Puno - My first stop in Peru
Getting into Peru was easy! Honestly, I think it would have been possible to walk on in without even stopping at the immigration office. I didn’t see anyone watching who was coming or going. Of course, then I’d also have to sneak out of the country or be hit with a fine.
The list of requirements for a tourist visa was rather intimidating. Technically you need to present 3 months of bank statements to prove solvency and you need to present evidence of a return flight or bus ticket, but I was asked for neither. Which is good, because I didn’t have a plane or bus ticket at the time. In terms of Covid, they do require full vaccinations (and boosters for people over 40). I also had to have my temperature and blood oxygen tested at the border. I passed! I also filled out a downloaded immigration form, but the officer just glanced at it and gave it back to me. Passport was enough. They gave me a 90-day visa. I was through the border in about 15 minutes.
From the border I took a tuk tuk to a minibus station and then a minibus to Puno. The minibus ride got held up for about 45 minutes because of a roadblock. There is a general strike across the country because gas prices recently tripled. But eventually they let traffic through. By early afternoon, I was in Puno, a small city on the north shore of Lake Titicaca.
The list of requirements for a tourist visa was rather intimidating. Technically you need to present 3 months of bank statements to prove solvency and you need to present evidence of a return flight or bus ticket, but I was asked for neither. Which is good, because I didn’t have a plane or bus ticket at the time. In terms of Covid, they do require full vaccinations (and boosters for people over 40). I also had to have my temperature and blood oxygen tested at the border. I passed! I also filled out a downloaded immigration form, but the officer just glanced at it and gave it back to me. Passport was enough. They gave me a 90-day visa. I was through the border in about 15 minutes.
From the border I took a tuk tuk to a minibus station and then a minibus to Puno. The minibus ride got held up for about 45 minutes because of a roadblock. There is a general strike across the country because gas prices recently tripled. But eventually they let traffic through. By early afternoon, I was in Puno, a small city on the north shore of Lake Titicaca.
I took a boat tour my second day and visited a Uros community on their “floating island” in the lake. It’s one of 70 or so floating islands occupied by the Uros tribe. Apparently, the tribe escaped to these islands when the Incans started tearing through the region. They’ve been living on floating islands ever since. The islands are made from totora reeds which grow naturally on the lake surface. They build tiny homes on the island and expand the island when someone marries and joins the family. The islands are anchored because, as one of the tribesmen explained, he doesn’t want to go to Bolivia. The tour guide said the islands are about 2 meters thick, but I didn't know what to believe because he also said the lake there was 9 meters deep and the poles they used to propel the boats were no longer than 4 meters. Basic math says 9 meters is a lie. I wouldn't be surprised if the island is resting on the lake bottom.
The island was interesting, and we were allowed into the homes to see how the people live, which is very modestly. The houses basically have reed bundles built up along the walls which serve as beds and places to sit. They have baskets and blankets and not much more. But the recent addition of solar panels now provides them with some power. I had a good data connection on the island (I bet they have mobile phones).
They took us in reed boats for a little float. We paid for that, which I think is totally fair, given that they let us invade their island to gawk at them. They also had trinkets and textiles for sale. Family seems to be the main concern for the Uros people, the women bragged about how many children each of them had. One woman had 7, and I think she was in her mid-20s. But one young lady had no children because she wants to go to university and become a tour guide. She's a rebel. I wish her success.
After visiting the Uros tribe, we went to an island. I think it was called Tequile but I was falling asleep while the guide explained what we were doing. I only knew the tour included a visit to the Uros tribe and considered everything else "extra". We got off and climbed up and over the island to a town. I was happy to go for a walk; woke me up a bit. In the town they encouraged us to buy some of the textiles because that is the main industry that provides for the people on the island. I don’t need anything and can’t carry anything, but I did browse, and they had some nice stuff, if you like wool.
In the square, some townspeople got all dressed up and played some music and danced but… not well, and it didn’t look like they were enjoying themselves.
We had lunch in the town – pretty typical Lake Titicaca fare; quinoa soup, trout, rice and fried potatoes. (After only a week, I’m getting tired of rice and fried potatoes. It’s a weird combination.) The tour was okay but it felt very touristy and somewhat artificial. Other tourists can be annoying too; when a German tourist pulled out a mouth harp to play for us, I wanted to punch him in the face. But the tour was very cheap, and I did like seeing how the Uros people live. Sadly, there are some things you can only see or do on a tour.
In the square, some townspeople got all dressed up and played some music and danced but… not well, and it didn’t look like they were enjoying themselves.
We had lunch in the town – pretty typical Lake Titicaca fare; quinoa soup, trout, rice and fried potatoes. (After only a week, I’m getting tired of rice and fried potatoes. It’s a weird combination.) The tour was okay but it felt very touristy and somewhat artificial. Other tourists can be annoying too; when a German tourist pulled out a mouth harp to play for us, I wanted to punch him in the face. But the tour was very cheap, and I did like seeing how the Uros people live. Sadly, there are some things you can only see or do on a tour.
There are some reasons to visit the town of Puno itself. It has some nice historical buildings and churches, lovely plazas and a pedestrian street with all kinds of restaurants and shops. It was a nice city to walk around in. But… I got “stuck” in Puno. I wanted to go to Arequipa but had to wait 2 extra days for the next bus. So, I spent a lot of time walking around Puno. I climbed up to a few of the viewpoints, partly for the view, but also because I want to be in good shape for my upcoming Machu Picchu hike so I can keep up with the young kids.
