Thursday, September 24, 2015

Peru- Day 7- Taquil, Trout, and Too Tired

It was a relief to wake up and stop the tossing and turning in the bed on boards.  Clara called us down for breakfast, which was one crepe-like pancake with jam. And of course some Muno/Coca tea. We packed up and started our trek down the mountain to the port. We fell in love with Clara's 5 year old little boy, Lenny, and they both walked to the port with us. Lenny walked holding Brent and Ian's hands as they flew him into the air on the count of uno, dos, tres. 
Back on our big slow boat, we headed to another island- Taquil. Once we docked, we started another breathless hike up the steep rock pathway. Stairs and steps and lack of oxygen have been a theme of this trip. Taquil is charming and rural and completely terraced for farming. We passed shoeless old women hearding sheep, who were quick to ask for money if we took their picture. In the main plaza of the small island town we looked at lots of knitted goods. Apparently UNESCO declared the knitting of the men and women of Taquile to be the best in the world a few years ago. The hats the men knit are so tight they can hold water. They said if the hat a man knits leaks then it means they are a lazy man. 
As we ate lunch- fresh pink trout caught that morning- (a fish free omelette for me) Samuel taught us about their local customs and dress. We then hiked down the other side of the island - which included a descent of 546 steps.
Our slow boat met us at the dock for the 3 hour ride home. It was a perfect time for everybody to try to catch up on lost sleep from the night before. 
Once we were back to Puno we taxied into town for dinner. Soon after we sat down, a powerful rain storm thundered outside. It cleared by the time we were done with dinner, but the flooded streets and 1" layer of hail all around was proof that Pachamama was busy in Puno. We have been very luck with weather on this trip! 
Another long van ride to the airport in Juliaca, we caught our plane to Lima and made it to our hotel just after midnight. A hot shower that night never felt so good after 2 days off the grid! 


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