As I mentioned in my last post, the rainy season is lingering into April in Peru so I decided rather than forcing myself to hike in bad weather, I would head straight down to southern Peru to cross the border to Bolivia and start there then return to Peru after. It also worked out well for my flight to San Francisco for my wedding in Chico in early June as the flights from Lima were cheaper and better times than from La Paz.
Lima
Just like my last adventures in 2022, Lima served more as a stopover destination than the main event, but spending one day here was a good starting point for my trip since I was already familiar with the city and could redo some of the things I enjoyed last time. Plus the food in Lima is spectacular!
Getting In
It was an easy travel day to Lima with a 3 hour flight from Tampa to Panama City for the first leg. I had just a long enough layover for me to enjoy 20 minutes in one of the Priority Pass lounges thanks to my Capitol One Venture X card. The food was average at best but hey it was free. Then it was another 3.5 hours to Lima and I was there a little after 10. I decided to make it easy on myself and use the hotel taxi service as it was only slightly more than uber would have been.
Lodging
I knew Miraflores and Barranco were the neighborhoods to stay in Lima but had booked a hotel closeish (everything on the map is further than it looks) to the airport since I got in late on Tuesday and was flying out early Thursday so I figured this was the easiest option for my travel days. However the area by the airport is rundown and slummy so I don’t recommend it. When I was heading into town on Wednesday I was a little salty about staying by the airport because I had to do a nearly hour long commute (Lima traffic is horrible and the driving is absolutely insane) to Miraflores rather than just waking up and walking out straight onto the streets. The drive is at least a good eye opener into the real Lima outside of the tourist neighborhoods.
Wandering around Town
My salty mood during the Cabify ride quickly vanished when I got dropped off for lunch and had an incredible meal! Lima is one of the food capitals of the world so I decided to treat myself while I was here and not be on the broke backpacker budget. The meals in Lima are expensive by Peruvian standards but the portions are massive and you definitely get what you pay for in quality. I went to Lobo Del Mar and ordered the trio platter that included ceviche with the catch of the day, seafood rice, and mixed seafood tempura. All three were delicious but the seafood rice was the surprising highlight. It was way too much food and I felt bad about not finishing (or even coming close) but I just couldn’t.
Following lunch I walked down to Playa Makaha and sat on the rocky beach watching the surfers and listening to the crashing Pacific Ocean waves. After an hour of soaking in the sun, I did what I like to do best in cities and walked around the neighborhoods. I strolled the Malecón (boardwalk) which runs along the upper sea wall and is lined with 10+ parks, an outdoor gym, an open air mall, and great views of the Pacific Ocean. I would also occasionally weave in and out of the neighborhood streets of Miraflores and Barranco.
I was craving lomo saltado for dinner that night and Tanta de Miraflores did not disappoint. It was one of the best (if not the best) versions of the dish that I’ve ever had. It was so flavorful and the quality of ingredients was top notch. And of course I had to pair it with a Pisco Sour. They sure do know how to do food and drink in Peru.
The drive back to my hotel that evening was absolutely insane. Google said it was going to take 1hr20 due to traffic and an accident but it was way worse than that. The roads were at a standstill and my Cabify driver refused to wait in traffic. He was constantly checking his phone to figure out another route and at one point when traffic got real congested, he started driving off the road and onto the sidewalk going over curbs then weaving back into traffic when we’d come up on a parked car. He was doing all this while also watching instagram reels on his phone and driving stick shift . It was both fun and scary. I felt like I was on an amusement park ride. And while it seemed kinda crazy, him and everyone else were doing it. A four lane road had at least six cars across with everyone millimeters apart from each other. We almost got hit at least five times, but somehow everyone managed to cut each other off just the right amount to squeeze by. It was some of the craziest driving I’d ever seen. The only rule of the road in Peru appears to be don’t crash otherwise you can do whatever the fuck you want. The drive ended up taking nearly two hours, but honestly props to him because it could have easily taken another half hour if not for his aggressive sidewalk driving. A nice day one welcome back to South America reminder that some of the craziest stories are transportation related. I would highly recommend against renting a car in Lima unless your prepared to drive on the sidewalk in bumper to bumper (side mirror to side mirror) traffic. In the end I was super happy with my decision to stay by the airport because I would have been so stressed if that was my ride to catch a flight.
Puno
The city was much larger than I expected and has a population of around 130,000 and sits at an elevation of 12,560 feet. The houses were very basic brick buildings with tin roofs. I found out from my driver on the tour the next day that 4-5 families with 20+ people live in these houses because so many people have moved in from the countryside and it’s expensive for them to live in Puno. Sheesh talk about close quarters but people do what they can to get by. The main highlight of Puno is that it is located on Lake Titicaca, the world’s highest navigable lake. Lots of people were dressed in traditional outfits and it felt like the real Peru.
