Maria had a little lamb

Alarm – eeek!

Shower, dress, pack, check out – adios, La Cupula!

Bus office: forms, forms, forms: bus manifest, Bolivian Customs, Peru immigration – check!

Slight delay: unkempt young travellers running late.

Crosses on roof ridges on Bolivian houses: most simple corrugated iron designs, but some more intricate, with wreath designs and replica reed boats.

15 minutes’ drive then stamp, stamp: adios, Bolivia!

3 minute walk then stamp, stamp: bienvenido al Peru! 90 days, but I won’t need them all.

Sheep grazing. Llamas grazing. Donkeys pulling ploughs and carrying brightly coloured bundles. Pigs grazing and wallowing – multi-taskers – or should that be multi-tuskers? Ha!

An army base – looks run down, with glass broken in every window of the biggest building – but, no! Soldiers guarding the gate and the red and white flag flying high.

Blue bay of multi-striped small boats and fish farms.

Green toilet country. Blue toilet country.

Two kids flying gaudy plastic kites – great breeze for it. Laughter!

Working bee building house foundations: women carting large pails of water, men struggling under the weight of large boulders.

Brown toilet country – they’re new since last year.

Snoozing … zzzzz …

5 minute changeover at Puno, then …

Last views of Titicaca, highest of the big lakes.

Wide landscapes of patchwork crops and wetlands.

Big skies! BIG skies! HUGE skies, with cotton-wool clouds.

1st stop: Juliaca, hellhole of Peru.

New companions: tired-looking mother, tired-looking young son and their lamb, in its very own plastic carrier bag. Cute but, oh, that rural smell of shit! I pick my overnight bag up off the floor and onto my knees – in case of, you know, accidents. And, yes, accidents do happen! I open the window. The lamb bleats and looks at me with huge eyes.

Plains: few signs of life. A river runs through. Crumbling adobe-brick ruins that once were houses dot the landscape. Golden grass.

Lamby is hungry and, mistakenly, nuzzles my leg. Next it tries to nibble my pants. It tries to eat my button. I tell its mother the lamb is hungry. She shrugs. She looks hungry too and pulls out some bread for herself and the boy.

Snoozing … zzzzz … but the smell of pee in my nostrils wakes me and again I let the breeze in.

Young Mr Cool, of the rolled up jean legs, single braid in his hair, cool sunnies, turns up his music. A generalisation: Peruvians love noise! A tall tourist gets up, goes over, tells him to turn it off. Perhaps, intimidated, Mr Cool obeys.

More snoozing …

A police stop! On come the Men in Black, looking for contraband. Checking under seats, they spot a bundle of cartoned somethings and start to cart them off, only to be verbally assaulted by a local woman, claiming the goods and haranguing the police until they back off. Go girl!

Snoozing again …

The bus stops and the food arrives, courtesy of a local woman carrying a big multi-striped bundle on her back and a large plastic pail in her hand. She unwraps, shouts out the menu. Tourists cluster over her, peering for a look at the offerings. What is it? Cameras click, movies are shot. A cleaver appears and the woman begins to chop, with large savage blows. The tourists back off. The woman stuffs plastic bags with joints of meat and potatoes, and serves.

It smells good! Tempting, but potentially trouble. Tummy rumbling, I open the window.

Once more with the snoozing …

Another stop, more entertainment … or not! A travelling salesman, Peruvian style, stands in the aisle, spouting his spiel for a good 15 minutes. Something about all sorts of different types of food and drink causing stones but not if you drink his special magic potion three times a day and it only costs 30 soles for a month’s supply. But he’s picked the wrong crowd … these are mostly poor passengers and that’s a lot of money. Not a single sale the first time around, so he tries again.

Trying to snooze …

Snow on the mountains!

Passengers getting restless. Are we there yet?

The lamb bleats and pees. I open the window, even though it’s raining a little.

I remember this is the night for the Orionids and, here in the countryside, it’s dark. I look to the east and, as if sensing my intentions, the driver turns the lights on. Another stop. Passengers pile out to pee.

Again with the snoozing, and I’m not the only one … snores from all around.

Finally, finally, finally, city lights ahead … and soon I’m home, drinking a hot cuppa and munching on an empanada from my friendly local baker, who wants to know where I’ve been ‘cause he hasn’t seen me in weeks. He likes to exaggerate! I’m glad to be home but I can still smell lamb pee.

On the road from Puno to Chivay

I had no idea how impressive the scenery would be as we drove out of Puno in the chilly early morning, heading for the little town of Chivay in the Colca Valley.

Our first stop was at Lagunillas Lake, where the blues of the lake and the sky competed for our attention – which was more blue? The sky was sprinkled with the whispiest of clouds and the lake surface peppered with flamingos – so pretty.

