Drifting across Lake Titicaca, Peru

Posted on December 22, 2015 by Weekenders

High in the Andes at over 12,000 ft sits the highest navigable lake in the world, lake Titicaca. Our adventure on the lake started on the Peruvian city of Puno. We hopped off the PeruHop bus and hopped onto a small boat. The boat took us to Isla los Uros. These islands are actually floating islands that started as reed boats and evolved into larger and larger islands as more reeds were added. We stopped at one island where a lady was fishing and our tour guide explained how the island was built and how the locals still live on the islands.

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Back on land a short bus ride took us across the border into Bolivia. In the city of Copacabana we hopped on another boat that was taking us to a real island this time: Isla del Sol. Our hostel wasn’t too far from the docks, but I didn’t realize how hilly the island was going to be! At 12,500 ft carrying all our gear up step after step was a grueling endeavor. I was envious of how easy the locals seemed to manage the altitude. Soon enough we arrived at Willka Wat’a Hostel. There was a lovely terrace overlooking the lake where we could rest and enjoy the views. Before dinner I decided to try and shower. While washing I kept feeling a tingling sensation… It took me way too long to realize that the electric hot water heater was the likely culprit. I saw some sketchy wiring coming out the heater! Cold showers after that!

It was a very small island with only a few options for food. We decided on Pachamama Restaurant for dinner. There were beautiful views of the lake as the sun slowly set on the horizon. The local menu was Quinoa soup, Grilled trout, breaded chicken and banana with chocolate.

The next morning we hiked to the island summit at 13,350ft. Along the way there were beautiful views thanks to the lack of trees and terraced farms that covered the island. We even made friends with several donkeys and alpacas! On the island there are no motor vehicles or roads, all the transportation is by animals. This made the island a very quiet place!

After exploring more of the island we went to Inti Jalanta Restaurant for lunch. We had more Quinoa soup, grilled trout and chicken – with a view! Our short stay on the island was coming to an end so we picked up our bags at the hostel and easily took the steps down to the docks. We had a relatively short bus ride ahead of us to La Paz.

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Becoming one with Nature at Manu, Peru

Posted on December 21, 2015 by Weekenders

We said bye to Erin who had to go back to the states, we were back on our own. Before heading into Bolivia we decided to hop over to the Peruvian jungle and cloud forests near Manu Nation Park. We booked a four day expedition to Chontachaka Ecological Reserve.

After driving through the mountains and clouds for hours we finally stopped at a small hut. Several of us were instructed that this was our destination and then the mini-bus promptly drove off. We had no indication of where we were or where to go except for a trail leading into the jungle. The trail ended at a zip line trolley across a river – so that was the next logical step. Once we crossed the river we saw a few huts and eventually found the keepers who welcomed us to the Jungle!

Over a pasta dinner the hosts told us what to expect in the jungle. To my surprise this was home to the famous “Bullet” ant who’s bite is a bad as a bullet. I didn’t expect to see it at all, but they were surprisingly numerous. Luckily they weren’t aggressive and would only attack if really provoked. To work off dinner, the hosts took us on a night hike. We saw bio-luminescent mushrooms while we thought about if we wanted to partake in a San Pedro Ceremony.

The next day was a beautiful day in the Jungle. We took a morning hike to see some big trees and several waterfalls. There was plenty of time to cool off in the fresh water filled with a surprising about of fish. Lunch consisted of soup, veggies and banana chips. After lunch the hosts took us to their ‘secret’ waterfall and we had a great time swimming in the splash zone.

As the sun went down our hosts setup the San Pedro Ceremony, which everyone had decided to attend. They tea it made tasted horrible and not to long after I felt incredibly nauseous. Luckily that soon passed and Sara and I had a wonderful time thinking about life while watching the lightning light up the trees into different beings. We wandered back to the main hut where we saw everyone else chatting and having a good time. Just as everybody started talking about food the host brought out a large pot of rice they had preemptively made, which was fantastic!

Our last day there we relaxed in the river before more rain moved in and forced us to relax at the lodge. We played games, petted the animals, and caught up on the blog. I even made the pasta dinner that night!

We really enjoyed our time in the cloud forests and were sad when it was time to take the mini-bus back to Cusco. To make it even tougher Sara’s ring slipped and fell through a crack in the floor – we looked for it until the bus came but couldn’t find it again.

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Awestruck on top of Machu Picchu, Peru

Posted on December 20, 2015 by Weekenders

After a long hike up the endless steps, we arrived at the entrance to Machu Picchu in the clouds. Our tour guide stayed with us for about an hour to show us around and tell us the history. It was breathtaking to listen to why this city had been build as it slowly revealed itself through the clouds!

After our guide left we had the rest of the day to explore. We took our time meandered through all sorts of pathways that crisscrossed the city.

Part of our day included a timed entrance to a short hike up MachuPicchu Mountain for even more stunning views.

It seemed like most of the tourists were gone early in the day and after lunch we had almost the entire mountain to ourselves!

One of they ways they keep the grounds neatly manicured is by using grazing alpacas to ‘mow’ the grass. They are very friendly!

After a long day exploring Machu Picchu we headed down to the town below to have a good meal before the late (and very delayed) train and minibus ride back to Cusco.

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