Copacabana rests directly on Lago Titicaca, so descending into the shore area of the town provided beautiful views of the lanchas rocking gently on the water with the setting sun as a backdrop. Almost worth the entry fee already! We stumbled upon Hostal Elenita, a relatively rundown family home that provided beautiful views of the harbor, a semi-functioning television with more than one channel, and bedbug-free enveloping beds (similar to air mattresses that fold up around you from every direction). As we walked up the main street, memories came back slowly of visiting the former lounge cafe with fantastic live blues and jazz. Though that cafe had closed, we found a nice restaurant that provided us with three courses for less than $4. Done! We even had some entertainment as a gentleman jammed out on his guitar and played a mix of originals and covers.
Quality! Please note the toddler-sized area of sinkage in the middle of the bed.
We woke up early the next morning in order to catch a boat out to Isla del Sol, a very significant island in the Incan culture and, myth has it, the origin of Manco Capac, the son of Inti, the Andean diety known as the sun. In essence, it is a beautiful island with a hiking pathway running across the 9-km island that sits at 4000 meters above sea level. Any activity at this altitude is taxing, especially hiking. We keep wondering why we do this to ourselves, but once we begin the experience, we are instantly reminded each slow step of the way. The trek commenced on the north side of the island in the small pueblo, Challapampa, where we fueled up with street-side egg 'n cheese sandwiches before heading out across the shoreline and up the first noticeable ascent. In order to enjoy the walk even more (and to allow ourselves time to catch our breaths), we let the majority of tourists from our boat pass us so we could distance ourselves from the masses and take our jumping pictures in peace.
View near the docks in Challapampa, the starting point of our trek.
Very simply, a hysterical picture.
Hannah and I did a bit of rock climbing to capture some pictures inside a circular indention of the near vertical rock face that lined the trail for a few hundred meters. The first part of the trek makes a gradual loop running along the edges of the island, providing frequent opportunities to appreciate the many vantage points that looked out over the lake for miles. We passed a small set of ruins which showed a similar layout to that of certain areas in Machu Picchu. After some unintentional games of hide-and-seek throughout the ruins, we headed up the pathway along the spine of the island – a very dry, desert-esque landscape for the majority of the “inland” trekking, though all set against the background of sapphire and blue waters. The entire trek was relatively quiet and reflective (mainly because talked required excess oxygen), minus the frequent toll-collectors who always managed to affect our zen-ness.
The final portion of the hike took us through the town of Yumani (on the south side of the island) and down to the docks, where the remaining two boats headed for Copacabana sat. In order to save time and money, a favorite pastime of ours, we decided to hop on the boat and return to town so we could then take an overnight bus to La Paz. The slow boat ride home happened to be during some of the best lighting of the day, so everything appeared even more magnificent than we remembered.
Once back on land (no sickness = woot woot), we booked a bus to La Paz and spent the remaining hour trying to find decent street food, which came to form as yet another egg and cheese sandwich. Initially, the ride out of Copacabana was quite windy. However, just as everyone started to get comfortable and semi-sleep, we reached the “what-we-now-know-to-call-dreaded” river crossing, during which everyone had to deboard, pay to ride a lancha across the rio, and wait for a while on the other side for the bus to pass on a homemade barge-like form of transportation. While we waited, Hannah and I discovered a very cheap bag of imitation-Cheetos called “Chizitos,” which is how I would imagine Snoop Dogg refers to it. This was definitely one instance where you can say with great confidence, “cheap is cheap.” Reminiscent of salty, stale sawdust, it became quite clear that we had celebrated prematurely. Luckily, the “toilet bowl”-style entrance made by the bus as it circled into La Paz was a wonderful distraction from our failed snack attempt. As we circled into the city of lights, we could only smile – tomorrow, let the city adventuring begin!
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