Saturday, June 26th
This morning we took a very chilly 2 hour boat ride to isla del sol. We arrived on the island and the sun was shining bright and it glistened off the deep blue water. The five of us hiked all around the island. The hike itself was not that difficult nor that challenging, but the altitude and the thin air was a killer! If you had heard me breathing, you would have thought I was asthmatic. The vistas from the island were amazing! We stopped in the middle of the island along a beautiful sandy beach and ate lunch - cheese sandwiches! After lunch Vicki, Kate, and I hiked on to the south end of the island. The island smelled like eucalyptus trees and sea air. It was lovely. The only thing that tainted the experience was all the little Bolivian kids begging for money. In the afternoon, I hopped on the boat back to copacabana alone to continue my journey to La Paz -the highest capital city in the world - and to meet up with my buddy Sophie whom I had befriended in Lima. The bus ride to La Paz was pretty painless although it took longer than expected. When I arrived into La Paz it was freeeeeezzzzing!!! I met Sophie at the hostel. We went for dinner and planned our next adventure. And so it goes- we will head north to the amazon to do a 4 day jungle trek
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Pay up...suckah!
Friday, June 25th
Today, my new friends (Vicki, Kate, Reto and Richard) and I were off to cross into Bolivia. Sadly, I was the only one (only u.s.) that had to pay the $135 fee for an entry visa (thank you president bush!). Besides paying the fee, the border crossing was a snap. Copacabana is beautiful...way better than puno - Peruvian side of lake titicaca! We walked around town, enjoyed the sites, watched some world cup and cooked a communical family dinner at a hotel that we weren't even staying in.
When we arrived into town, the 5 of us tried to book a room at this amazing hostel that sat up on a hill that overlooked the lake. Sadly, that hostel was completely full. We befriended the owner, Matthew, and he offered us his kitchen to use, hammocks to lay in, and hot tub to relax in. We took him up on the kitchen offer. As a group, we cooked a glorious chicken curry dinner with lots a tasty white wine. We had tons of laughs and great fun! Tomorrow, we will visit and hike isla del sol - a small island in the middle of the lake.
Today, my new friends (Vicki, Kate, Reto and Richard) and I were off to cross into Bolivia. Sadly, I was the only one (only u.s.) that had to pay the $135 fee for an entry visa (thank you president bush!). Besides paying the fee, the border crossing was a snap. Copacabana is beautiful...way better than puno - Peruvian side of lake titicaca! We walked around town, enjoyed the sites, watched some world cup and cooked a communical family dinner at a hotel that we weren't even staying in.
When we arrived into town, the 5 of us tried to book a room at this amazing hostel that sat up on a hill that overlooked the lake. Sadly, that hostel was completely full. We befriended the owner, Matthew, and he offered us his kitchen to use, hammocks to lay in, and hot tub to relax in. We took him up on the kitchen offer. As a group, we cooked a glorious chicken curry dinner with lots a tasty white wine. We had tons of laughs and great fun! Tomorrow, we will visit and hike isla del sol - a small island in the middle of the lake.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Reeds, reeds, and more reeds
Thursday, June 24th
Today I was off to visit two very different types of islands in lake titicaca. The first stop was to these islands called the Uros islands - a.k.a the floating islands. There were about 50 islands where the native indigenous peruvians lived on. These man-made islands were made of layers and layers of reeds. The natives took pieces of floating land and tied them together using strong ropes and then packed layers upon layers of reeds on top of the soil. They then anchor the islands in place with sting ropes so the current won't blow them away to the Bolivian side of the lake. The islands themselves were quite facinating. The islands are about 19 meters thick and only a few hundred meters long. The largest island contains 5 families but most contain about 2 or 3. Each island has a president and there is a mayor of all the islands that gets voted into power. There are about 2,000 people that live on these islands and they live their entire lives on these islands. They don't use currency to get things on the mainland, instead they trade the fish they catch for thing they need. It's a truly fascinating culture. They also speak their own native Incan dialect. When we arrived on the islands, the local Incan woman greeted us with song and huge gracious smiles. They were dressed in traditional costume which consisted of a large wool poodle-like skirt, a brightly colored bolero jacket, a knitted hat and woven tassles in their hair. They invited us into their home and dressed us in their local garb. The homes were beautifully constructed of bamboo like wood and thatched roofs. The home was literally a matrimonial bed and some hooks in the wall for their clothes. Basically, it was the size of a new york city apartment. The girl, Karina, who invited us into her home was only 17years old. Karina was the wife of the president of the island and already had one daughter. I bought a handmade handicraft from her that took her a week to create.
