The bus to Puno departed at eight in the morning. The morning bad weather, curling like a gray ribbon, turned into a road. Hiding from the bright rays of the sun, it slithered through the valley to the southeast. The mountains branch out here into three wide ridges. And behind the eastern slopes of the Andes, at the source of the Amazon, hides the highest lake in the world, Titicaca. It is almost ten hours of travel to get there. The road runs across a highland plain, called Altiplano by the local Indians. The Andes become steeper. The surface of the plateau is covered with a carpet of grass and flowers. The altitude is about four thousand meters. The landscapes around are picturesque.
We travel along an old railway. The bus is very comfortable, with flight attendants, refreshments, coffee, and pleasant music. This is not just a route from Cusco to Puno, but a special program for tourists with stops for photos and walks. In the Rakchi area, tourists visit the ruins of the Veracochas temple — a unique semi-circular structure of pre-Incan culture, as well as a bell tower church from the 16th century. The bus arrives in Puno in time for tourists to enjoy the view of the city and Lake Titicaca from the high pass in the bright rays of sunset.
From my diary. The tourist bus is a great idea and an example of rational program organization. Essentially, the section of the route from Cusco to Puno, spanning 805 km, is the most popular on the tourist route through Peru. Tour operators book seats in advance for their tourists. This is very convenient. Firstly, there is no need to spend money on renting separate transport. Secondly, there are comfortable conditions for tourists. Thirdly, it saves money on paying for a guide, which ultimately leads to a reduction in the overall cost of the program. For example, in Kyrgyzstan, on the route from Bishkek to Torugart (the checkpoint on the Kyrgyz-Chinese border), the tour operator uses separate transport regardless of the number of tourists. Whether there are two people or twenty, a separate vehicle is used in each case, the rental of which costs, say, 600 dollars. However, if a tourist bus is used, the cost of travel for one tourist will be only 30 dollars, regardless of the number of tourists.
Among those meeting the tourist bus is our guide Miguel. He speaks Russian quite well. By the way, he is the only Russian-speaking guide in all of Puno. He once came to the Soviet Union on a grant program to study. He graduated as a veterinarian but worked in his specialty for only a few years. Now he is a professional guide. He mainly accompanies tourist groups from Russia and the Commonwealth countries. In his opinion, more and more Russian tourists are arriving. It turned out that Irina, who worked with us in Cusco and in the Valley of the Incas, is his ex-wife, with whom he separated a few years ago.
Puno itself is a small town, with no tall buildings. Mostly two- and three-story houses under red tiled roofs. It is located in a basin on the slopes of the mountain, so the lake is constantly present in the panorama and life of the city. Titicaca is the main attraction. The authorities of Puno hold many different festivals and carnivals here, during which several hundred dance groups come to showcase not only their dances but also costumes and masks. The most grandiose celebration is the carnival with costumed parades all night long, which takes place on November 5, the day when the first Inca Manco Capac is said to have emerged from Lake Titicaca.
For the inhabitants of Puno and other coastal settlements, Titicaca is simultaneously a source of water, a provider of food, and a giant "heating pad," softening the climate of this generally cool region.
In the morning, we descend to the lake. It is raining, and the sky is thickly covered with fog. A fast boat has been reserved for us. We leave the bay at low speeds. It is relatively cold, but here everything changes very quickly. Gradually gaining speed, the boat passes the bay and enters the open waters of the lake. The clouds that had fallen with the brief rain dissolved, and now the entire space around the lake was surrounded by almost uniform blue. Here it is, the pearl of the Andes! The sacred lake of the Incas! The miracle of South America before us in all its beauty!
Every Kyrgyz knows that Issyk-Kul is the second largest high-altitude lake in the world after Titicaca. Being here, I constantly compared it to our jewel. Both lakes have always participated in the distant personal competition "Miss Lake of the World." According to the results, the preference remained with Issyk-Kul. It has a larger volume of water, is longer, and deeper.
