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New life goal: build my own floating island and live on it. Today we returned from our overnight excursion to the islands in the Peruvian side of Lago Titicaca. Before you read any further, get the word 'caca' out of your head. The correct pronunciation is 'caja' and you pull the sound for both syllables from the back of the throat, much like the way the French pronounce everything (like you are hawking a lugie). We departed via boat at 9 am for our first island, the floating island of Uros. More accurately, Uros is a collection of floating islands on which 2 thousand people live. These people have built their islands completely out of a reed that grows in the lake, using the spongy root as a base on which they pile stacks of dried reeds to walk on. The islands are only about 2 or 3 meters thick and they have to anchor them down with rocks so they don't go floating willy nilly around the lake. They can also eat part of the reed, which they peel much like a banana. I really wanted a taste but never got the chance. Their houses are built out of this plant as well, and they weave a rope from it. It's amazing how many uses they have for this one plant, but when it's all they have I guess it makes sense. The people on the islands speak Aymara as their primary language, but they have learned Spanish and a little bit of English in school.
On Uros we got a nice lesson about Lago Titicaca. There are something like 68 islands in the lake and Uros is the only floating one, all the others are natural islands. Apparently the lake is split up so it's 60% in Peru and 40% in Bolivia, but our guide told us that if you go to the Bolivian side they will tell you the opposite. Splitting it down the middle is probably a better way to go about things, but our guide said if Bolivia doesn't want to take 50% then Peru can have the 'titi' and Bolivia can have 'caca,' pronounced just like its spelled. We all had a nice chuckle about that. 'Titi' by the way means Puma in the Aymara and Quechua languages and 'caca' means rock, but nowhere on the map or in the lake itself did I see evidence of a Puma rock, so I still don't get it. After the talk we got ferried over to the other end of the island in a cool gondola-type canoe built out of the same reeds, it was nice. We also got a passport stamp for the floating islands so that was cool. I never before realized that fake passport stamps were so popular, but I now have 2 of them (the other from Machu Picchu) and I feel I must enter another country quickly, as in my new passport the fake stamps currently outnumber the real ones. Luckily we will be in Bolivia tomorrow, yay!
After visiting Uros for a bit, we clambered back onto the boat and this time the ride took 3 hours to get to the next island, Amantani. We rode on the top deck of the small boat and I chatted for much of the time with 2 girls from Scotland who we had met the night before in our hostel (though Didi is actually Dutch and Saskia is German), and the long ride passed quickly enough. The view of the lake was wonderful; the water was so calm and beautifully blue and it sparkled quite nicely in the sunshine.
On the island of Amantani we met our Quechua 'mamas and papas,' who fed us and housed us in their casitas for a night. I was most excited for this part, the opportunity to see how these island people live and live just like them, if only for a night. Lauren and I were placed into a group of 4 with a lovely Dutch couple, who didn't speak any Spanish. Our 'mama' was a tiny little woman (I suppose they are all tiny little women) named Silvedia and she brought us back to her adorable casita for lunch. Upstairs she had 3 bedrooms with 2 or 3 beds in each room, and downstairs was the bathroom and kitchen. The bathroom was an experience in itself, as it always is in countries like this. It was quite clean and well kept and I suppose the only strange thing (well, strange to a spoiled American like myself) was that the toilet didn't flush in the way I am accustomed. Instead of using the lever, which was there but nonfunctional, there was a giant bucket of water (I assume from the lake) and after using el baño we had to pour a bucket of water into the toilet to flush it. It works just the same way as using the lever, and I'm not exactly sure the mechanics of a working toilet so I don't know why the toilets here don't flush normally. I'd imagine it has something to do with the poor plumbing system, but either way the water thing totally works so I think it's pretty ingenious.
After we got settled into our rooms Silvedia called us for lunch. She had made a vegetable soup to start, followed by rice with potatoes, veggies and a big slab of grilled white cheese. It was delicious and quite filling. Apparently the island is mostly vegetarian so that was awesome for us. We also met Silvedia's youngest son, Albran, who was very sweet and very curious. He's 12 and was really keen on speaking to us in Spanish, which he has learned in school. Quechua is the official language of the island, though many of the locals know Spanish as well. He kept asking us question after question and we did our best to respond. I was a bit tripped up at the question "su padre vive?" Um...yes? Lol, it took me a couple tries to understand what he was asking because in American culture it's not a very common question, but he was asking if my dad was alive. He wanted to know if all of our parents were alive, their names, how old they were and where they lived. It was entertaining, he was a really cute and amiable kid.
During lunch we were informed that we were on the island during a special festival day, though we never learned the name of the festival or the point of it. We kept trying to ask what the reason for it was but all we were told is that it was an artesian festival. Okie dokie then. After lunch we were ushered to the main square where the locals were decked out in the local garb and the fiesta was in full swing. There was dancing and music around the square and tons of people. They were all drinking beer, which supposedly they only drink once a year and that's during this festival. I'm not sure if that's exactly true but that's what we were told. We met our guide in the square and he led us up to one of the highest points on the island, the temple of Pachatata, or Father Earth. The highest point on the island was the temple of Pachamama, Mother Earth. The temple we hiked to gave us a beautiful view of the lake and the 10 communities that live on the island.