After the floating islands, we headed to another island called Taquile where there resided another idigenous group of Peruvian Incan tribe. This island was not man-made, nor made of reeds. It was however, solely inhabited by the indigenous community. This community of people had lots of rules and regulations about how they live their life. It was very interesting to see...but way too many rules for me. ;)
Later that night, my bunkmates and my new buddies from the boat - Reto and Richard (both Swiss) all went out to dinner and danced the night away! Tomorrow we will all head to copacabana - the Bolivian side of lake titicaca.
Today I was off to visit two very different types of islands in lake titicaca. The first stop was to these islands called the Uros islands - a.k.a the floating islands. There were about 50 islands where the native indigenous peruvians lived on. These man-made islands were made of layers and layers of reeds. The natives took pieces of floating land and tied them together using strong ropes and then packed layers upon layers of reeds on top of the soil. They then anchor the islands in place with sting ropes so the current won't blow them away to the Bolivian side of the lake. The islands themselves were quite facinating. The islands are about 19 meters thick and only a few hundred meters long. The largest island contains 5 families but most contain about 2 or 3. Each island has a president and there is a mayor of all the islands that gets voted into power. There are about 2,000 people that live on these islands and they live their entire lives on these islands. They don't use currency to get things on the mainland, instead they trade the fish they catch for thing they need. It's a truly fascinating culture. They also speak their own native Incan dialect. When we arrived on the islands, the local Incan woman greeted us with song and huge gracious smiles. They were dressed in traditional costume which consisted of a large wool poodle-like skirt, a brightly colored bolero jacket, a knitted hat and woven tassles in their hair. They invited us into their home and dressed us in their local garb. The homes were beautifully constructed of bamboo like wood and thatched roofs. The home was literally a matrimonial bed and some hooks in the wall for their clothes. Basically, it was the size of a new york city apartment. The girl, Karina, who invited us into her home was only 17years old. Karina was the wife of the president of the island and already had one daughter. I bought a handmade handicraft from her that took her a week to create.
After the floating islands, we headed to another island called Taquile where there resided another idigenous group of Peruvian Incan tribe. This island was not man-made, nor made of reeds. It was however, solely inhabited by the indigenous community. This community of people had lots of rules and regulations about how they live their life. It was very interesting to see...but way too many rules for me. ;)
Later that night, my bunkmates and my new buddies from the boat - Reto and Richard (both Swiss) all went out to dinner and danced the night away! Tomorrow we will all head to copacabana - the Bolivian side of lake titicaca.
Llamas in the luggage compartment
Wednesday, June 23rd
The family all woke up early to catch the first bus out of cabanaconde to head to our various destinations. The Belgium couple were headed towards macchu picchu, the colombian was headed to huacachina, and I was off to the largest and highest alpine lake in the world. We rode the bus together for a few hours. On the bus ride, Daniel gave me a plethora of fantastic reccommedations for places to visit and stay in Bolivia and Colombia. A few hours into the bus ride, the bus made a 10 minute stop-over in a small town. I disembarked the bus for a quick pee break. As I walked out of the service station, I saw a woman loading 2 young llamas in the luggage compartment underneath the bus. My reaction was "no way!" The woman just picked up the llamas like they were housecats and stuck em in with the luggage. The llamas just layed on down amongst the boxes and suitcases and just kicked it like it was no big thing. It was a crazy sight to see. After about another hour or so I had to hop off the bus alone in the middle of nowhere to flag down another bus to get to my next destination - puno, lake titicaca. I was sad to leave my "family" behind. The next bus I caught, I sat on the floor for about an hour and then i was moved to sit (literally) next to the bus driver for the remainder of the trip. I arrived into lake titicaca at night so I couldn't see the lake yet. I checked into the hostel, had the most amazing roasted chicken dinner (in my life!!!), and made new buddies with my bunk mates - Vicki from London and kate from Scotland. Tomorrow, I will take a boat tour around the lake to visit the indigenous islands.
