Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca is shared by both Peru and Bolivia and the countries are both in constant debate as to who owns the better half. Bolivians, occupying the southwestern part of the lake, often like to joke that they have the "titi". While the Peruvians (northeastern side) have been left with the "caca". (I actually found the best "titi'" in Cuzco : ] ). While the Bolivians may have a point with their tranquil Isla Del Sol, Peruvians can certainly claim that the grass is neither greener nor the water any bluer on the other side as they also boast several destinations of equal splendor. The city of Puno lies on the western half of the lake and is Titicaca's biggest port. At 3,830 m. (12,650 ft.), both the cold weather and altitude can make things a little uncomfortable for the traveler in Puno. Still, the city is a popular destination as it is the gateway to several popular sites; the Incan ruins of Sillustani, the Uros floating islands and the Islands of Taquile and Amantani. Above: On the floating Uros Islands - constructed of reed. Above: Locals sporting their renowned hats on Taquile Island. Lake Titicaca is the largest lake in South America and the world's largest lake over 2,000 m. At 8,300 sq. km, it is the 20th largest lake in the world and the 9th largest lake in the western hemisphere. It is not however, contrary to popular belief (and much to the disappointment to yours truly), the highest navigable lake in the world. The Andes in fact has many navigable lakes higher than this such as Lake Junin - just north of Titicaca. When I first arrived in Puno via a seven hour bus ride from Cuzco, it seemed as though the Bolivian prophecy was true. The city did not seem too appealing at first and neither did the nearby Juliaca which our bus had stopped in. After settling into a hostel though, I soon found Puno to be quite a pleasant and vibrant place. The pedestrian mall on Lima Street, which runs from the cities Plaza de Armas, is filled with restaurants, shops and color. Puno is also an excellent place to catch some traditional Andean music, aptly named música del viento (music of the wind) for it's use of pipes and flutes - as almost every restaurant in town parades a local band. I had also found myself a new traveling partner in a Spanish woman named Christina who I had met on the bus. We booked ourselves a tour for 30 sols (about $8) on a boat to both the Uros and Taquile Island. Generally, I despise guided tours however this seemed a reasonable enough of a bargain. The first stop were the Uros Islands. The most incredible thing about the Uros is that these islands aren't really islands at all - they are floating! The Uros inhabitants use the abundant totora reeds to construct everything from houses to boats to baskets to the islands themselves! As the islands are made of layers of reeds, walking on them is a very unusual, if not squishy experience. Unfortunately the true blooded Uros people, who supposedly had black colored blood to withstand Titicaca's extreme temperatures, have long since departed due to intermarriage with Aymara and Quechua speaking Indians. The current inhabitants still live on the islands though, earning a living from fishing and tourism. Above: christina and I on a dragon headed reed boat. Above: one of the Chullpas (funeral towers) at Sillustani, lies on a peninsula in the middle of Lake Umayo The next stop was Taquile Island. This was a little harder to get to as it was located some ways offshore and required a three hour boat ride to get to. The first thing you notice about the inhabitants of Taquile Island are the cute wooly hats the men wear. The fact is that these hats actually symbolize the male's marriage status. Red means married while red and white means single. I was wondering what my brown leather head might symbolize.... While the city of Puno, founded in 1668 as a Spanish silver mine lacks Cuzco immediate captivation; it is by no means a dull place. I spent three nights in Puno: two on my way from Cuzco to Bolivia and another on the return trip. Not only does the city have several key attractions but it is also a certain destination for anyone traveling between Peru and Bolivia. For this reason, it is a bustling and vibrant place full of color, culture and many excellent restaurants. One of these was the Ollantay Pizzeria where I was able to jam (ok pose for a picture with) on the charango with an excellent local band, Jach'a Inti. I had some good times with the nightlife in Puno as well, having met some locals in a bar who showed me the local discotheque - the salsa influenced Dominos. The Incas believed that their capital city Cuzco was the center of Tahuantinsuyu, or the four corners of the world. To the north, close to the Ecuadorian border, was Chinchaysuyu. The eastern Amazonian Basin was Antisuyu and west of Cuzco lay Contisuyu. The southern corner of the world was Collaysu - aka Lake Titicaca. Collaysu was named after the Colla tribe who controlled the Lake Titicaca region before merging with their rival neighbors the Lupaca to join the Incan Empire. The Aymara speaking Colla left several famous burial sights - huge lofty stone funerary towers, or Chullapas. The most famous and well preserved of these are located on a peninsula on the Lake Umayo - about an hours drive west of Lake Titicaca. This site is known as Sillustani and the ruins, along with the accompanying background lake. Sillustani wound up being the last major thing I did on my trip before catching the plane from Juliaca to Lima - where I spent one last night with Jenny and back before returning home. Above: Jamming on the charango with Jach'a Inti in Puno Links: Cuzco Machu Picchu Peru Main Bolivia Travel glennstevens.biz