We took a long bus ride to Puno for a good morning’s sleep and a connecting boat to Lake Titicaca. Unfortunately due to a communication error in booking we arrived at our hotel at 4 in the morning only to find that the only room available to us was a small pre-natal clinic room for storing our bags. In the end we managed to fit 18 large bags and 16 people in this tiny room for two hours sleep, sheltered under jackets and loose clothing for warmth. Lying on the lino, staring up at the educational birthing styles poster and dreaming of the infamous floating islands that we were just hours away from visiting - it was definitely an interesting start to the journey.
BOLIVIA
As the sun rose we clambered put of the clinic and made our way to the harbor. The boat we were in pulled up the shore of the floating islands and we were astonished. There were literally miles of Islands made entirely out of reeds that crunched and shifted under you feet, the whole platform rocking on the water’s surface. We were treated to a speech regarding the islands construction, a tour of the houses, a traditional dance by the women and a reed-boat ride on the lake before we journeyed to a nearby island where we would stay the night with a local family.
Marlena (our host for the night) led us over the fields and stone walls, into her house, introducing us to her mother and three children. Although the language barrier was an issue she did everything she could to make us feel at home and we did everything we could to make awkward small-talk about the weather and her beautiful home.
The night rolled around and entered we entered the kitchen for dinner (after hitting our heads on the Peruvian-sized threshold). Marlena was waiting for us with traditional dresses to put on. As it turns out we were on our way to a dance. We ambled to the hall where all our friends and host families stood in large skirts and ponchos, dancing to a lively Peruvian band. A tourist attraction maybe, but well worth it.
From here we continued on to Bolivia – first stop, The Amazon.
When I was in year 11, dreaming about my gap year, I never though t it would involve taking a casual ride down the Amazon surrounded by crocodiles and capyburas. A welcome surprise.
It was extremely hot and humid so dangling our toes in the water was a relieving sensation, however we were a little worried about the possibility of having them bitten off by the crocs swimming along-side us and sun-baking, jaws open, on the shore. This fear was quickly amplified as our canoe was bogged and our guide told us we had to get out and push it past the sand bank. We all laughed.
He wasn´t joking.
This happened many more times before we made it to our destination.
Hammocks, cold drinks and ethereal mosquito nets over our bunks, this was quite possibly the best place I have ever been. The cold showers were well welcomed and we slept brilliantly, awaking to the sound of the forest animals greeting the morning light. Over the next few days we had an Amazon mud-fight, searched for snakes in the savanna-style surroundings, swam with piranhas and went fishing off the banks with a little wire and some raw meat. The time passed too quickly and soon we were on our way to LaPaz. The highest capital city in the world stretched out before us. Outrageously overpopulated, with buildings and markets squeezes side by side and barely enough room for cars and yet the lively atmosphere was exactly what we were hoping for.
The best place to be in LaPaz is the ´Witch markets´. Named, no doubt, for tourist-appeal, and, as we found out, it works brilliantly. The first few shops were filled with dried and stuffed baby llamas, toads and countless other rather disturbing spectacles but just a few meters down, the traditional shops begin. Colourful cloth hanging between roves and glittering trinkets spilling onto the streets, we arrived just in time for a parade. Incan creatures and live Bolivian music consumed the streets.
During this fiesta the majority of the group was bike-riding down ´Death Road´. It is one of the most dangerous roads in the world, only meters wide with 600m cut-off cliff-faces this road has only just become one-way and people still die on it every year.
15 of our group braved the journey and came away with a t-shirt (which read ´gravity assisted biking´), a free beer and, luckily, their lives. After the ride they were given the opportunity to ride a flying fox and go to a local wildlife park. Clancy ´bearded´ Moore was of great interest to the monkeys and spent much of the afternoon with at least one hanging off him.
Truly this was an amazing journey and upon our return home we were shocked to realize how little time we had left.
Zoe x
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