From my diary. Titicaca is the largest high-altitude lake in the world. It lies at an altitude of 3812 meters above sea level. Indeed, Titicaca is like a sea. Its area is 8300 sq. km. The length is 175 km and 50 km in width. The maximum depth is about 300 meters. The lake is divided between Peru - 60% and Bolivia - 40%. The shores are rocky, and in the shallow bays of the western part adjacent to Puno, they are overgrown with reeds. Therefore, from the perspective of swimming, Titicaca is not interesting.
To the east, only a few kilometers separate Titicaca from the steep snowy slopes of the mighty Cordillera Real, rising three kilometers above the lake. About a dozen mountain streams flow down from them to Titicaca. And the only fast and turbulent river Desaguadero flows out of it through a deep gorge.
In the southern part, the lake is divided by the Copacabana and Huata peninsulas into two basins: the Great and the Small. They are connected by a short strait a few hundred meters wide. The Great basin is surrounded by rocky shores. They drop steeply to the water, and the entire western coast is made up of lava that once flowed from the volcanoes of the Western Cordillera. This part of the body of water is deeper. It is here, near Soto Island, that the maximum depth of the lake has been recorded — 380 meters. In the spacious basin, there is plenty of room for winds to roam, and usually, after noon, strong waves rise here. But for now, we continue to sail.
The Small basin, on the contrary, is shallow, not deeper than five meters, and therefore warms up better. Its gentle shores are lined with thickets of totora reeds, which are home to frogs and ducks.
We move slowly along a wide strip of shallow water, densely overgrown with reeds. Our boat, reducing its speed, hides in a channel. On both sides are yellow-green walls of reeds. We enter a bay, behind which is another channel and a new, more spacious bay.
In these hidden channels and bays lives a remarkable Indian tribe, the Uros, Miguel tells us. The Uros live on floating reed islands, an archipelago of which hides in the bays of the reed thickets.
While the captain of the boat is busy searching for the lake tribe, Miguel continues to tell about Lake Titicaca. In addition to Soto Island, which I have already mentioned, there are more than thirty islands on Titicaca, most of which are located in the Great basin. Two of them are considered sacred by the locals and bear expressive names: Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun) and Isla de la Luna (Island of the Moon). According to Inca legend, these islands belonged to the Sun God Titicaca and the Moon God Koati. On the islands, archaeologists have unearthed the remains of ancient temples. According to tradition, the Sun's son - Inca Manco Capac and his sister Mama Ocllo - the Moon's daughter, the first rulers of the Inca Empire, were born here.
The Sun God gave them a golden staff and sent them to the land of shepherds to the north. In each valley along the way, Manco thrust the golden staff into the ground, but everywhere he encountered rocks. Manco and his sister traveled north for a long time until they reached the Cusco valley. Here, as soon as the staff touched the ground, it immediately sank deep into the soil. Manco Capac summoned shepherds from all over the north to the valley. Mama Ocllo brought others from the south. Then they together founded the capital city of the new monarchy and built a temple to the Sun God in its center. The new capital, Cusco, became the center of a powerful empire. Its heirs ruled until the arrival of the Spaniards.
More than five hundred years have passed since then, but even today the Incas consider the waters of the lake sacred.
The holiness of the lake and its islands is also recognized by the Aymara Indians. The ruins of the city of Tiwanaku on the Bolivian side of Titicaca tell of the life of this ancient civilization, which arose before the Incas. The Aymara Indians still inhabit poor villages along the shores of the lake, engaging in the same crafts that their ancestors practiced during the time of Inca Manco Capac. On the terraced fertile volcanic soils, they grow barley, grain crops, and potatoes. The barley fields on the shores of Lake Titicaca are located at an altitude of 4700 meters above sea level, making them the highest agricultural lands in the world.
Meanwhile, our excursion on the Sacred Lake continued. At low speeds, the boat navigated through the channels of the reed thickets. And Miguel continued his captivating story: "Almost nine thousand years ago, the Uros tribe lived on the shores of the lake, considered the oldest inhabitants of these places. Not wanting to conflict with other tribes that came here over land, the Uros completely, as they say, moved to the islands. Moreover, these islands are not ordinary, but man-made. The Uros build them from totora reeds, laying new layers as the lower stems become saturated with water and rot. To be more precise, the reed islands form naturally when individual stems fuse together at their roots...".
