Out on Lake Titicaca with little Kanahe

We finally made it to the waterfront today for the trip out to the famous reed islands of Lake Titicaca. Yes, some of the islands, known as Uros, are made entirely of reed. I first heard about these when Papa took me to see a documentary on Thor Heyerdahl´s Ra Expedition and have been intrigued since (nerd alert). I got goose bumps when we finally approached the islands and there, tied up along the water front, were the very reed boats they´ve been using for centuries. We got to the islands by ignoring the many touts in the port, and jumping on the ¨locals¨ boat, which was much cheaper. 30 minutes out to the island, where we were greeted with the locals in their colorful garb. Not too pushy, but tourism has become their livelihood, so they´re selling lots of the same crap you see on the mainland. But they do live on these islands, in little reed huts. Walking on these islands is a challenge, quite mushy. My nerd dreams came true when one of the local men asked if we wanted to ride in one of the reed boats. Of course, we did, and he took our little group on a ride along the other islands for about 20 minutes. Delightful, but for the incredibly bright Peruvian sun and two Bolivian honyocks who acted up on the boat. Kanahe was bemused by the whole experience, watched as the reeds floated by in the water, took a giant dump on the boat (in his diaper, mind you), and giggled his way through the rest of the day. Malu did everything he could, it seems, to make as much noise on the boat as possible. Oy vay.

We´re beginning to feel a little of the altitude. I´m not sleeping much and wake up gasping like a fish. Riki´s dizzy and has a periodic headache. Kristina doesn´t complain much, but we all get winded making just the slightest physical effort. Candy helps.

Yesterday was Riki´s birthday and we celebrated it in the restaurant recommended by our pickup, Broz. The Balcones of Puno was a little corny, but fun. Had local folk dancers (who didn´t do anything Kristina and I thought we couldn´t pull off), and an incredible band (featuring the biggest pan pipes you´ve ever seen). Their repertoire included the standard folk music, plus John Lennon´s Imagine and the birthday song in Spanish for Riki. It was sweet. The food was quite good...my alpaca lomo saltado showed up in architectonic form: the rice was a pyramid, and the french fries stacked like bricks, the Inca way! I think there was only one time out during the meal, so it goes down in the history books.

Tomorrow, Riki flies home to Hawaii, leaving the rest of us to fend for ourselves. Fortunately, we have first class tickets on a train to Cusco through what is supposed to be some of the most spectacular scenery on earth. Leave early, but that´s no hill for these steppers.

Over and out for now.