Sauze d’Oulx in Black and White

Lake Titicaca, Bolivia

We left La Paz at 8am on a coach heading towards Lake Titicaca. By chance, Joanna was wearing her school hoodie with the emblem on show. As the people were getting on the bus, one man stopped abruptly and said ‘I went to that school.’ What are the chances that on a tiny Bolivian bus heading to Lake Titicaca we would bump into a former student from our school. Our bus ride was very short and soon we arrived into a lake front town called Copacabana. We had a quick lunch and took a 2 hour ferry to Isla del Sol – a stunning island with no running water and just enough electricity to power a small bulb for a few minutes. We were at 3800m and what we didn’t realise was that our hostel was at the top of the hill. Climbing with around 15kg on your back at this height is extremely difficult. After about 20 minutes, we arrived, completely out of breath. We checked in and an hour later walked along the island to its eastern point to watch the sunset which was beautiful. This island is magical. A gem in the middle of a lake standing at 3800m above sea level. Truly amazing.

There are few inhabitants on Isla del sol, those that live here are either farmers with their many donkeys and alpaca or the Cholitas (traditional Bolivian women) who run the hostels.

After the sunset we walked up to a restaurant which is reputed to be the best on the island. It turned out to be one of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to. It lies at 4010m (definitely the highest restaurant I’ve been to) with a spectacular view over the island and lake. The tiny, hilltop restaurant, which is lit purely by candlelight is run by one man. He is the chef, the waiter and the barman. Due to this, the food does take a bit longer than normal however the food is just phenomenal; worth every minute waiting. We met some fellow backpackers on the island and there were 12 of us at dinner. Australians, Swiss, British, French and more (a very multinational table). Finding little places like this is what travelling is all about!

We have been at high altitudes now for a while and so sleeping around 4000m is no problem. We had a continental breakfast (which sounds far more luxurious than it was) and then I set off for an all day trek around the entire island with a French couple who I had met in the hostel. Dan and Joanna stayed around the South island for the day. The trek was brilliant – the perfect way to appreciate the island’s beauty and history. We walked for 3 hours along the hilltops overlooking both sides of the island before finally arriving at the northern tip for lunch.

We rested for an hour before setting off again on our return journey hoping to make it back to the south before dark. We arrived into the village at 6pm just in time for sunset after what had been a super day. We walked up to our hostel and to our surprise the door was locked with Joanna and dan waiting outside. We continuously knocked on the door and searched for open windows before finding the owners bedroom door unlocked. So, (like in a film) we cautiously tip toed through her room and unlocked the door from the inside. 10 minutes later she returned and we let her in. We acted like nothing had happened and were completely oblivious to the law we had just broken. The poor old lady was completely confused and bewildered and couldn’t figure out how we had entered. The French couple eventually told her that we had broken in to her hostel! She was not amused.

Dinner was a no-brainer, the best restaurant in Bolivia and probably South America – las velas. We all had wild trout fresh from the lake which was superb. The perfect way to end a perfect stay on Lake Titicaca.

We left Isla del sol on the slowest ferry imaginable and had a nice lunch on a rooftop restaurant on the mainland. We left Bolivia in the evening on an overnight bus and arrived in Cusco, Peru in the morning! My final country of the trip. Cusco is the gateway to Machu Picchu which we will climb in less than a weeks time. Very exciting!