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OVERVIEW
Puno, on the
banks of Lake Titicaca - the world highest navigable
lake - displays the reminiscences of its origin through
cave paintings and spearheads, testimony of our highland
ancestor's life.
The Collao Plateau Is the geographical space, where
ancient and Important cultures like Pucara and, later,
Tiahuanaco, appeared.This is the region where, according
to the legend, Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo emerged from
the sacred Lake Titicaca to found the Inca Empire.
LAKE
TITIKAKA
Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world
at 3820 meters above the sea. The lake sits on the
border between Bolivian and Peru, so each country has
its part. Puno is the largest city in Peru at the lake
and is a good base for exploring.
The floating islands are easily reached from Puno.
Tourist need only walk to the harbor and people will
start offering tours. Haggling is a good idea, as prices
vary wildly and everyone ends up in the same boat
regarless of what they paid.
The islands themselves are a bit of tourist trap, but
interesting all the same. The Uros live on islands made
of totora reed, which grows in the lake. They cut the
reeds, put them on top of the island, while the bottoms
of the islands slowly rot away. In a similar way, they
make boats, which look like venician gondels, except for
that they are made of solid reed.
Sights
The main tourist attraction in Lake Titicaca is the
Uros Islands -- also known as the floating islands.
These islands are made from reed that grows in the
lake's waters. It is very touristic.
The Taquili island with it's special social system is
very interesting and also very beautiful.
The Amantani island, more remote, and more agricultural,
is a beautiful and authentic place. It is a nice place
to meet the locals and see beatiful sunsets.
All islands can be visited independently or on an
organized tour. One possibility is to take a two day
tour that includes visiting all the islands and spending
the night in Amantani Island. It costs 50 soles.
Around the lake, there are many ruins. The most known of
them is the Sillustani funerary towers. These towers,
from different periods, are interesting and set in a
fine location, near a small lake.
Sillustani funerary towers
Sillustani is located on a hill near a small and
beutiful lake. Both Incan and pre-Incan cultures used
this site to build towers for burrying their kings and
noblemen. They were burried with their familes, and also
with offerings to the gods, such as llamas, alpacas,
quinua, etc..
It is easy to identify the difference between the more
primitive pre-Incan towers, and the more precise Incan
towers. The Incas respected the culture that they
conquered and kept the tradition.
TAQUILE ISLAND
Taquili island is gorgeous. It is a hilly island in
the lake, where a special social culture has developed.
Each person has clothes according to their social
status. Leaders have black hats, for example. There is a
difference between single men, dating men and married
men. This applies also for women.
Contrary to many traditional societies, a couple must
live together for one year, to see if it works out,
before getting married. Weddings are held anually in a
great celebration (a full week) for all the couples.
Many sheep are slaughtered for the occasion
UROS ISLAND
The Uros islands, also known as the floating
islands, are the major tourist attraction in Lake
Titicaca. Nowadays, it has become very touristic. The
locals jump at visitors when they land on one of the
islands and try to sell them all kinds of souvenirs.
They claim that they are original from the islands, but
it can't really be guaranteed.
Nonetheless, they look nice.
The islands are made from reed that grows in the lake.
The bottom rots over time, so new layers are added
regularly.
AMANTANI
ISLAND
Amantani Island is a beautiful island, more than 3
hours by boat from Puno. Its rather remote location
makes it less touristic. The community that lives there
maintains traditional agricultural life. It seems like
not much has changed during time.
The island is not very large, so one can hike around it.
A hot spot is the highest hilltop on the island. It is
both a sacred place, and a great place to see sunsets.
The 300 meter elevation from the lake level could be
hard if visitors are not acclimatized. Otherwise, it is
a very straightforward and smooth more.
JULIACA
Located in the Puno District, Juliaca with a population
of 239,000 is the largest city in the district and
serves as the capitol of the San Roman province. Juliaca
is on the Collao Plateau in the Lake Titicaca basin with
an elevation of 3825 meters above sea level. Cattle,
leather, wool, and textiles are important products for
Juliaca.
Besides Lake Titicaca, tourist also come to Juliaca to
see Sillustani, Aymara (pre-Incan) tombs that look like
columns. Juliaca has been called "the fokloric capital
of Peru." Travellers can fly to Juliana from Lima. |