Getting In
I got to the airport way too early and sadly the Priority Pass lounge was only in the international terminal. Oh well I guess I’ll go back to my peasant ways. It was an easy 1hr45min flight to Juliaca and my bag came out in less than two minutes as I’m pretty sure there’s only one gate (if you can even call it that) at the airport. They have different plane manners getting off – everyone immediately starts walking into the aisle and doesn’t wait for the seat in front of them. Then it was a one hour colectivo (mini bus) ride through rural Peru to Puno. Even though the altitude is over 12,000 feet elevation, the drive is grassy plains with rolling hills in the backdrop. Based on the landscape it’s hard to believe I was a few thousand feet higher than when I lived at the base of Copper Mountain, but welcome to the Andean altiplano (high plateau).
Lodging
I stayed in a six person dorm at a hostel, but luckily there was only four of us in the room each night, and I had a bottom bunk. I chatted with a few people playing pool but otherwise the first night was not very social.
The second night I got back from my tour a little after 4pm and had the entire six person dorm room to myself. Hell ya! It didn’t last long though and a British girl named Jess arrived. Me and her chatted for a good 30 minutes and it was my first solid backpacker conversation of the trip. It felt nice to exchange travel stories and reminded me what a big part of this community is all about. She had just graduated uni and was doing three months of travel before starting her job. Oh to be 22 again! I am definitely on the older side of the bunch at the hostel (which will probably be a running theme) but such is life; still young at heart. Plus I don’t really look my ages, other than the growing number of grey hairs, and she was shocked when I told her I was 34. Then a 19 year old British couple showed up and they came in hot after having a bad bus ride from Arequipa. There was some feisty energy to them, but they also cracked me up with the way they interacted with each other and some of their comments (that weren’t meant to be funny).
Jess invited me to join her for dinner that night with some friends that she had met on a jungle tour in Bolivia. Sure of course! So me, her, an Irish guy, a British couple, and a Dutch guy went out together and I thoroughly enjoyed being thrown back into the backpacker banter. Then a few of us had a night cap beer at the hostel.
Wandering around Town
On the first day I walked from the center of town thru some side streets and up a long flight of stairs to Mirador Kuntur Wasi (1.5 miles, 502ft gain) which gave me my first look at Lake Titicaca as well as Puno.
Then I went to a little hole in the wall and got menu del dia lunch for 9 soles (under $3) – fried trout, soup, and tea. Now we’re talking! After lunch I strolled through town and stumbled upon the local market. The restaurants right outside the market had menu del dia for 5 soles. I got ripped off! I went inside the market looking at all the different fruits, potatoes (Peru has more than 4000 kinds), trinkets, etc. All the juice stands are in the same row and it’s always hard to decide which one to choose, but one lady flagged me down extra hard so I went to her and ordered jugo de mango con leche. She hands me the entire pitcher. It wasn’t exactly cold but it was so fresh and still delicious. The juice lady struck up a convo with me while I drank my pitcher and we had my first good convo of the trip. I didn’t understand everything she said and stumbled my way through some of it but we chatted for at least 10 minutes. It started with talking about Trump and we both weren’t fans. She was very understanding and said it wasn’t my fault but was not happy with how he was impacting the rest of the world. She wasn’t happy with her president either. It seems to be a running theme for most countries. Then we talked about places I’d been in Peru and I told her about Colorado showing her some photos. Overall it went well and I left satisfied enough with my Spanish. It’s always nice to have these these interactions and while I can have basic conversations with short sentences, hopefully I can add more flavor to my banter this trip.
I went out to get chifa (Peruvian Chinese food) for dinner as I loved it last time I was here but the place turned out to be pretty average. After solo dinner I sat on a bench in the Parque Pino soaking in the energy of the city – watching the teenagers practice their skateboard tricks, listening to the local high school band practice, and observing the people and street dogs pass by. There was a woman dressed in traditional outfit sitting across from me glued to her phone. What an age we live in! I was so curious what she was so invested in on her phone.
Tour of Uros Floating Islands and Taquile Island
I read mixed reviews on the Uros floating islands tour amongst backpackers on the Internet. Some people found it had gotten too touristy and inauthentic and other people loved it. I was in the middle on whether or not to book or just move on with my travels but figured screw it I’m here and probably won’t be coming back to Puno so might as well.
