barged into our room and started dressing us in this clothing (we had no choice!). The thick belts around our waists were REALLY tight; so tight we thought we were going to pass out from lack of oxygen and halfway through the dance we had to sneak outside and loosen them. Now I know how Elizabeth Swan felt in Pirates of the Caribbean.
Island of Tequila
This was just another stationary island on Lake Titicaca that we visited and hiked from one side to the other. We learned that this island is known for the best male weavers in the world; the men weave on this island, not the women.
This was just another stationary island on Lake Titicaca that we visited and hiked from one side to the other. We learned that this island is known for the best male weavers in the world; the men weave on this island, not the women.
This boy is wearing a hat that actually shows your marital status! Part of the traditional clothing worn by the men on the Island of Tequila is a hat. Little boys wear a hat like the one in this picture but they let the white part fall behind their head. When the boys reach a certain age they wear the hat so that the white part falls to the side of their head; it falls on the left when they are single and it falls on the right when they are dating someone. When they get married they wear a hat that is completely red.
Puno is the big city by Lake Titicaca. I felt like it was a mini, peruvian New York City. I told a friend this, who served his mission in Peru, and he laughed and said that the people there refer to Puno as their New York City. I wouldn't say it had the class and expensive things of New York City but it was crowded with people and cars and taxis like New York City. I didn't love Puno, there didn't seem like much to do there, but our only purpose in being there was just so that we could visit Lake Titicaca.
The church at the Main Plaza