Soon after Lagunillas, we had our first sight of Misti, the active volcano that looms menacingly over Peru’s second largest city, Arequipa. Its shape echoes the cone-like perfection of Japan’s Mt Fuji, and Mt Egmont, in my native New Zealand.

At Pampa Cañahuas, in the Aguada Blanca National Park, we turned off the main Puno-Arequipa highway and made a short stop for a mid-morning snack. On the other side of the highway, there was a huge rocky outcrop, with ancient rock formations that reminded me of Cappadocia, in Turkey.

As we rode on, the skies were breathtakingly huge, the llamas and vicuña dwarfed by the grandeur of the big country that surrounded them. One herd of llamas played follow the leader down a steep hillside.

We stopped again at Patapampa, at 4800 metres, the highest point on our journey. As well as the ubiquitous roadside souvenir sellers, the ground was littered with artificial piles of small rocks. The bus company’s pamphlet said these were placed ‘by travellers and local residents, who place them as part of a ritual related to resting, strength to continue with the trip, protection, health and permission to enter somewhere new.’ I added a small rock to one pile.

At Chivay, we joined Luis the guide and a small group of travellers who would be our companions for the next day and a half. At our charming hotel in the nearby village of Choraque, we ate a delicious lunch and met the local guard 'dog', a llama/alpaca-cross, a critter with attitude. I got spat at quite early on, as did one of the men when he tried to persuade the beast to move away from the entrance gate. ‘My, what big teeth you have!’

In Chivay, after lunch, we explored the town, enjoying the beautiful paintings in its lovely old church, the bartering and banter of the sellers in the local market, the delicately embroidered and very colourful traditional dress of the local women. My friend Marianne and several of our group also enjoyed a warming soak in the local hot pools and, returning to the hotel, we ate a delicious meal and retired quite early to a heated room and comfy beds. What a superb day!

Border run to Bolivia: day four

The last day of July dawned bright and clear in Copacabana and, after breakfast at our hotel, we headed out again on to glistening Lake Titicaca. We only had the morning to sightsee so, instead of taking one of the regular full-day tourist tours, we had our own private motor boat and guide. The boat was small and there was a bit of a swell running, so we bounced and splashed our way out to Isla del Sol, the legendary island of the sun.

According to our guide, this rocky hilly island was the birthplace of Inca civilisation. The sun and the moon were born in this lake, and the first Inca, Manco Capac, emerged from a sacred rock on this island. Our guide also told us a myth which included a 40-day downpour resulting in a flood that killed off almost everything, except a man and a woman, who went on to beget the Inca nation. Now where have I heard that story before?

On reaching the island, we visited the ruins of the Pilcocaina Inca Palace, or Temple of the Sun. It is a simple building, with several interconnecting rooms. Our guide showed us one room where, at sunrise on the day of the mid-summer solstice, the sun’s rays shine exactly in one window in the front wall and straight through the window in the wall behind – proof, he said, of the astronomical knowledge of the Incas. He also explained that the three-stepped window frames represented heaven, earth and hell – in Inca symbology, the condor is used to represent heaven, the puma earth and the snake hell. The three-stepped concept also features in the Inca version of the ten commandments: their three are: you should not lie, you should not steal, and you should not be lazy!

From the Inca temple, we climbed up a ragged path, and hiked two kilometres along a ridge-top track – part of the original Inca Trail – then down again to the tiny village of Yumani. The views were awesome – across the sparkling lake to the snow-capped mountains of the Royal Range of the Andes. At Yumani we tasted the crystal clear waters of the sacred spring before boarding our motor boat for the thwacking ride back to Copacabana.

We had time for a quick bite of lunch at the Hotel Rosario del Lago, before boarding our bus back to Puno. The border crossing back in to Peru was trouble-free and I now have another 90 days to enjoy this colourful country. We had about 4½ hours to kill in Puno, so caught a taxi to the Plaza de Armas (every town and city in Latin America has one!) and wandered the streets. We shopped a little – I got another t-shirt and Kiri found an alpaca overnight bag in the colours she’d been seeking – then hung out in a warm café, listening to and watching music videos from the 70s and 80s – real music!

Upstairs at the front on Tour Peru's double-decker, and the church in the Plaza de Armas, Puno

Our overnight bus to Cusco departed at 8.30pm and was more comfortable than I had expected. The semi-cama seats reclined further back than an (economy class) airplane seat and I was soon asleep, dreaming sweet dreams of my superb weekend.

Border run to Bolivia: day three

Saturday 30 July, and another early start. The lovely man from Allways Travel (highly recommended!) arrived at our hotel at 7.00am, took us to the bus station, showed us where to pay our departure tax and put us on the right bus … to Bolivia.

