Dani was feeling much better, but still not well enough to take the Lake Titicaca tour.  So the kids and I got up early and caught the bus to the Puno docks to board our boat for a tour of Uros and Taquile Islands.

I’ve been surprised by the number of European travelers in South America, and our group included a Ukrainian couple, a pair of Germans, three Danish co-eds, and a Portuguese father and son.  Two senior citizens from Argentina rounded out the group.

The floating Uros Islands are a bizarre sight.  The Uros people cut reeds and weave them together to form giant floating islands that they anchor to the shallow lake bottom.

According to one legend, the Uros were harassed to near extinction by the Spanish, then devised the floating islands as a way to escape forced labor in Spanish silver mines.

Today, the islands exist purely as a tourist attraction. They have the feel of place like Colonial Williamsburg; you’re surrounded by history, but at the same time, it’s all a show.  Despite the unreality, visiting the islands provides a unique glimpse into an ancient (and ingenious) culture.

From Ilsa Uros we headed to Taquile Island, with  its elaborate walled paths and simple adobe buildings.

The people of Taquile still wear traditional clothing, something neighboring islanders have stopped doing.

As tourism has become an increasingly important source of income, the local elders have worked to find a system to distribute the wealth evenly among all families.

In the words of the elders: “All of us eat the same bread.”

Their solution is for the elders to rotate the families that host tour group lunches.  Each family prepares the exact same menu: Quinoa soup, fish, and potatoes.

As we ate, our host told us a bit about life on the island:

“There are no police on Taquile. No locks on doors. No need. Here we live by Inca rules. Don’t lie. Don’t steal. Don’t be lazy.”

There are more Lake Titicaca region pictures here.