Isla del Sol & Copacabana, Bolivia

Hello everyone,

Hope this post finds you well.  I am back in Minnesota- a very bittersweet feeling, but it's been great catching up with my friends and family over the past few days.

On Friday, July 22 we had left Cusco, Perú to head to Puno (which is on the Peru-Bolivia border) and catch a transfer bus to Copacabana, Bolivia.  Copacabana is a small town that resides on the shores of Lake Titicaca.  The Isla del Sol (Sun Island) is about an hour or two boat ride from Copacabana, and is the city's main attraction.  Lake Titicaca sits at 3,811 meters (12,500 feet) above sea level and is very cold.  It is a backpacker's stop along the "gringo trail" and a great destination for breaking up the journey to Bolivia's capital city, La Paz.  We stopped in Copacabana and stayed one night before we would leave for the island.  The sunsets on Lake Titicaca are incredible, and I made sure to catch it on our first night on the lake. 

Saturday morning we headed out to catch a boat to the island at 8 AM and we were hiking in about an hour and a half.  Isla del Sol is a historic site of over 80 Inca ruins, has no paved roads, and no motorized vehicles.  The people move about the island strictly on foot or by boat.  It is said that the Inca believed that the birth of the sun and the moon took place on Lake Titicaca, and the names "Isla del Sol" and "Isla de la Luna" come from these beliefs.  


The hilly terrain of the island did not present much of a challenge in the hike- the path was very well-laid.  We hiked from the southern part of the island past the northern part and to a town called Cha'llapampa.  The town was right on the water and acted as a port for tourists looking to either start or finish their hike on the island.  We arrived at Cha'llapampa and were greeted happily by indigenous women (dressed in their traditional garb) who sought travelers to stay in their "hostels".  Often times these "hostels" were someone's house with an extra bedroom or a run-down-looking building with pad locks on the doors.  We found one that was close to the water and paid $3 for the night.  The beds were incredibly comfortable and we had plenty of blankets to stay warm.  The highest point on the island is about 4,000 meters, and with the winter that is passing through right now, it dropped down below freezing every night.  


Late that night we could hear a band playing some terrible song over and over, and not at all together.  At first it sounded like perhaps they were practicing, but we found out the next morning that this was not the case.  We were awoken at around 7 AM to the same band playing the same terrible song right outside the door to our hostel.  I went outside to see what the commotion was.  Sure enough, a full marching band was being led down the street by about 20 indigenous people dancing and stumbling to the beat of the screeching brass instruments.  The beer bottles in everyone's hands explained a lot.  People were tumbling over one another, but would hop back up as if nothing happened and continue on with their celebration.  One man was even being dragged along by the others since he was falling asleep on the dirt road beside the parade.  The amazing thing about it all was that this had been going on since 10 PM the previous evening, which explained why everyone was toast.


After our night's stay on the island we headed back to Copacabana to catch the bus to La Paz where we would meet with our German friends from the Machu Picchu trek and I would head off to climb Huayna Potosi with them.  


The Isla del Sol was a great experience- we got to see first hand the lifestyles of the people who live on the island and survive off of fishing, potato farming, and tourism as their economy.  We paid only $3 for a hostel!  Most importantly, I was able to see yet another incredible piece of nature high up in the Andes mountains.  They have so much to offer.  

Copacabana, Bolivia

Sunset on Lake Titicaca

La Isla del Sol

View of Bolivia's Cordillera Real from the island

"Temple of the Sun" - largest ruins on the island

Some pretty impressive solar panels

Cha'llapampa

Mud bricks drying in the sun

The crazy drunken parade- never found out what it is they were celebrating...

They stumbled and fell quite a bit

Cheers,
Travis

Saludos Suramérica, y Hola Estados Unidos

Greetings friends,

I am about to head to the airport for the journey home.  Flight leaves this evening and I get into the states tomorrow morning, back to Minnesota around noon time.  Sad to say goodbye to this wonderful place, especially considering my last stop has been in the beautiful Buenos Aires and I've spent some good time with my friend Jarron who gets to be here until December.

Quite obviously I haven't updated the blog in a while and the last time I did I was still pretty far behind.  I've calculated it out and think I have about 5 posts to go in order to wrap up the rest of my trip for you.  Sorry for the delay, but please do stay tuned to the upcoming posts as I have some really awesome pictures and good stories to share about Bolivia and my time in Argentina.

It's been a blast, South America.  I'm so grateful to have been able to experience everything I did on this trip and can't wait to get back and see more.

Until then,
Travis

The trail to Machu Picchu

Hello all,

I've been quite behind on updating this blog, and I apologize for that, but we've just crossed into Argentina through Bolivia which probably has the worst opportunities for internet access in the Americas.  If there is access, it costs an arm and a leg.  And it's nearly impossible to connect.  However, now I am in Argentina, a seemingly more "civilized" country with a much easier opportunity to get my "internet fix."  However, I must say it's been quite nice to travel without having internet.

