Lake Titicaca

In between a couple days spent in civilization, La Paz and Santa Cruz which I loved, I headed up to Lake Titicaca to take in the Mediteranean-esk serenity and alleged metaphysical properties.  Lake Titicaca is high in the Andes at 12,500 feet, straddling the Peruvian and Bolivian boarder; this makes it the highest lake in the world. 

The original name Lago Titi'kaka comes from the words, ‘rock’ and ‘puma’.  News to me is that the puma was a sacred animal to the Incas, which makes my love for Luna even stronger.  The altitude is difficult, the temperature is alpine, and the sun is wicked; but despite the somewhat testing conditions it is one of the most striking places I have seen in South America.

It started with a 3ish hour bus ride from La Paz to Copacabana; a winding trip to an even higher altitude was rewarded with stunning vistas of the lake and towering snowy peaks behind.  The next morning we took a 2 hour ferry to the north side of Isla Del Sol, or Island of the Sun. 

Isla Del Sol is a harsh, rocky landscape; there are no cars or paved roads on the island, only dirt paths to the over 180 ruins.  Most of the ruins date to the Inca period circa the 15th century AD.  In the religion of the Incas it was believed that the Sun God was born here, hence the name of the island.

We hiked to the Sacred Rock, which is supposed to resemble a puma, a labyrinth-like building constructed of stones called Chicana, and the Sacrificial Table, where it is believed human and animal sacrifice took place.  We then set out on the 3 hour hike from the north end of the Island to the south end of the Island.  Not an overly difficult hike, but it felt like a multiple day pilgrimage climbing a severe mountain with the altitudes effect!

In addition to the breathtaking scenery, some of my favorite memories of the lake were the children.  Two little girls with a baby lamb, feeding it from a bottle, came up to us nervously, and asked for 1 Boliviano for a picture; they then went and bought bubble gum with the money and came back to sit with us. 

Along the way as we pulled out our picnic of bread, avocado, and cheese, two little boys approached and held out their hands saying, “Queso, pan - por favor.”  It was our pleasure to share lunch with them and see their little faces light up. 

Approaching the south side of the Island two brothers, ages 7 and 11, started walking with us wanting to take us to their hostel to sleep.  They walked with us, like little body guards, for the next 45 minutes to ensure they delivered us safe from harm and the other boys on the path pretending we needed to pay a fee to pass!