When doing tours to experience local cultures, at what point does it lose its authenticity and become a tourist trap? This one definitely walked the line. Nonetheless the tour still provided a lot of good information about Lake Titicaca, the Uros floating villages, and the Taquile Island so overall it was a worthwhile experience for me. These are my notes I took down while the guide talked.
There are about 120 floating artificial islands and 2000 people who live in Uros each island with its own name. Combined it forms a small village: super market, hospital, restaurants, lodges, one kindergarten, and three primary schools, but they must go to Puno for high school.
The first boat entered the lake around 700 years ago. In Puno they speak three official languages Spanish, Quechua (Inca), and Aymara (pre-Inca). It’s pronounced Chacha like challah and not kahkah like poop. In Aymara ‘Titi’ means puma and ‘Caca’ means grey. They believe the shape of the lake is a puma and when it’s cloudy the water is grey. Before it was called Momacocha (sister of Pachama). It’s a fresh water lake that comes from the mountains. It’s the second biggest lake in South America (8560 sq km. Size of Puerto Rico) and has a depth of 284 meters. 60% is in Peru and 40% is in Bolivia.
The floating islands are made out of reeds called yunco. They pull the reefs out and dry it. The white root from the reef is eaten like a vegetable. The base of the island is made of pieces of the root (it’s not soil – more hard packed) and they are only located on the shallow part of the lake (1-2 meters deep). The root floats when the water levels rise. They cut it into smaller pieces to transport and put back together. The island remains in place by tying a rope to a wooden anchor. After 15-20 days they add more yunco in a different position to keep the island dry.
Each island only has 1-2 visitors per month as they rotate the tours between the 120 different ones. In the modern era they have money from tourism to buy TVs, radios, and other amenities. Our island had four families with 20 people on it. There is one outside kitchen that the entire island shares. The local fish are very small so trout got imported into the lake. They hunt wild animals like an Andean bird similar to chicken. They also eat their eggs. Otherwise they go into Puno to buy dry goods.
They broke us into smaller groups (I was solo) to talk to a family member and see the inside of their home. It was also a sales pitch for their handcrafted goods. The guy was trying to get me to buy these little boats or a pillow case and I kept telling him I don’t have room. He would say “no le gusta” to which I would respond “si me gusta pero no tengo espacio. Soy un mochilero.” but he wasn’t taking no as an answer. I ended up buying a coin purse because it’s small and functional.
Afterwards we took this specialized boat that they kept calling their Mercedes Benz. It cost another 15 soles and we didn’t really have a choice. Oh well at least this money goes directly to the family. I chatted up a Brazilian group of four during the ride with Spanish as our common language. I told them I was going to Brazil and asked for recommendations. They were from Sao Paolo and one of the girls added me on Instagram saying to let her know when I’m there. A local plug and a bartender to boot! Who knows if it pans out but always good to have potential local connections. The Mercedes Benz boat took us to capital of Uros which was bigger than the other floating islands and was basically another sales pitch for local handicrafts, and a place to use the bathroom.
Then we had a 1.5 hour drive to the Taquile Islands. I sat on the top part of the boat and chatted up a family of five from Utah. We had some nice conversations about skiing, hiking, and travels. They were a very lovely family.
Before arriving at Taquile the guide gave us more information on the island. There are not a lot of animals (just small cows and sheep) on the island so they don’t eat much meat; only during celebrations like marriage. There are no cars, and since they have no horses or donkeys, they only walk around the island. No pollution, constant walking, and eating fresh food allows them to live to very old ages. There are also no dogs and no police. No police sounds nice but no dogs is sad. The island consists of six communities with about 3000 people in total. The land is terraced for agriculture to produce potatoes, quinoa, and corn. Micro climate from the lake surrounded by mountains allows for agriculture from evaporation when the sun hits the lake. It’s more common that men make the textiles.
We arrived at Taquile Island and had to do a 10-15 minute hike up to the center of town. The views of Lake Tititcaca and the surrounding mountains were beautiful. We were greeted in the center by locals dressed in traditional outfits. They played music and did a dance for us. The second round they invited us up to dance with them. It was a fast paced circle dance similar to the Horah at Jewish weddings. Afterwards we had 15 minutes to shop in the square then a 20 minute walk downhill to lunch. I sat with the German guy and Italian girl who were in my van to the port in the morning. We had a soup starter followed by trout with rice and vegetables. It was actually a very good lunch because the food was super fresh. Then we had another five minute walk down to the boat and a 1.5 hour ride back where I closed my eyes for most of it.
I probably won’t always go into such detail about all my interactions with people and the tours I go on (or maybe I will…there’s a lot of down time on these buses; depends how far behind I get), but the trip is young and I’m excited so it’s easy to word vomit.