Lake Titicaca - Puno and Islas Flotantes (Peru) and Copacabana (Bolivia)

After our time in Cusco and the Sacred Valley, we began to make our way towards Bolivia. Our first stop after an overnight bus from Cusco was Puno - a small town on the shores of Lago Titicaca, the lake that forms a natural border between Peru and Bolivia.  There isn't a whole lot to see in Puno itself, though one day trip that was highly recommended was out to Islas Flotantes (floating islands), the home of the Uros people. It is believed that the Uros fled to the islands centuries ago to escape aggression and built the islands from reeds which naturally grow in the lake.  Nowadays, the area is extremely touristed, but despite this, it is interesting to see how these people have developed their homes and lifestyle utilising everything the lake has to offer. Whilst looking out over the lake, it is easy to forget that you are still over 3800m above sea level as the vastness of the area makes it appear like more of an ocean rather than a lake.  

Sunrise over Lake Titicaca - Puno, Peru.

The Powell family (minus Kira) on the way out to Islas Flotantes - Puno, Peru. 

Floating checkpoint in Islas Flotantes - Puno, Peru. 

Floating home, Islas Flotantes - Puno, Peru.

A typical floating village in the Islas Flotantes - Puno, Peru.  (This village only received visitors one day a week as the tourism is shared between each village in the islands to ensure that the money is divided equally). 

The reeds are 'sown' together to a thickness of approximately 30-45cm to create the floating islands - Islas Flotantes, Puno, Peru. 

An Uros woman in traditional dress - Islas Flotantes, Puno, Peru. 

Our village guide displaying the hand-made rifle used to shoot ducks on Lake Titicaca - Islas Flotantes, Puno, Peru. 

Brett couldn't resist holding the weapon. 

A simple, traditional home in the islands - Islas Flotantes, Puno, Peru. 

Reed boats that were once used as the main mode of transport around the islands - Islas Flotantes, Puno, Peru. 

We found a great restaurant in Puno for Cuy Chactado - fried guinea pig!

After Puno, we headed into Bolivia and spent a few nights in the 'resort' town of Copacabana (the town which the Brazilian beach took its name from due to the town's Cathedral). The day we got there was Easter Sunday so everybody was out enjoying themselves with lots of beer, but come Easter Monday, the place was a ghost-town. 

Looking out over Lago Titicaca from our room - Copacabana, Bolivia. 

The view from our room looking down towards town - Copacabana, Bolivia. 

Whilst around Lake Titicaca, we experienced some great thunderstorms.  Here is a shot from one we experienced right out of our window - Copacabana, Bolivia.