Al huevon

We left La Paz early in the morning on our way to Lago Titicaca. By now travelling by bus was second nature however we were grateful for the beautiful views of the snow covered, glacial peaks of the Cordillera Real looming behind Lago Titicaca. We were headed for Copacabana (not to be confused with the Brazilian city of the same name) at the Peruvian border where we would catch a bus to Puno. Our journey involved crossing Estrecho de Tiquina by boat, whilst we watched our bus cross on a precarious looking barge. Arriving at Puno we headed to the harbour were we chartered a little boat to take us the the floating islands of Los Uros. At an altitude of 3600m Lago Titicaca is the highest navegable lake in the world, 180km long, belonging to Peru and Bolivia.

There are approximately 40 islands which form part of Los Uros and what make these islands interesting is that they are constructed of reed roots. Each island varies in size, many have restaraunts, shops and even a church. We visited two islands on our trip and stayed the night at the island of Pacha Mama (Mother Earth) which we shared with the family of eight. The islands are constructed by cutting 5m x 5m blocks of reed roots, one metre thick and then using ropes and stakes tying numerous blocks together. Once the island is the correct size for the family or families long ropes are taken from the corners of the island and run to the mainland where they are staked into the ground. Every two weeks reeds are cut and placed on the island floor.

We stayed a night on the island of Pacha Mama with another traveller Yoshi from Japan. We were fed delicious lake trout which actually looked and tasted more like salmon. The highlight for me were the brief moments in which we talked to one of the girls who had come to live on the island with her boyfriend and how she had adapted to being an islander. I left the following day having really enjoyed my experience on the island but also with a similar feeling: was my visit and role in tourism producing a positive effect on the islanders? Tourists were visiting daily, numerous boats were transporting people from the islands, we were asked for contributions from numerous islanders and prices were severly overinflated. I´d like to think that my money ( as well as my interaction on a personal level) allows the islanders to continue living their life in such a beautiful and remote location, however I couldnt help think that many of the islanders only lived for the tourism, the traditional way of life was rarley seen and I was viewed more as a source of revenue than as a person.

Cuzco
Reaching Cuzco was like arriving at our Mecca. After travelling so far we were ecstatic to arrive in Cuzco which would be our base for exploring Machu Pichu, rafting and enjoying the odd party. Our first night did not dissapoint as we found two great bars: km 0 and Siete Angelitos in San Blas which sucked us in and spat us out at daylight. We were a little devoid of adrenalin and so we signed up to a three day rafting trip down the Rio Apurimac with Mayuc. Another company had told us that under no circumstances would they descend the river at this time of the year, just as the rainy season was starting. So with some trepedation we left Cuzco in the vans with our guides and 10 Isralies clients. We took four hours of precarious, windy, narrow and dangerous driving to reach our destination. Even now I don´t wish to think about the steep drops into the valley floor. Our guides were great fun, profesional and great cooks. Considering all the food was transported in the raft and we ate on little beaches we dined like Kings. The rafting was fantastic. For three days we followed the river which cut through 2000m deep granite gorges, saw condors, jumped of 10m rocks and I even got to drive the raft. wooohoooo. We arrived back in Cuzco happy and tired looking forward to our walk to Machu Pichu