Puno

After a short bus ride from Copacabana, we made it to the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca, Puno. Puno is not known for it's 'beach' or scenery, but rather seen mainly as a stop-off point for tourists between Bolivia and Peru. Aside from this is Peru's main port in Lake Titicaca as well as containing the well known man-made reed floating islands.

We spent the first afternoon just wandering around the city, trying the local specialty fizzy "Inca Kola" and watching the parade (that apparently occurs every Sunday). This parade was for the local University's anniversary and we watched thousands of students for all disciplines march (actually march) into and out of the main square. We did note that while most of the students wore suits, the structural engineers typically wore jeans and short sleeved shirts. Nice to see some consistency across the globe. We finished the day with some delicious pizzas for Macchupizza.

Paul enjoying (?) Inca Kola (which just tastes like creaming soda with caffeine)

The following day we caught a boat across the lake to Uros, the floating reed islands, to see a bit of how the locals live there. Our boat typically broke down half way there however they managed to get it started it again and we made it. The islands are made from reeds, about 1.5m thick, and have to constantly be added to as the lower layers rot. The houses, boats and some furniture are also made of reeds. After being fleeced for a 2 minute ride on a traditional boat (and by traditional I mean one made of reeds, however a motorised dingy snuck up behind us and pushed us along to our destination), we made it to the next island over (about 20m away) where there were some market stalls and restaurants. We weren't ready for lunch so instead we lay on the edge of the island and soaked up the sun (don't worry though, we made sure we were fully covered from the sun, we didn't need any more sunburn!).

Looking back at Puno.

Me on the boat.

Some reeds.

A demonstration on how the islands are built.

The "Mercedes Benz" of reed boats.

Reed houses.

 

I started to feel a bit unwell so I went back to our hostel and rented a single room for NZ$5 to rest before our overnight bus. Oh and by room I mean jail cell - a single bed in a tiny room, small table and no external windows. Nevertheless it was just what I needed. Paul went back out to wander around the city a bit more, soaking up some of the local culture. He came back to deliver me some empanadas and headed back out for some more pizza.