Floating islands of Lake Titicaca. Journey through South America

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

Even a schoolboy knows where Lake Titicaca is on the map. It is located on the border of Bolivia and Peru, in South America. What makes the lake unique is its location relative to the level of the World Ocean. The mirror of the water surface lies at an altitude of three thousand eight hundred and eleven meters. Thus, it is the highest navigable lake in the world. Titicaca occupies a position in the list of the "most-most" natural objects in several other ways. Firstly, it is the largest lake in South America in terms of fresh water. And secondly, there are floating islands on it. And inhabited! On the floating islands, of which there are about forty on Titicaca, for a long time, for many centuries in a row, the Uros Indians live. How land plots can float and how the life of the people inhabiting them develops - read in our article. We will tell you how to get to the floating islands and what to see.

Harmony of the lake and people

First let's clarifythe question is how land areas can float. In fact, these are not islands, but huge rafts. On the banks of the Titicaca, reeds, called totoras, grow in abundance. There is so much of it that if it had not been cut off, it would have covered the entire surface of the lake. But the Uros tribe thought of a better use for it. The cane is cut, pressed into blocks, tied with ropes. The resulting raft is driven to places where Lake Titicaca is devoid of vegetation. On such islands people live from generation to generation. Houses, boats and even various Uros utensils are also made from reeds. Of course, this material is short-lived, especially if it comes into contact with water. Boats, on average, last about six months, after which they begin to rot and seep. The same process occurs with the islands. The lower layers gradually rot and are washed away by the current. But the Uros are constantly building on their islands and follow the fire safety rules very well. After all, one spark is enough to make a dry reed flare up like a torch.

History of floating islands

The Uros Indian tribe is known for the fact that its representatives never wanted to fight. In response to the invasion of the aggressors, these pacifists preferred to hide. With this defensive purpose, they built the islands of reeds, while the shores of Lake Titicaca were occupied by the warlike Aymara tribe. As time went on, the conflict gradually smoothed out. The tribes began to trade with each other. The small Uros began to adopt the Aymara language. Now this dialect is considered almost extinct. Only a few dozen people speak it. Soon an army reached these highland lands.mighty Inca empire. Aymara entered into battle with them, but were defeated. The remaining warriors tried to find shelter behind a wall of reeds that surrounded the water surface of Titicaca. The pursuers in pursuit of them discovered the floating islands. The Aymara warriors were taken into slavery by the Incas, and the Uros tribe was subjected to tribute. The Spanish conquistadors who came later Christianized the locals, but their way of life remained the same.

Secrets of Lake Titicaca

On the map, this water area is located far from the Pacific coast. Yes, and it was raised to a height of more than three kilometers. But still, once, a hundred million years ago, Titicaca was part of the sea bay. Then the magmatic activity of the bowels of the Earth lifted this lake to a height. Thanks to the tributaries of streams, the water in the water area became fresh. But Titicaca is still inhabited by marine species of fish (including sharks) and crustaceans. On the shores of the lake you can see traces of the impact of ocean storms. Scientists find there the fossilized remains of ancient animals that once lived in the sea. The Uros, who inhabit the floating islands, keeps a legend that at the bottom of Titicaca there is a city of an unknown civilization, Wanaku. In 2000, Italian archaeologists conducted underwater research on the lake. At a depth of thirty meters, they found the remains of a stone pavement, a wall stretching for a kilometer, and a stone head of a sculpture. These finds, according to the analysis, are about one and a half thousand years old.

How to get to the floating islands

Journey through South Americawill be incomplete if you do not see the high-mountainous lake Titicaca and the islands drifting along its surface. Since the water area lies between Bolivia and Peru, you can go to the sights both from Lima and from La Paz. Russian travel agencies have developed many routes that pass through Titicaca. You can see this lake in the comprehensive program "Bolivia and Peru" with a further beach holiday in Capacabana. There are tours of Peru and Easter Island. And how to get to the sights of Titicaca on your own? The floating islands depart from Puno, a picturesque town on the southwestern shore of the lake. Ten minutes on a motorboat - and you are already greeted by a hospitable Uros tribe. Puno can be reached from Lima by bus in forty-two hours, or by plane to Juliaca with a change in Cusco. From the latter city, you can get to the lakeshore by the Andean Explorer train (the journey lasts ten hours).

Organized trips

Tours to Peru enable travelers to reach Lake Titicaca with its floating islands without much hassle. And there are many interesting things to see along the way. The most exciting tour lasts eleven days. The route begins in Lima, on the Pacific coast. Then tourists flock to the Andes, where they visit Titicaca with its islands, Cusco and the mysterious Machu Picchu. Having crossed the mountains, travelers find themselves in the Amazon jungle (Puerto Maldonado). There are tours to Peru for sixteen and twenty days. During this time, travelers will see a bird's eye view of the lines in the Nazca Valley,Kolkinsky Canyon, rafting down the Urubamba River and making a trek through the Amazonian jungle to the Bora-Bora tribe. There are more extreme routes, including climbing Campa Peak (five and a half thousand kilometers above sea level). And for those who wish to combine educational excursions with relaxation on the beach, the program "Peru and the Ballestas Islands" is provided.