We watched the sunset from the temple of Pachatata and then headed down the hill for dinner. Dinner was just as delicious as lunch; we had rice and veggies in a yummy sauce with a hearty semolina soup to start. After dinner we got to dress in the local garb and go to the discoteca for traditional music and dancing. Dressing up was super fun. The local women here all wear heavy white long sleeve blouses (it's cold on the island) with beautifully embroidered flowers and birds in various colors on the front. They also have thick skirts that they wrap a giant intricately embroidered belt around to hold it up, and the whole ensemble is topped with a long black shawl with colorful embroidery on the ends that they wear on their head and wrap around themselves to keep warm. The men wear ponchos and hats. So right after dinner we were given a huge pile of clothes and Silvedia helped us get dressed for the party. We soon learned that they wrap the belts very right around their middle, much like a corset, so after a big dinner it was not the most comfortable thing but once I learned that it was impossible to take a deep breath I was OK. We were lead down to the discoteca where we found everyone else all dressed up and just standing around staring at each other...fun. The band showed up 5 minutes later and we were all taught the traditional dance. Basically you make a giant circle and hold hands and then dance around the circle. Every now and then someone would step towards the other side of the circle, pulling their attached persons with them, so the circle would turn into a snakelike formation and we would continue to dance weave our way around the dance hall. The music was good, I really like Peruvian music, and the dancing was fun (especially twirling the skirts, which I don't think the locals do) but we were tired and our Dutch housemates were over it so we let Silvedia lead us home so we could go to bed.
I had a warm and comfortable nights sleep, which was pleasant, and I woke up to Silvedia making pancakes in the kitchen. We sat down to breakfast and proceeded to eat all of them, they were warm and delicious. She just kept making them so we kept eating them and I think we had about 6 or 7 each (they are much thinner than the ones in the states so they weren't as filling and it was easier to eat more). It was a great breakfast.
Once we were nice and fed, we packed our things and Silvedia led us down to the docks. On this day we would visit Taquille Island before heading back to Puno. We said goodbye to Silvedia (unfortunately we never got to meet her husband because he was away for a couple days, but she spoke of him often with adoration) and headed for the final island. Silvedia was so sweet to us and she seems so genuinely happy with her life, as they all do on the islands, so I feel really fortunate we got to meet her and have this experience.
The ride to Taquille was less than an hour and I spent the time on top of the boat enjoying the sunshine and watching the sunlight dance and sparkle across the water. It was probably the most peaceful hour I've had in a month, it was great. Once we got to Taquille we started hiking up and up to the main square. From there we were taken to a house/restaurant for a presentation on the different kinds of hats and clothing the people wear here. Unlike on Amantani Island where the women do the weaving, it's the men on Taquille who weave the special hats they wear. Each hat has a different meaning and let's everyone know whether or not the man is single, married, engaged or in an position of authority on the island. Each hat has a special belt to go with it. The women wear similar blouses and skirts to those worn on Amantani, and they also wear the black shawl. Their black shawl, however, doesn't have the embroidery but instead there is a big colorful pom pom attached to each end. Our guide explained that these pom poms are used to express the woman's emotions, for example whether she's happy or sad, whether something is good or bad, and she also uses them for 'yes' and 'no.' There is no maybe on this island, it's always one or the other. Also, all 3 of the islands we visited practiced the same 3 principles: don't steal, don't lie, don't be lazy. Good morals to live by.
After our lesson on island customs we had lunch. Since we have been lacking in nutrients and protein due to our inability to cook our own food, I caved and had the delicious looking trout, which was all that was offered for lunch. It was fresh from the lake and really tasty, I have discovered I like trout a lot. We finished our meals quickly and then headed down hundreds of steps to reach the port on the other side of the island and catch our boat back to Puno. The ride took about 3 hours and Lauren and I sat up top again, chatting with Didi, Saskia and 4 guys from España who are really cool. We found out we would be on the same bus as them the next day, when we would cross the Bolivian border into Copacabana. When we got back to Puno we went to dinner with Didi and Saskia and then headed back to the hostel, where I passed out super early. It had been a long but fun couple of days so I caught up on some much needed rest. It's easy to forget how tiring traveling is because it's really fun, but I think the altitude has also played a role in zapping a good amount of my energy. Tomorrow we have to go to the Bolivian consulate to get our visas, should be relatively easy...and expensive. I am so excited to head into Bolivia, see you all there!
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mom You are amazing...Wonderful wonderful. I love how you explain everything. I am in Awe of you. I am so glad you are having a great time. The places you are seeing and the food and the people...what a incredible journey....We all love you so much....