Puno y Lago Titicaca

This is my trip to a South American country. From New Jersey, USA, I flew for 7.5 hours to Lima, Peru and stayed overnight at the airport hotel. The next morning, I flew to Juliaca and was then driven to Puno, some 45 minutes away.

Source: Información y Asistencia al Turista Perú

On the way to Puno, we drove past a town with a lot of half-complete apartments and vast empty land with modern-looking buildings.

I was told that the apartments are half-completed for 2 reasons - owners may not have the necessary funds to complete the whole building and completed apartments would attract additional property taxes. Most people seemed contented to leave their apartments half done and live on the lower floors.

Puno, at 3827m above sea level, was to be my base for acclimitisation for my next trek. The city was created by the Spanish in 1668. Surrounded by mountains, it is famous for Lake Titicaca. (Source: www.visitperu.com)

I was doing well on the first day of arrival until a massive headache hit me after dinner. I have had several cups of coca tea (which is supposed to ease altitude sickness) during the day but the exhaustion from travel and the altitude change probably had a stronger effect on me. It was just as well it was bedtime and I slept the headache away.

To get over the altitude sickness, I had to stay active. Fortunately, most places of interests in Puno can be explored on foot and it felt safe. I wondered around the town.

Plaza de Armas

Lake Titicaca was not too far away from the Plaza but the first look was a bit disappointing and not as beautiful as the pictures:

I even managed to walk up tiny Huajsapata Hill without splitting my head or dying of breathlessness. Ha! The view of the town and the lake was worth the walk. 

I then took a 2-day trip to visit the islands on Lake Titicaca. 

The lake is the highest navigable lake in the world (which means navigation by large commercial boats) and travelling on boat to some of the islands would take hours. The western part of the lake belongs to Puno while the eastern part belongs to La Paz, Bolivia.

The boat trip showed me how beautiful Lake Titicaca is. It first took us to the floating islands of Uros. The inhabitants descend from one of the oldest known tribes in the Americans and make artificial islands out of reeds. 

Demonstration on how to build the island

To create an artificial island, blocks of soil have to be first 'harvested' from the lake, cut into smaller blocks and brought to the desired location. These blocks are then tied together and reeds are spread on the blocks in criss-cross  fashion before the houses can be built on the reeds. The island would last less than 20 years before it sinks. Meanwhile, the reeds have to be constantly topped up. It was surprisingly stable to walk on the island.

We then head towards Amantani Island, the second largest island on the lake and the biggest one on the Peruvian side (the largest island on the lake is Sol Island, on the Bolivian side). There are about 10 Quechua communities with 3,600 people living on the island. 

We were divided into smaller groups and had lunch with our host families in their homes. My hosts are grandparents whose children and grandchildren live in Juliaca. Many of the younger generation leave the islands for work in the mainland. With mobile technology, my hosts could talk to their grandchildren whenever they want now. She still cries on the phone when she talks to her grandchildren.

My hosts

Their home

There is only 1 electric lightbulb for the whole house and no running water. Water comes from a well in the garden, with very clear water from the lake.

In the evening, we walked up the highest point on the island but were not lucky enough to watch the sun set as the clouds were low.

View from Amantani Hill

From the top of the hill, we could see the Andean mountain ranges in Bolivia. It was truly amazing to know that this very mountain range is the same as that in the Canadian and American Rockies.

View from Amantani Hill

Andean mountains in Bolivia

On the second day, we departed for Taquile Island. I was surprised, even on the lake, the water was choppy. Apparently, the wind in the area is so strong that the waves can go up to 2 to 3 metres high.

Taquile Island

Arch that welcomes visitors
and marks dividing line between communities

On Amantani Island, only the women wear their traditional costumes. In Taquile Island, both men and women wear their traditional costumes. Men can be seen knitting at the plaza. We learned that knitting is a virtue both girls and boys have to learn from a young age. The residents in Taquile Island are recognised as the best weavers by UNESCO. The traditional chullo (beanie with ear flaps), for example, is very important on the island. Before a boy can ask for a girl's hand, he must pass a knitting test (in which he needs to demonstrate to the future in-laws that he is able to knit a chullo which can hold water for 5 minutes without any leak). The chullos for men also tells if one is married (colourful pinks and reds) or single (bottom half is pink and top half is white). If the chullo sits on the back of the head, a boy is below 15 years old. If the chullo is draped at the side of the head, the boy is above 15 years old. 

There were too much to learn about the natives. Every community has its own dialects, culture and traditions. The one thing that binds them all is probably their belief on the sun and the earth. Basic. Simple.