Bolivia: tours to Lake Titicaca

This Latin American country is poorer than Peru. But the tourism business is also developed in Bolivia. Air traffic is also well established here, due to the fact that this country is very mountainous, and many settlements can only be reached by air. All routes invariably start in La Paz, the highest capital in the world. Further, the route runs through the most key attractions that Bolivia has. Tours last from five to thirteen days. During this time, travelers visit not only Lake Titicaca, but also other interesting places: the island of the Sun, Sucre, Potosi, Kolchani. Especially beautiful is the world's largest Uyuni s alt marsh. The surface of twelve thousand square kilometers is covered with unusual crystal formations. Tourists also visit Lake Pescado, whose shores are covered with thousands of tall, tree-sized cacti. Some specimens are hundreds of years old.

Price of tours to Lake Titicaca and floating islands

Traveling in South America is not cheap. Flights to the Southern and Western Hemisphere are especially expensive. Even in Bolivia, a poor but colorful country,stay will cost one hundred and sixty thousand rubles per week. A grandiose tour covering the entire "Andean Triangle" (Chile, Peru and Bolivia) will cost the traveler five thousand one hundred and seventy US dollars. This trip lasts two weeks. It does not include intercontinental flights. And it costs no less than sixty-one thousand rubles round trip. You also need to take into account that Russian tourists need a visa to Bolivia (twenty dollars), and upon departure to their homeland, you also need to pay a fee of $ 25. Traveling alone is definitely cheaper. But keep in mind that Bolivia has a rather dangerous crime situation.

Modern life of the Uros tribe

This nation today has about two thousand people. But to live from birth to death on a raft, albeit a large one, is quite difficult. The “islanders” spend all their days patching and arranging their piece of land. After all, the straw rots quickly. Therefore, many representatives of the Uros tribe moved to the banks of the Titicaca. The remaining inhabitants earn their daily bread by fishing and hunting waterfowl (flamingos, ducks). But these branches of management are gradually receding into the background. The decisive factor that significantly affects the GDP is tourism. Guests are always welcome here. For them, the inhabitants put on colorful, bright colors, traditional costumes, carry them on straw boats and feed them with crown dishes. By the way, the main ingredient of the dishes is the same totora cane. Soup is made from it, tea is steamed, chewed with a hangover, etc.

Tour

Most motorboats and boats depart from Puno, the main port town on Lake Titicaca. And the goal of the lion's share of excursions is the largest floating island. The Uros even keep cattle there, feeding them totora. The very sight of the floating islands is unforgettable. Reed, bleached by the mountain sun, is everywhere - houses, boats, fire-fighting watchtowers are made only from it. But even more emotions are caused by the descent from the side of the boat to the floating island. It is extremely flat, and rises above the lake surface by only a few centimeters. The “earth” springs under your feet, like on a water-filled mattress. Just dizzy - it seems as if the legs are about to break through the fragile straw bedding. But there is nothing to worry about. The whole structure is very strong. There are many souvenir stalls on the big island. You can buy various crafts there. The question of what served as the material for the wicker figurines or dishes is truly rhetorical.

Uros and civilization

Getting on the floating islands, one never ceases to be amazed at the amazing mixture of patriarchal way of life and modern technology. Thatched huts are electrified. And the trivial wires of power lines do not stretch to them. Solar panels are installed on the islands, supplying current to all residents. Perfectly catch mobile telephone networks and the Internet. And the presence of a satellite dish on a thatched roof seems quite strange. Local residents are happy to take visiting guests to their homes. The huts only look shabby from the outside. Inside, they are furnished quite nicely.modern. The standard of living of the "islanders", who receive income from tourists, allows them to acquire a refrigerator, TV and other electrical appliances.

Lakeside

Floating islands are not the only attraction of the reservoir. It is worth staying here for a few days to see the towers with the remains of the leaders of Silustani. There are quite real islands on the lake. Taquile is interesting because only men are engaged in yarn and weaving there. On the island of Amantani there are temples of Pachatata and Pachamama, which are located at an altitude of 4200 meters. It is also worth climbing to the village of Chuquito to see the ancient church of Santo Domingo. Twenty kilometers south of Puno is the ancient port of Tiahuanaco with the Akapana pyramid, the Kalasasaya stone and the Gate of the Sun. The town of Chuquito (eighteen kilometers from Puno) is another tourist attraction of Titicaca. In this town, you need to see thirteen phallic symbols sticking out of the ground in the Inka Uyo fertility temple.