February 1, Puno, Peru

            I was up late the night before killing brain cells with TV.  I got up late, and decided to stay and see the reed islands before I crossed the border into Bolivia.

 

The Uros, Indians live on artificial islands made of floating reeds. These islands have become a major tourist attraction for Puno. Their original purpose was defensive, and they could be moved if a threat arose. One of the islands retains a watchtower largely constructed of reeds.

The boat ride out to the reed islands.

Tied off to a floating island.

Domiciles.

A little reed island floating inside a larger reed island.  An enigma wrapped in an enigma.

Native girl looks puzzled at the speech patterns of a crazy Italian guy.

Edible reeds

They had all sort of food for us to try when we got to the island and the presentation had begun.  The food was all indicative of what the natives would have been eating from the lake.  The actual reeds were pretty interesting.  We all tried the base of the reed, which actually grows in the lake bed.  It was pretty good, almost like a watery potato.  Over the girls left shoulder in the right of the picture you can see the tops of the reeds that have been bundled and stood up to dry.  These are used for the base and structures of all the reed islands.

Many things are for sale.  Check out the drying reeds against the house on the left compared to the dried ones on the right.

Thankfully they had clothes that would fit me so we played dress the giant gringo.  I was not exactly enchanted with the idea in the beginning but it made for a good picture.

There is a storm a brewin’.  This storm had a ton of electricity in it.

Steak restaurant.  Actually I have no idea what that is for.

Brazilian travelers.

Dirty biker traveler.

Serenade.  As we left the island they sang to us.  The whole experience was very touristy but it was really cool and definitely worth the price of admission.

Native girl sang "Do-Re-Mi" in 9 different languages.

?

The small buildings behind the sign are cottages rented by the hour.  Sorry, bad joke.
 

I climbed a tower to get this shot.  The lighting over the lake while the storm moved in and the sun set was so surreal.

            It was great to be around other people again.  Other travelers especially.  I was on the mend after being sick for so long.  Tomorrow I planned on crossing in to Bolivia and sleeping in La Paz that night.