It was a double-decker bus so we had a good view as we travelled round Lake Titicaca, then inland towards the border. We passed a big cattle fair in one town, and then went through ‘blue toilet’ country – for some unknown reason every house had an outdoor toilet painted bright blue!

At the border we had to get stamped out of Peru by both the Police and Immigration, then we walked a few hundred metres across the border to get stamped in to Bolivia. The formalities went smoothly enough and we were soon back on the bus for the 10-minute ride to Copacabana. This is apparently the original Copacabana – the famous beach in Rio was named after it.

We had a room booked at Hotel Gloria, which turned out to be a very short walk up the road from the bus stop. And it was glorious – we had a twin room, with a large double bed each and a glorious view out over the lake. It was noon when we arrived, so once we got settled, we walked back to the main street and found a restaurant for some lunch.

Copacabana is a relaxed little town, like a resort but a little bit shabby and a little bit hippy – full of the backpacker type of traveller, not the rich tourists. It’s comfortable, and slow, and laid-back. After a leisurely lunch, we cruised slowly down the main street to the beach – you’ve gotta love a main street where the tarmac eventually turns into sand! – then back up again, checking out the shops. I got a Bolivian t-shirt and Kiri bought some bits of jewellery.

As we were walking around we noticed many of the cars had been decorated, with paper decorations and flowers and feathers amongst other things. The numbers of these cars increased as we approached the main square, and there we discovered what was happening – this was the Benedicion de Movildades, the blessing of automobiles. Apparently, this is a twice-daily occurrence, where priests bestow a ritual blessing on the vehicles and a ritual offering of alcohol is also poured over them, consecrating them for the journey home.

The blessing occurs in front of Copacabana’s Basilica de Virgen de la Candelaria, a gleaming white church, with Moorish-style domes and colourful ceramic tiles. The Virgen de la Candelaria is a short wooden statue of the Virgin Mary, which was sculpted by Inca craftsmen in 1576. It is believed to work miracles and is the most important pilgrimage destination in Bolivia. We had a quick look at the beautiful interior of the church and I couldn’t help but admire it’s striking architecture.

More cruising around the streets, a beer in the sun at a café in the main street, a stroll along the beachfront promenade licking a delicious ice-cream, and later a scrumptious dinner … all in all a wonderful way to chill out in charming Copacabana.

Border run to Bolivia: day two

We had an early start on Friday 29 July for our full-day tour on Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake on earth. It’s a huge lake – 165 kilometres long, 60 kilometres wide, with an average water temperature of 9°C and it is 3809 metres above sea level.

A tour bus collected us from our hotel just after 7.00am and by 7:30 we had clambered over the bows of 6 other small boats and were settled in our seats ready to depart. Some brave souls sat on top of the boat but it was freezing, so we stuck to the cabin.

The slow chug out to Uros, the artificial floating reed islands, took about 30 minutes. It was a fascinating, if touristy, place. Walking on the islands was bizarre – there are about 40 islands, all built of layer upon layer of reeds, so the surface was spongy, sort of like walking on a trampoline. Assisted by our island’s headman, our tour guide gave us an explanation and demonstration of how the islands are constructed. The reeds (called totora, just like the New Zealand native tree) are also used to make almost everything else on the islands – the simple huts the islanders live in, small watchtowers originally used for defensive purposes, and their boats. (The people of Uros helped Thor Heyerdahl build the famous boat Kon-Tiki, which he sailed on his expedition from Peru to Polynesia.)

We were invited by the island women to visit their hut homes – our lovely woman was called something like Aelyn. The hut was incredibly simple – a blanket lay on the floor, a few clothes hung from hooks on the wall and that was about it. Aelyn then led us to a display of goods she had made and I was, of course, persuaded to buy a small embroidered rug. It is bright and colourful, apparently took her one month to make, and I am totally enchanted by the textiles in this country.

We spent some time exploring the island then, for a small extra fee, were paddled to another island on one of the reed boats. The island women performed a short action song to farewell us – and finished it with ‘Hasta la vista, baby’ – so funny! It was peaceful and quiet, and so nice to be on the water – something I miss here in land-locked Cusco.

After a short visit to the other floating island, we reboarded our motor boat and began the 2½ hour voyage out to the island of Taquile. A snooze was in order for almost all the passengers, including us! Our boat dropped us off at the northern dock of the island and we hiked for an hour to the main village. Taquile, and the incredibly blue waters of Lake Titicaca that surround it, reminded me of the Mediterranean. It was so beautiful!