At the moment Miguel spoke about this, a stretched open bay appeared on the right. In it drifted amusing golden-yellow islands with the same golden-yellow huts, where women and men strolled and engaged in their activities. Boys, as is customary, played football with a straw ball, while girls played with straw dolls. Everyone was dressed in bright clothes that harmonized with the landscape.
We visited two islands. We talked with the inhabitants, inspected the dwellings, bought reed souvenirs — the only source of income — and rode a reed boat on the open water.
The Uros is a general name for the islands, which number several dozen. The owners of the reed islands speak the Aymara language, have relatives, and homes in coastal settlements. However, they do not plan to permanently move to the land yet. There is even a school and a small electricity generation facility. The islands do not float, as it may seem at first glance; they consist of reeds that root themselves to the bottom of the lake. The depth here is shallow — from 6 to 10 meters. The reeds grow quickly, reaching the surface, where they are trimmed and woven into something resembling a carpet, which serves as their land. The surface of the Uros islands is soft and springy, swaying underfoot like marshy terrain. Most often, several huts are located on one island, where one or two families live. But there are also large islands where entire communities reside. Currently, there are about forty floating islands on Lake Titicaca. Sometimes they merge, forming entire settlements where practically this amazing lake people live — more than a thousand people.
Huts and boats for moving on the lake are also made from reeds. A canoe made from tightly woven reed straw lasts up to a year with good care. On some islands, as in ancient times, there are lookout towers with a characteristic Indian appearance.
The day was full of impressions. We returned to Puno with a rich collection of experiences and photographs. Our hotel, "Plaza Mayor," is located in the city center, just a few dozen meters from the intersection of busy pedestrian streets. The appearance of Puno, shaped by provincialism and tourism, has absorbed the holiness and kindness of the past, rationalism and aspiration of the present. Here, one somehow feels time in a special way. The past lives in the present. The streets are full of foreigners. There are many temples, museums, hotels, restaurants, and souvenir shops. This is a city of artists and street musicians, for whom Puno is a repository of inspiration and creative ideas.
In one of the quiet cozy cafes, over a cup of excellent coffee, under Spanish melodies resonating with the beauty of the surrounding nature, our day came to an end.
When the first ray of sun appeared over the wall of the Cordillera Real, the lake burst into dazzling light. It imperceptibly turned greenish-purple, and a small wave ran from the shore, shimmering like a school of silver fish. I observed this picture from the hotel window. When we descended to the bustling pier, the usual quiet weather for these places prevailed. Titicaca amazed with the absolute stillness of its remarkably blue mirror surface, in which the sky and mountains were reflected with astonishing clarity.
We boarded the boat and sped off, bouncing on the incoming waves, towards the sun. From the side of Bolivia, clouds approached with a wide front. They moved much faster than the sun to unfold a cover of bad weather over the lake. Titicaca seemed to shrink, turning off its blue radiance. Shadows dissolved, and the cold splashes erupted in fan-like formations came to the forefront. At that moment, Titicaca resembled the cold Sea of Okhotsk. However, these are the usual whims of the highlands. In less than an hour, Titicaca shone again with bright colors of the sky. The sun's rays, now strengthened, merged into a single stream, breaking the space into colors and shades. Now the shores of Titicaca, having absorbed energy and color, seemed to widen, helping the sunlit surface of the lake contrast with the dark rocky slopes.
The island we docked at after a three-hour sail is called Amantani. According to our guide Miguel, this is the most interesting "object" of the lake. The island is predominantly inhabited by people who still speak the Quechua language. There are six villages on Amantani, home to about a thousand families. There is a school and a hospital, but no cars or hotels. Amantani is located 33 kilometers from Puno.
