In Canada I had a rough itinerary for this South American odyssey of mine. I knew that I wanted to see the Andes. I also knew that I needed to go to Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia if only to take one of those wacky photos of a mini-me floating on top of a whisky bottle.
Sadly I didn´t make it to the world´s largest salt lake. .For various reasons.
In the north of Argentina I saw several small salt lakes, with no camera to be had. No bother. I was heading to Bolivia anyway.
Well...Gracie and I eventually broke away from Cusco for a holiday around Lake Titicaca. This sacred body of water is one of the highest lakes in the world at 3812 m. It is home to delicious trucha (trout) and man-made floating islands. Gracie and I spent a quiet night with a local family on isla Amantani eating trucha and french fries for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We continued our trip through the Bolivian border into famed hippy hangout Copacabana. Our intentions were to visit Isla del Sol (birthplace of the Inkan empire), but both of us ended up being hit hard by the high elevation. We spent most of our time lounging in the sun or sleeping in our inexpensive hotel beds.
Gracie was set to return to Cusco in anticipation of her parents´ arrival. My plan was to continue south to culturally rich La Paz and finally the Salar. As most of you know by now, I am an impulsive human being. This led to a quick return to Cusco. I missed my friends, missed the comfort of being settled somewhere and really didn´t think I had enough time to properly enjoy Bolivia.
Och well...To the future! Gives me reason to come back and do some treks through the challenging land. I have since met travellers who really loved Bolivia, surviving bike rides down the infamous ´death road´and reaching their highest elevations next to glacial lakes. I will return. Hopefully when I do the country will have settled politically.
It is hard to avoid talk of the conflict in Bolivia. Peru has just kicked out the Bolivian ambassador and there have been fatal protests in the Lake Titicaca region.
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