We enjoyed a delicious lunch of lake trout at a family restaurant in the village and then listened to our guide tell us some interesting facts about the island – for example: textiles also play a large part in the economy of this island but here the women weave and the men knit. And the knitted hats the men wear each have a meaning: those with all-over patterns are worn by married men, those that are half white and half patterned are worn by single men, and those that have multi-coloured patterns and ear flaps are worn by the headmen. The islanders are all vegetarian, use only natural herbal medicines and are incredibly long-lived – most survive into their nineties and many make it over 100. There are no cars (or dogs) on the island, so all the transportation of supplies, farm produce, etc is either done by donkeys or peoplepower.

After lunch, we visited the main square where we were treated to a colourful dancing display – it was a saint’s day so everyone was celebrating! The square was surrounded by markets stalls but, with difficulty, I managed to resist the temptation to shop – though the wonderfully knitted hats were a great temptation. We then walked down the hill to where our boat was waiting, and set off on the long slow chug back to Puno – though I tried to stay awake to enjoy the sparkling water views, I eventually nodded off for an hour or so.

We got back to Puno at 5.30pm, just as the sun was going down. It had been a magical day on the magnificent Lake Titicaca.

Border run to Bolivia: day one

The extra-long weekend (for Peru's Independence Day celebrations) couldn’t have come at a better time for me as my visa was about to expire and I needed to leave the country and come back in to get a new visa. The easiest way to do that from Cusco was to head to Copacabana in Bolivia via Puno and Lake Titicaca.

I’d always wanted to see Lake Titicaca anyway, so I planned an itinerary to enjoy the lake from the Peruvian side and the Bolivian side – 60% of the lake belongs to Peru and 40% to Bolivia. Our first day was the journey to Puno and rather than travel there on the overnight bus as so many border runners do, I thought it would be much nicer to see the countryside during the day. So, Kiri, a volunteer from Australia and my travelling companion for the long weekend, and I departed Cusco aboard the Inka Express to Puno at 7.30am on Thursday 28 July.

It was a 10-hour bus trip from Cusco to Puno, broken up by 5 stops along the way. The first was at the small town of Andahuaylillas, where we visited a wonderful colonial church built by the Jesuits. Inside were beautiful frescoes and paintings dating back to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. We weren’t allowed to take photos inside but I got a shot of the external frescoes, currently being restored. Next to the church was a small museum, housing mummies and skulls excavated from an Incan site near the village. The skulls showed the intentional cranial deformation practised by the Incas. By enlarging the frontal, occipital and parietal bones, they forced the growth of the Roland Fissure, the primary centre of creativity in the brain, and in other skulls they enlarged just the parietal lobe, which controls the brain’s motor functions. Weird, but true!

Our second stop was at Raqchi, an archaeological site that includes the Wiracocha temple, Inca terraces, baths, and aqueducts. This wasn’t the usual Inca construction of massive fitted stones – here the stonework foundations were topped with an enormous two-storey roofed structure made of adobe. The temple measures 92 metres (302 ft) by 25.5 metres (84 ft), with the central wall reaching between 18 and 20 metres in height. To the north of the temple are living quarters for priests and local administrators, to the east are about 100 round storehouses for the grains used in Inca ceremonies, and to the west is a section of the 11,000-kilometre-long Inca Trail. We didn’t have long to explore but it was certainly a remarkable site.

The third stop of the day was for lunch, at the small town of Sicuani. We didn’t see anything of the town but the buffet lunch was generous and delicious. We both went back for seconds. Sightseeing is hungry work, y’know!

From Sicuani the route climbed steadily upwards until we reached our fourth stop, at La Raya, the highest place in the world I’ve ever been. It’s 4335 metres (14,222 ft) above sea level and set amidst the beautiful snow-covered mountains that surround the highland plateau. Of course, wherever the bus stopped, there were souvenir sellers – and this place was no exception. To mark this ‘high’ occasion I bought a beautiful, warm, multi-coloured alpaca and llama wool scarf, which was to prove most useful in the cold temperatures of Puno. Kiri and I also paid the small fee to have our photos taken with a lovely local girl and her llama. We had seen llamas grazing in the fields nearby so it seemed appropriate.

Our last stop before reaching Puno was at Pukara, another site of archaeological interest. Pukara was the first great civilization of the Andean Plateau of Lake Titicaca area and the base of a large pyramidal structure is located nearby, though we didn’t get to visit it. Pukara is also where most of the ceramic bulls that adorn the rooves of houses in the Cusco region are made (for more on that, see my previous blog). We stopped briefly at a small local museum, with some impressive Inca stone carvings, and some very vocal geese in the yard of the beautiful church across the road. They proved to be an amusing interlude in a long day.

We were late arriving in Puno due to a half-hour stop for roadworks but our travel company rep was waiting to transfer us to our hotel, the Colon Inn – I kid you not! I presume Colon in this instance means colonial – we were hoping it wasn't a portent of intestinal problems to come!