Friday, September 7, 2012

Mini Vacation Part 3... The End

Day 3 and 4: Copacabana is Gorgeous!!


Once again we headed a few hours away from La Paz, this time to Copacabana on the shores of Lake Titicaca.  Absolutely incredible.  Gorgeous.  Relaxing.  Everything that I needed in a vacation.


As we worked our way around the lake trying to get to Copacabana, there is a portion where the road ends.  There are no alternative routes or bridges and so every car and bus must be ferried across.  Not that I minded.  Projects for bridges have been proposed in the past, but the locals have vehemently opposed them because so many of them make their living by driving the ferries.


I'm a strong swimmer, but the floor of the ferry did have me a little concerned for the car...


From Copacabana you can take a tour boat to many locations including various ruins and even Peru!  I was told that Machu Picchu was under 2 hours away by land and was dying to go!  Pesky visa paperwork prevented it this time.


We took a boat tour of our own!


Our boat, made to look like the traditional boats made of reeds, took us to a Floating Island.  These are man made and connected to the shore by a narrow walk way.  The great thing is that it is run by a trout farmer and while you visit him you can look down into his nets, pick a fish, have him pluck it out and cook it up right before your eyes.  That was probably the freshest lunch I have EVER had.


On the way back from the Floating Island, we passed the Frog's Mouth.  All of the people, tents, and boats in this photo are there to see the rock that is formed in the shape of a frog's mouth and make sacrifices to it.  In the right hand side of the photo you can see the large burn mark on the mountain.


The Frog's Mouth is just around the curve of the land on the left.  On top of the hill is some kind of tribute to their virgin.  We tried to climb up to see it, but I was struggling with the altitude and wasn't sure I was going to make it.  About a step and a half before total collapse, we decided we didn't really want to go up after all.  Both days that we were in Copacabana, we could hear the fireworks go off every few minutes all day long as part of the continual sacrifices that were being made on top of the hill.


Sunset from the end of the pier.  Made me miss Florida something fierce!!

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