The family all woke up early to catch the first bus out of cabanaconde to head to our various destinations. The Belgium couple were headed towards macchu picchu, the colombian was headed to huacachina, and I was off to the largest and highest alpine lake in the world. We rode the bus together for a few hours. On the bus ride, Daniel gave me a plethora of fantastic reccommedations for places to visit and stay in Bolivia and Colombia. A few hours into the bus ride, the bus made a 10 minute stop-over in a small town. I disembarked the bus for a quick pee break. As I walked out of the service station, I saw a woman loading 2 young llamas in the luggage compartment underneath the bus. My reaction was "no way!" The woman just picked up the llamas like they were housecats and stuck em in with the luggage. The llamas just layed on down amongst the boxes and suitcases and just kicked it like it was no big thing. It was a crazy sight to see. After about another hour or so I had to hop off the bus alone in the middle of nowhere to flag down another bus to get to my next destination - puno, lake titicaca. I was sad to leave my "family" behind. The next bus I caught, I sat on the floor for about an hour and then i was moved to sit (literally) next to the bus driver for the remainder of the trip. I arrived into lake titicaca at night so I couldn't see the lake yet. I checked into the hostel, had the most amazing roasted chicken dinner (in my life!!!), and made new buddies with my bunk mates - Vicki from London and kate from Scotland. Tomorrow, I will take a boat tour around the lake to visit the indigenous islands.
A bumpy ride
Tuesday, June 22nd
We woke up early to do our ascend up the mountain. We decided to hike a quarter of the way up and then we'd take a local truck the rest of the way. The hike was beautiful. We walked alongside the river for the most part and weaved in and out through the local people's land. Once we finished our hike we boarded a pick-up truck bed with only locals. The locals had all brought various fruits and veggies that they had grown on their land to sell to the major town nearby. The truck was so packed that we were all sitting on top of beer crates or grain sacks. Everytime the truck stopped and picked someone else up, all the locals aboard would start yelling at the driver that we were full and no one else could fit. Did that stop them. Hells no!!! At one point my buddy, Michael was handed a giant bushel of grains (probably weighed 20 lbs) and held it in his lap for the remainder of the ride. He was a good sport and a trooper. At the end of the ride, he turned to the local peruvian woman and jokingly asking her for 5 soles for holding her stuff. The whole truck giggled. We were the only non-Peruvians aboard. It was quite an adventurous, squished, bumpy and dusty 3 hour ride...but well worth it! When we arrive back into cabanaconde we just relaxed and watched a world cup game. Tonight we had a fantastic meal at our favorite pizza place. I was sad knowing that I would have to part ways with my friends (we called each other "the family") tomorrow; who I have gotten to know so well and throughly enjoyed their company. But alas...I must keep a trekking on... Tomorrow I will head solo to lake titicaca.
We woke up early to do our ascend up the mountain. We decided to hike a quarter of the way up and then we'd take a local truck the rest of the way. The hike was beautiful. We walked alongside the river for the most part and weaved in and out through the local people's land. Once we finished our hike we boarded a pick-up truck bed with only locals. The locals had all brought various fruits and veggies that they had grown on their land to sell to the major town nearby. The truck was so packed that we were all sitting on top of beer crates or grain sacks. Everytime the truck stopped and picked someone else up, all the locals aboard would start yelling at the driver that we were full and no one else could fit. Did that stop them. Hells no!!! At one point my buddy, Michael was handed a giant bushel of grains (probably weighed 20 lbs) and held it in his lap for the remainder of the ride. He was a good sport and a trooper. At the end of the ride, he turned to the local peruvian woman and jokingly asking her for 5 soles for holding her stuff. The whole truck giggled. We were the only non-Peruvians aboard. It was quite an adventurous, squished, bumpy and dusty 3 hour ride...but well worth it! When we arrive back into cabanaconde we just relaxed and watched a world cup game. Tonight we had a fantastic meal at our favorite pizza place. I was sad knowing that I would have to part ways with my friends (we called each other "the family") tomorrow; who I have gotten to know so well and throughly enjoyed their company. But alas...I must keep a trekking on... Tomorrow I will head solo to lake titicaca.
Trying so hard to leave...
Monday, June 21st
So, we have been camped out in the canyon for a few days now. Each day that goes by makes it harder and harder to leave. Since we've been at the bottom of the canyon... I've gone (very briefly) swimming in the freezing river, made an attempt at fishing for trout with a very basic round net with weights on the end, spotted some condors carrying a snake in their talons, played some shithead (card game), taken in some sun- rays, had some amazing conversations, met some new travellers, sat in the hot springs for hours on end, had a grand campfire with a delicious midnight swim, ate some incredible Peruvian food, and got a proper photography lesson from mr. Colombia (the photography extrordinare). Overall, the colca de canyon experience was delightful and refreshing. We've decided to hike back up to reality tomorrow and continue our journey throughout Peru.
