highway strikes and being stuck on a floating island: Lake Titicaca and Puno

floating islands of Uros, Lake Titicaca

the dock at Lake Titicaca

conversation at the bus station in Cusco with a bus company

me: I would like to buy a bus ticket to Puno for tomorrow
bus: you cant, there are no buses tomorrow
me: why?
bus: there is going to be a strike on the highway tomorrow
me: what about the next day then?
bus: not sure when again, try that other bus company over there

conversation with another bus company (there are literally about 50 to choose from at this bus station)

me: I would like to buy a bus ticket to Puno for tomorrow, but will there be a strike?
bus: no, no problem
me: okay, so 2 tickets please

the town of Puno

After a rest day in Cusco after our 4 day Machu Picchu trek, we decided to head south 6 hours to the town of Puno, Peru on Lake Titicaca. After not being sold a bus ticket by one company, another company gladly sold me a ticket. We got on the bus (it was pretty full) so we trusted that the bus company wouldn't sell a bus load of people tickets if there really was a strike and if the highway was shut down. After traveling about 2 hours the bus came to a standstill. Oh oh, is this the strike? I looked outside and saw that there was rockslide on the road ahead of us but after a conversation with a local on the bus, the rock slide was the strike. The teachers in Peru have been striking lately and I guess on this day they decided to create a rockslide on the highway to make a statement. We were able to get through the rock slide but it probably took an hour or so. We saw a group of protesters and police in riot gear. It was peaceful though. The bus continued again traveling through high mountains, Cusco sits at 11,300 feet and we were heading to 12,500 feet, so the entire bus ride was through mountains. Funny though, there wasnt any snow. After traveling a few more hours, another rockslide. We did make it to Puno after 8 hours, instead of the scheduled 6.



While in Puno, our goal was to visit the floating islands of Uros which are made of reeds. Instead of booking a tour to the island (we were asked the moment we got off the bus until the moment we got inside our hotel room) we decided to visit them on our own as we knew there were ferries that we could catch on our own. So the following morning we walked to the dock, bought our ferry ticket (about $4), then our island entry ticket ($2) and waited for the next ferry to leave = when the boat is full. It seems as though that this is a pretty common theme traveling around the world. Sometimes there are published times when a certain means of transportation will leave but there are also lots of times when the transportation will leave when its full so it means sitting around and waiting for it to fill sometimes. It was a short 3 mile ride to the island but it was a slow ferry and took us 40 minutes. We wondered if we could have taken one of the paddleboats nearby and gotten there faster.

one of the floating islands of Uros

When we arrived, we realized that it was actually a bunch of little floating islands and not just one. Our boat dropped us off on an island which was about a size of large backyard. There were 5 little houses constructed from reeds and 5 little stands in front of them ready to sell us souveniers (all pretty much selling the same thing). Not a surprise at all.






thats what the islands are made up of

A man greeted us and asked us to sit on some bundles of reed for a quick presentation. There were about 12 of us and he gave us a quick 10 minute presenation on how the islands are built and about Lake Titicaca. He ended the presentation by informing us that a boat ride to the main central island in a reed boat was 8 soles (about $3.50). Ah hah. We werent surprised. The ferry (which was actually a 20 passenger boat) had left already and we weren't sure if it was coming back. There were 5 (Liz and I and 3 Peruvian tourists) of us that had a problem with this entrapment and decided that we werent paying extra for the reed boat ride. The presentation dude was begging and pleading with us to get on the boat and lowered the price to 5 soles. We were annoyed at the principle of this but thought that maybe we had no choice since our ferry had already left. So we got on the boat.

this is the extra boat ride that we had to pay for
to get to the main island

It was about a 10 minute paddle to the main island, which was probably about half the size of a football field. There was a restaurant, a couple gift shops and some homes that looked staged and not actually being lived in. On the way there were 3 little kids that got on the boat with us. They were cute and we thought they were just coming along with their dads that were paddling. Oh no, after the boat left they started singing childrens rhymes in multiple languages and of course at the end they asked for tips.

these are the cute kids that sang
and asked for tips

Since there wasn't really much to see on this island other then buy food or souveneirs (which we weren't interested in based on principle) we just sat around not knowing when the ferry would leave back to town. I tried to ask the boat captain but no real reply. Perhaps they will take us back if we spend enough money? After 45 minutes or so they finally motioned us to get back on the boat, as another boat of tourists just came (and shortly after we first arrived another boat of tourists left). While it was interesting to see the island, it was definitely a tourist trap. I have mixed feelings about this. Yes I know these people are poor and whats a few bucks to me but at the same time it really bugs me that they are trying to get every $ from me that they can.

thats a big wrench

While we were in the town of Puno, we visited the Yavari boat. It was a Peruvian Naval ship that was used, abandoned, then restored by an English women. Fascinating history. It was a steam engine boat (along with another boat Yapura) that was constructed in England 1861, shipped to Chile (in 2766 parts), then put on a train through the mountains (40 miles) until they had to be carried the rest of the way by men and mules (210 miles through mountains!). It took 6 years. The boats were used until 1975 and then abandoned by the Peruvian Navy. In 1987, an English woman decided that the boat was too valuable historically to be abandoned and started the restoration. Today it is a tourist attraction where donations are taken to keep up the restoration. We visited it and couldnt believe we were the only ones. We were met by an old, stout local who gave us a quick tour, in Spanish but we understood the main points. The boat was beautifully restored and many of the original wood and mechanical parts were there. I read that the boat goes about 7 times a year and that you can stay in it now as a 6 person B & B. Here is a link to the history

http://www.yavari.org/yavari-story.html

There are 2 other main islands that tourists visit (not floating) but we decided that they are probably touristy as well and after being in the Galapagos, we knew they couldnt measure up in terms of beauty. The islands are both about 3 hour boat rides so we decided to skip them. We are now off to Arequipa, the 2nd largest city in Peru and the gateway to the Colca de Canyon, the 2nd deepest canyon in the world, the deepest is nearby. They are double the deepness of the Grand Canyon.

the main plaza with cathedral in Puno
pretty much a common theme in every Latin city

they have heavy duty police trucks here

inside a very crammed combi (cheap minivan transports)