The main occupation of the residents is tourism. Colorfully dressed islanders move up and down the picturesque, cobbled paths and trails. The small central square, located at the top, is always crowded. Daily carnival parades are held to national music and songs. There are many small restaurants. There is a restaurant and hotel in every house. Numerous platforms and terraces open up a panorama of the surrounding blue-toned expanses of the lake. Everything is very beautiful. But... Issyk-Kul is still better, more refined, more exquisite. It is like a sparkling sapphire on the chest of a celestial beauty. Don’t think that I suffer from excessive patriotism. I say this because it is truly so.
Amantani is a real mountain island. Its upper saddles and sloping peaks rise above four thousand meters, so altitude sickness makes itself felt. It is not easy to climb to the top of the island to the temples of Pachamama and Pachatat (4200 m).
“Pachamama” can be translated as “mother Earth,” “mother of all living beings and people, providing food and life.” To this day, faith in her harmoniously coexists in the Andes with Catholicism. On August 1 of each year, during the Pachamama festival, a special priest lights coca leaves in her temple on Amantani, asking for a good harvest for the next year.
Pachatata is mentioned less frequently in Indian rituals; this name corresponds to the concept of “father sky” and signifies the masculine principle.
But travelers and scholars are attracted here not only by the harsh beauty of the landscapes and the ethnocultural islands. The high-altitude lake is associated with many mysterious and yet undisclosed secrets — historical, archaeological, biological, and geological. And while the origin of some carved stones, clearly brought from afar, or unusual boats, the analogues of which archaeologists may explain, the mystery of the origin of Lake Titicaca itself seems to remain unsolved forever.
It is easy to assume that the tectonic basin created by underground forces collected the waters of mountain rivers, thus forming the lake. This is how Issyk-Kul and Baikal, Tanganyika and Nyasa came into being... But how then to explain the presence of marine salts in the waters of the lake, and in the same proportion as in the ocean? Where did the marine terraces with traces of surf and remnants of marine organisms come from on the coastal slopes?
All this suggests that Titicaca was once a sea bay, and then colossal forces raised it almost four kilometers high. How could this happen? This remains a question. Geologists and archaeologists, historians and ethnographers, zoologists and botanists are grappling with the secrets. And for a long time, the romanticism of the unsolved mysteries of the "pearls" of the Andes, the sacred lake of the Incas, Titicaca, will continue to excite travelers.
Some esoteric teachings consider that Titicaca is the female pole of the earth, believing that the Himalayas are the male. It is also said that after visiting the Himalayas first and then the Andes, particularly Titicaca, one becomes a harmonious personality. Reflecting on this statement, I caught myself thinking that all the members of our group had previously visited Tibet and Nepal.
And in the evening, returning to the shores of Puno, I admired the magical pictures in blue tones once again. The vast body of water, bathed in the flames of sunset, turned into ominous dark crimson hues. I thought that probably this play of colors and shades repeats daily, and each time in new, unique variations. Just as it does on Issyk-Kul. There is nothing more beautiful than the sunset moment when deep golden rays, leaping from the waters that have lost their blue, hang over the slopes of the snowy eastern mountains.
When our boat docked at the pier in Puno, the moon took over the watch over the sacred lake. It rolled towards the lake. A cold wind, rising from the direction of Titicaca, filled the streets of Puno. A day full of impressions, the warmth of the hotel room, tea brewed with coca, and the lights twinkling outside the window seemed like the pinnacle of bliss.
In the morning, accompanied by Miguel, we continued our journey. 28 kilometers from Puno, we visited an unusual cemetery of the rulers of the Colla — a people who lived on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Here, the Chullpas Sillustani — burial structures in the form of towers up to 12 meters high — have been preserved. Some of them are located in close proximity to the shore of the picturesque Umayo lagoon.
The stunning panorama of the surroundings, the atmosphere of mystery, and the memory of antiquity became a wonderful conclusion to the last meaningful day in the land of the Aymara.
From the top of the pass, we once again saw the sacred lake frozen in anticipation of bright sunset colors. It seemed that in a moment, from the golden-ruby waves, Veracocha — the creator of the Sun, the son of the Sun — Inca Manco Capac, and the daughter of the Moon — the lovely Mama Ocllo would emerge, just as they did many years ago. They would appear to once again embark on the path of time in search of lost glory after a long oblivion.