So, we have been camped out in the canyon for a few days now. Each day that goes by makes it harder and harder to leave. Since we've been at the bottom of the canyon... I've gone (very briefly) swimming in the freezing river, made an attempt at fishing for trout with a very basic round net with weights on the end, spotted some condors carrying a snake in their talons, played some shithead (card game), taken in some sun- rays, had some amazing conversations, met some new travellers, sat in the hot springs for hours on end, had a grand campfire with a delicious midnight swim, ate some incredible Peruvian food, and got a proper photography lesson from mr. Colombia (the photography extrordinare). Overall, the colca de canyon experience was delightful and refreshing. We've decided to hike back up to reality tomorrow and continue our journey throughout Peru.
Down under
Thursday, June 17th
Today was our first day of our adventurous hike down into one of the deepest canyons in the world. We decided to hike the canyon by ourselves - Michael, Margreet, Daniel, and myself. The hike is a downhill windy trail of switchbacks along the edge of the mountain. We would decend about 9000 feet in one afternoon. The day was perfectly sunny and slightly breezy. It was a good day for a hike. When we started off on the trail we got to the edge of the mountain and looked down and saw a tiny narrow trail that looked almost impossible yo do on our own. As it turns out, we had gone completely the wrong way. luckily we realized this before we started our desent. We asked a local Peruvian for directions and were off to start our hike...finally in the right direction. The hike was trecherous only because I hadn't broken in my hiking boots yet. That was a BAD idea! The view was incredible. The mountains are rocky and sandy colored with splashes of eucalypus trees, green brush and cactii dotted all over. Along the trail we passed some Peruvians walking back to the town with their donkeys in tow carrying heavy loads. As we desended you could hear the roar of the river below. It was quite mediatative. After 4 1/2 hours of hiking we arrived at our destination. A tiny village called llahuar. When I say village, it was literally 2 hostels made of bamboo and mud bricks on the edge of the moutain overlooking the roaring river below. Basically, it was heaven. The hostel that we stayed in was called llahuar lodge and was owned by the sweetest Peruvian couple - Yola and Ronco. Yola reminded me of someone who could be your grandmother and tells you the best stories. She greeted us with a huge smile and wore a beautiful typical Peruvian embroidered hat. She also has a laugh that touches your heart and you can't help but smile when you hear it. Our plan was to stay there for a night or two and then we'd continue hiking to another part of the canyon. The hostel not only had the most magnificent view of the canyon but it had 3 natural hot spring pools (with varying temperatures) that sat above the roaring river. We will see how long we'll last for...
Today was our first day of our adventurous hike down into one of the deepest canyons in the world. We decided to hike the canyon by ourselves - Michael, Margreet, Daniel, and myself. The hike is a downhill windy trail of switchbacks along the edge of the mountain. We would decend about 9000 feet in one afternoon. The day was perfectly sunny and slightly breezy. It was a good day for a hike. When we started off on the trail we got to the edge of the mountain and looked down and saw a tiny narrow trail that looked almost impossible yo do on our own. As it turns out, we had gone completely the wrong way. luckily we realized this before we started our desent. We asked a local Peruvian for directions and were off to start our hike...finally in the right direction. The hike was trecherous only because I hadn't broken in my hiking boots yet. That was a BAD idea! The view was incredible. The mountains are rocky and sandy colored with splashes of eucalypus trees, green brush and cactii dotted all over. Along the trail we passed some Peruvians walking back to the town with their donkeys in tow carrying heavy loads. As we desended you could hear the roar of the river below. It was quite mediatative. After 4 1/2 hours of hiking we arrived at our destination. A tiny village called llahuar. When I say village, it was literally 2 hostels made of bamboo and mud bricks on the edge of the moutain overlooking the roaring river below. Basically, it was heaven. The hostel that we stayed in was called llahuar lodge and was owned by the sweetest Peruvian couple - Yola and Ronco. Yola reminded me of someone who could be your grandmother and tells you the best stories. She greeted us with a huge smile and wore a beautiful typical Peruvian embroidered hat. She also has a laugh that touches your heart and you can't help but smile when you hear it. Our plan was to stay there for a night or two and then we'd continue hiking to another part of the canyon. The hostel not only had the most magnificent view of the canyon but it had 3 natural hot spring pools (with varying temperatures) that sat above the roaring river. We will see how long we'll last for...
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