After leaving Huaraz we headed to Lima to stay a night in order to break up the travel time to Cusco.  Regardless it was a 20 or so hour bus ride from Lima to Cusco, but we wanted to stop by Lima (also known as the culinary capital of South America) to try some sea food and a Pisco Sour (or two).  Pisco is a strong liquor made from grapes that was first produced when the Spanish arrived in Peru.  The seafood of Lima is known for being some of the most exquisite in all of the world as it comes in fresh from the Pacific daily.  We tried sushi while there which was excellent- some of the best I've ever tasted in fact.

Unfortunately during this time of the year Lima presents moderately nasty weather.  During the day and a half we spent in the city we were covered by gloomy, grey clouds, and there was a humidity that sometimes turned to rainy mist in the air.  The atmosphere seemed uninviting, but we were able to spend a night out with some friends of Adi's older brothers and had a good time getting to know the nightlife of the city.  We left Thursday for Cusco on an insanely comfortable 20-hour bus ride where they served meals and played some entertaining Hollywood flicks dubbed in Spanish.  There's nothing like listening to the Spanish voices the producers choose for characters like John Travolta and Steve Martin.

Friday, July 15 - Thursday, July 21 was a week spent in Cusco and some surrounding cities to make the Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu.  We decided to do this trek because it was one of our only options for a multi-day excursion to the ruins.  The Inca Trail, which is the most popular form of reaching Machu Picchu is unfortunately booked through sometime in November.  Machu Picchu is becoming quite the popular sight, and is apparently the most visited attraction in all of South America.  The national park allows up to 2,500 people in daily and there is even a sight where you can get your passport stamped for visiting.  Yes, it is extremely touristy, but the ruins themselves are so impressive that it's worth the time and tourist overload to see them.  Plus, the people-watching is terrific.

Unfortunately on the 15th the government of Peru introduced a new system of controlling the number of tourists let in on the daily.  We were required not only to purchase a moderately expensive ticket to see the ruins, but in order to climb Huayna Picchu (the distinctly-shaped mountain in the background of most Machu Picchu pictures) we had to pay an extra fee and were added to the list of 200 people let in either at 7 AM or 10 AM.

Needless to say the experience was incredible despite the menacing fees and waiting lines.  The Salkantay trek is a 5-day/4-night hike from Ollantayambo to Aguas Calientes where we go from snow-capped mountains to the jungle-like forests at the base of Machu Picchu in just a matter of days.  We lucked out yet again with our group for the tour.  Every member was great.  We had representation again from all over the world: Germany, Holland, Switzerland, California, Missouri, and even Georgia!

Four days of hiking and camping in rather well-put-together campsites led us to Aguas Calientes which is the base town for Machu Picchu.  The fourth night was spent in a hostel run by a woman who was rather unhappy with her job and did not hesitate whatsoever to take her misery out on us.  The fifth day we rose around 4 AM to begin the walk up the brutally steep and long staircase that brought us to the gates of the ruins.  At 6 AM they opened and we flooded in like an anxious herd of cattle.  Of course, there was nothing to be seen yet- the clouds had not parted, but our guide reassured us that it took time before we would be able to see the city.  Sure enough about a half an hour after waiting in the foggy mist, Machu Picchu began to expose itself.  It was an incredible sight.

Javier (our Salkantay guide) passed us off to a friend of his to give us the tour of the ruins.  The man was short, bald, and barely spoke English, but by the standards in Peru it seems as though if you are able to say "hello" and "my name is" in even the most broken English, you qualify for a tour guide.  That being the case, our guide was perfect for the job.  Half of his explanations were a mixture of Spanglish and some other language no one was able to understand.  The guide had numerous phrases such as "clear the idea?", "yes or no?", and "follow me boy and girl" (yes, "boy and girl"- singular) that he repeated after every explanation.  We attempted to count the number of times but lost track.  It was a great experience because we were able to learn a lot about his interesting take on the ruins, and were also happily entertained throughout the morning.

Machu Picchu is really an incredible sight.  It was hard for me to imagine the entire time during the tour that an indigenous civilization constructed the entirety without machinery or modern equipment of any type.  There are countless theories as to what the city represented to the people, how it was constructed, and what took place there, but no one will ever know the real reasons or answers.

Learning about the Inca civilization has been one of my favorite parts about traveling through Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia.  There is an incredible amount to learn about the people, their practices, and their history and Machu Picchu was an awesome representation that only enhanced my interest in the culture.

Thanks for reading and please enjoy some pictures from the trek below!

Cheers,
Travis

A gloomy day in Lima, Peru

Cusco, Peru

One of the many old colonial buildings that make up the city of Cusco.

On the Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu- notice the "correction" made in permanent marker.

Salkantay peak

Highest point in the trek.

A chicken with one heckuva hairdo.

A taste of some of the diverse plant life we saw on the way to Machu Picchu.

The group at campsite #4

The first sight of Machu Picchu.

And as the clouds & fog cleared...

Machu Picchu + Huayna Picchu (the tall, skinny peak in the background)

"Clear the idea?  Yes?  No?"

A beautiful llama.

Climbing to the top of Huayna Picchu proved to be quite the task.

View from the top of Huayna Picchu.

That's me standing directly in front of the view of Machu Picchu.  Nice placement.