On one of my long walks on the outskirts of the city, I decided to go behind a rock pile to empty my bladder, but I slipped getting off the road and nearly fell. I was fine, but afterwards, I was about 200 meters down the road before I realized my phone wasn’t in its pouch. I panicked a moment but figured it must have fallen out when I slipped. I backtracked and as I got close, I saw a guy standing on the side of the road near the spot I had slipped, he wasn’t moving. I was worried he’d picked up my phone. As I got closer, I saw sunlight sparkling off a stream of urine. Apparently, he had to go too. Relived (a second time) I found my phone, exactly where I had slipped. I was sooo happy my phone was dry.
On one of my long walks on the outskirts of the city, I decided to go behind a rock pile to empty my bladder, but I slipped getting off the road and nearly fell. I was fine, but afterwards, I was about 200 meters down the road before I realized my phone wasn’t in its pouch. I panicked a moment but figured it must have fallen out when I slipped. I backtracked and as I got close, I saw a guy standing on the side of the road near the spot I had slipped, he wasn’t moving. I was worried he’d picked up my phone. As I got closer, I saw sunlight sparkling off a stream of urine. Apparently, he had to go too. Relived (a second time) I found my phone, exactly where I had slipped. I was sooo happy my phone was dry.
Restaurants in Puno either serve local dishes like trout, rice and fried potatoes, or they are tourist restaurants where the food is more interesting, but expensive. The one thing they offered that I didn’t ever try was guinea pig. I think it’s a tourist food. The locals don’t seem to eat them and a guinea pig dish costs twice as much as anything else on the menu. And... well, it's not exactly a large portion of meat. I found some wild guinea pigs on the lakeshore, and I wonder if that’s where they come from?
Fortunately, I found a huge grocery store in Puno which had great produce and bread. I made peanut butter and jam sandwiches. It’s been a while! Peanut butter isn’t very popular in Argentina or Bolivia. I had to share my PB&J sandwich with a very hungry cat - must have been hungry... right? That's not something cats generally want to eat.
Fortunately, I found a huge grocery store in Puno which had great produce and bread. I made peanut butter and jam sandwiches. It’s been a while! Peanut butter isn’t very popular in Argentina or Bolivia. I had to share my PB&J sandwich with a very hungry cat - must have been hungry... right? That's not something cats generally want to eat.
When it finally came time to leave Puno, I went to the bus station. I had a ticket, and the bus was there… but as the departure time approached, there was no sign of any other passengers or a driver. I went to the ticket kiosk and asked, and they said, “no bus today”, something about not having a driver. But I knew another company had a bus leaving for Arequipa and I knew I only had a few minutes to catch it. (For some reason, in Bolivia and Peru, all bus companies operate on the same schedule). I managed to get a refund and hurried down the row of desks asking “Arequipa? Arequipa?” I found the desk I was looking for and bought a ticket. They only had VIP seats left, so it cost me an extra $8 or something, but I didn’t care. I didn’t want to spend 2 more days in Puno.
The ticket agent told me to hurry, and I did. They fired up the bus engine just as I was settling into my seat.
The trip was comfortable at first, but the national strike hit again. We were stopped by a roadblock, and they were refusing to allow any trucks or busses through the roadblock – only privately owned vehicles. They told us the company had a bus on the other side of the roadblock and that we would have to walk across to the other bus. Not a big deal, just a delay. Fortunately, a small truck came to load up all of the sacks of potatoes from the cargo hold of the bus. The truck was allowed to cross the roadblock and deliver the potatoes to the next bus. It would have been hard to haul those sacks otherwise. An additional delay came as we were walking to our next bus. I heard a pop and a hiss that I thought was a firework at first, but it was one of our bus tires. Someone had punctured the tire. The bus backed up along the highway on the flat tire about 50 meters to get away from the roadblock (maybe to avoid another punctured tire?) It took about 20 minutes for them to change the tire. Eventually the bus turned around and we got on. Sadly, the second bus wasn’t nearly as nice.
The ticket agent told me to hurry, and I did. They fired up the bus engine just as I was settling into my seat.
The trip was comfortable at first, but the national strike hit again. We were stopped by a roadblock, and they were refusing to allow any trucks or busses through the roadblock – only privately owned vehicles. They told us the company had a bus on the other side of the roadblock and that we would have to walk across to the other bus. Not a big deal, just a delay. Fortunately, a small truck came to load up all of the sacks of potatoes from the cargo hold of the bus. The truck was allowed to cross the roadblock and deliver the potatoes to the next bus. It would have been hard to haul those sacks otherwise. An additional delay came as we were walking to our next bus. I heard a pop and a hiss that I thought was a firework at first, but it was one of our bus tires. Someone had punctured the tire. The bus backed up along the highway on the flat tire about 50 meters to get away from the roadblock (maybe to avoid another punctured tire?) It took about 20 minutes for them to change the tire. Eventually the bus turned around and we got on. Sadly, the second bus wasn’t nearly as nice.
We didn’t get into Arequipa until sunset. I only spent the evening in the city, and I really don’t know anything about it except that it has a nice center plaza that is pretty after dark. I left early in the morning for Colca Canyon… that will be my next post!
Arequipa main square