Four of us senior missionary couples planned a three day trip down south to Puno near the Bolivian border. The world famous Lake Titicaca is half in Peru and Bolivia and is 13,000 feet above sea level. Unfortunately, most of the couples had altitude sickness and had difficulty enjoying the whole experience. Steve and I were fine and Graciela, our friend and travel agent was also feeling OK! Lake Titicaca is the largest lake in South America and the largest in the world at this elevation. The lake has 36 islands, not including the floating ones made by the Uros people. Puno has a population of 120,000 and mostly made up two cultures: Aymara from the south and Quechua from the north. It's buzzing with tourists, motor taxis, music, dancing and colorful crafts!
Our first stop from the airport was to Sillustani, a sacred burial site of the Colla people, who constructed numerous stone tombs, called chullpas, in which whole families would be buried. You can see the large tombs in the distance.
This was the main road to the top and was lined by women and children selling their wares.
I wanted to bring this darling little girl home!
This is the largest tomb and we walked slowly up the extra 500 feet at 13,000 feet above sea level!
You can see the clever irrigation system right to the lake.
This is Alan our guide from Puno and he was very knowledgable about these ruins.
Our next stop was a local farm that had several llamas and other animals and showed the lifestyle of the people in this region.
We all had a chance to hug the llama!
The mother showed how she cooked and the foods they use.
She shared some cheese she had just made and it was delicious.
This was their bed made of straw on rocks. Everything was neat and organized.
You can see the loom that is set up for their wall hangings and we were grateful for this family and their hospitality.
We traveled into Puno and could see the amazing view of Lake Titicaca.
We stayed on the main town square and enjoyed lots of music and dancing over the weekend.
Our hotel has our bus parked in front.
The square was very beautiful!
That night we went to the Balcones of Puno for a great dinner and to celebrate Graciela's birthday!
The dancers and band were awesome, too!
I enjoyed a great trout dinner and Steve tried alpaca.
We headed out to the harbor early the next morning to enjoy Lake Titicaca.
We boarded our boat and were serenaded, too!
In the front seat is Bruce and Jody Packard, next is Phil and Leslie Speed (friends of the Uffens in St. George), and Graciela! Kent and Mercedes were not feeling well and were resting in the front.
As we passed thru some reeds, another boat of tourists passed by and we headed for Island of Los Uros. Centuries ago, the Uros people lived along the shores of the lake, but faced with the infiltration of the Aymara and the Incas, the Uros saw only one way to preserve their culture. They isolated themselves by constructing islands out of the totora reeds that grow in the lake. Today, 32 islands still float in a cluster. They build everything out of totora-houses, boats, and souvenirs. They do have to travel 30 minutes into Puno to buy their fruits and vegetables.
Some of the islands in the distance.
We landed next to this boat
They cut the reeds and dry them out to be used around their village.
I love their bright colors and straw hats.
This is Sara and her husband is the captain of the boat. She made some lovely hats, shawls, and gloves.
Just like girls camp!
We had a very nice boat.
This is one of the many villages on these islands.
We all found some treasures to buy.
This sweet young woman brought me into her home and her name is Lydia. She spoke very good English and dressed me in some of her clothes. We exchanged gifts when we left.
They serenaded us as we left this island
In this culture, girls will marry as early as 14 years old. That 's way too young!
This dad rowed us over to an island of LDS members. They are having a great influence on having the YW wait until the are older to marry and encouraging others to marry, before they live together.
These children sang 8 different songs in 8 languages.
We were singing, Row, Row, Row your boat !
We rowed over to meet a group of church members on another island.
The front left sister is the RS Pre. and next to her was the Primary Pres.
This is the chapel on Uros!
The middle sister wears this hat to show she is available for marriage.
We left the Uros Islands and headed to Taquile Island. It has kept a good deal of authenticity and the language is Quechua.
On our trip Jody and I visited with Sarafina, who does beautiful needle work. I bought some of her miniature mittens for our Christmas tree and her great hats and scarfs.
You can barely see the terraced landscape for their crops.
These little ones welcomed us to their island.
We passed the gateway and began the long hike to the top.
The climb was steep and long.
A great view from the top and you can see the expands of Lake Titicaca!
This young girl made these lovely bracelets and I picked up many to share with my granddaughters.
We had a great lunch and enjoyed the weaving demonstration, too. This man wears a chullos that flops over and shows his marital status. The women do the beautiful tight weavings and are know to be the best in the world.
The women on this island all wear a black scarf on their heads.
The men help with the sewing, too.
The population on Taquile is 2000 and they have been able to preserve most of their customs and way of life.
It's amazing to watch them carry great burdens to the village at the top.
The average age of the people is 90 years of age. They keep in great shape hiking up and down this beautiful, isolated island.
The road down was much easier.
We walked back down the mountain and returned to Puna.
This was a lovely stop and we all enjoyed the boat ride!
We attended sacrament meeting in Puno and heard a great testimony from a 10 year old girl. Someday she will hopefully become a wonderful missionary.
This is Graciela with Jody and Bruce Packard, the mental health advisors for the Northwest South America Area!
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