Operation: Titicaca

Well, it turns out one of my previous blog posts ('Before I Die…') was both aptly titled and auspiciously timed, considering my recent treacherous journey to visit the famous Copacabana. The good news is that this trip served to fulfill my lifelong goal of standing on the shore of Lake Titicaca and dividing my time equally between inspired awe and childish laughter - (if you don't think I spent a good portion of the vacation giggling over the name Titicaca then you obviously don't know me very well).  

In fact, when I first told mi family via a Skype-style family meeting of my plans to come live and work in Bolivia, my 26-year-old sister (who is also a mother, I might add) burst out with the verbal masterpiece: "HA! TITICACA!" Birds of a feather, I suppose…

I did, however, promise my beloved sister that I would visit the unfortunately-named landmark, and two weekends ago I set off from Cocha and headed out on my way to Copa (some local lingo for you world-savvy readers). 

Little did I know that getting to the lake would be one of the most trying adventures of my young life:

Morning dawned bright and chilly on Friday, March 8th; due to school-scheduled parent-teacher conferences, I was free of classes, but had a duty to meet with some of the parents brave enough to speak to the new gringa educating their children - all accompanied by a translator, of course. After a few hours of slightly awkward sit-downs, I threw my backpack into the car and we drove out to the nearby Cochabamba airport. Unsurprisingly, my attempt to purchase a flight to La Paz online the night before had been an epic BOA bust; but flights between La Paz and Cochabamba are frequent and not particularly expensive, so my host mother assured me we could buy the ticket at the airport. Once at the check-in desk, I experienced another foreign fumble: although I had "reserved" my seat with a 24-hour provision, BOA (Boliviana de Aviación) had decided instead to cancel my purchase and sell my seat to someone with a more reliable internet connection. 

We were asked to wait until 12.30 - the flight scheduled to take off at 12.55 - to see if there was a spare seat I could buy.  Finally, at 12.45, we were called to the front desk and I was awarded my well-earned seat aboard the airplane. Luckily, security at the Cochabamba airport is incredibly - shall we say - straightforward, and without any lines to wait in I was abroad the plane and belted in by 12.50. A whole five minutes to spare! 

On a side note, if you are ever flying within OR out of Bolivia, here are a few things you should know:

- BOA, Taca, TAM and LAN all fly into and out of Bolivia and are more likely to have short-distance flights that larger airlines do not provide

- It is usually cheaper to book your ticket online, so try and do that ahead of time if you can

- Airlines in South America charge additional taxes on all flights; these are not included with your booking fee. When you collect your ticket at the desk, they will give you two facturas (receipts), one for your ticket and one to pay your extra tax. You must bring this second receipt to a nearby counter and pay the charges to get your slip stamped. Bus stations do this as well.

- The normal fee for an in-country flight is about Bs 15, or approximately $2

- The fee for an inter-country flight can be as much as $25, but varies according to your departure airport

- The bus fee will only cost you Bs 2-5, which is less than $1

Now, back to the story.

The 35 minutes flight behind me, I could meet up with my two gringa friends and continue on with the next phase of Operation: Titicaca. I chose to take a taxi from the airport to Hotel Rosario, which cost me Bs 60 (about $9), for the sake of convenience. The La Paz airport is located roughly 13 km (8 miles) from the edge of town, which means any cab you take from the airport will cost you at least Bs 40 and your ride into town will take about 25 minutes. You can also try an take a trufi into la prada, which will cost you about Bs 5 instead. However, the trufis are tightly packed and if you have luggage and/or are traveling in a pair or a group, you should opt for the taxi cab. 

Once in La Paz we paid a visit to the Witches' Market, which is infamous for its interesting array of merchandise. The market (Mercado de las Brujas) is best known for its odd assortment of herbs, elixirs, plants and - most disturbing/fascinating to foreigners - dried llama fetuses. Luckily, I had been warned of the presence of such fetuses, but one can never truly be prepared to encounter a hanging, dead llama baby. Let me tell you now: they are not the most attractive trinket to bring home for family and friends. Dried llama fetuses are, however, very important in Aymara culture, and it is said that they are buried under new foundations as a symbol of offering to the Pachamama (see Yo Quiero un Oso for more information on this goddess of the earth).

Passing over the dried fetuses, we opted for some more classic shopping. Further down the market in La Paz there are dozens of stands and small boutiques, which sell all of the touristy paraphernalia you can imagine: from comical t-shirts to hand-woven (and usually very colorful!) jackets and ponchos to traditional Bolivian instruments, you can find it all in this section of the marketplace. A wide array of jewelry can be found in almost every shopfront and is a good gift idea if you are shopping for people back home; earrings are an especially nice gift, as they are hand-made and beautiful, and they are well-priced and can be easily packed into your luggage. Another favorite souvenir is the small totems that depict various emblems of Bolivia's traditional gods and goddesses. I admit to buying one for myself, feeling that Bs 10 is a pretty good bargain for a small stone idol that promises to bring me strength in my future endeavors. Plus, he's a cute little buddy that now adorns my nightstand. 

Just before 5 p.m. one friend and I headed to the bus terminal, leaving our third compañera on her own to trek back to the U.S. of A. If you are ever in La Paz and need to take a bus, be sure to tell your taxi driver what your destination is; we nearly got taken to the main terminal de buses where we would have found a myriad buses scheduled for Cochabamba, Sucre, Santa Cruz and many other popular locations, but not Copacabana! The "terminal" for Copa buses is more of an off-street idling zone, but a taxi driver will know how to take you where you need to go. There is a little office on the bus-side of the street where you can buy your tickets, and, depending on the time of day you travel, a one-way trip will cost you about Bs 25-30 ($3.50-4.50). Our bus was scheduled to depart at 5, which on Bolivian time ended up being 5.30; however,  even Bolivian buses and airplanes (especially major companies and routes) do often leave on time, so never bank on having extra time before a trip. 

All began smoothly on the trip and we even got to chatting with a young Argentinian man who was on his way to Lake Titicaca as well. The ride was quiet and fairly uneventful - that is, until we hit Tiquina. The Strait of Tiquina is a portion of the larger Lago Titicaca (Lake Titicaca) and must be crossed to continue on your journey to Copacabana. Unfortunately for travelers, this means unloading the bus, putting the bus onto a transport ferry and putting its passengers onto a separate small boat. Those heading to Copa by car can also pay to put their vehicle aboard the barge, although I cannot speak to the costs of a such a venture. For bus travelers, the boat ride across Lago Tiquina will cost you Bs 2 (one-way) and the ride is just over half a mile. After that, you will have to wait ashore for your bus to catch up with you. The boat ride and the shore can be very cold, windy and often rainy at night, so bring a padded windbreaker to stay warm. 

Once our bus did arrive safely back on the mainland, we were given the news: there was a strike taking place about half an hour down the road which would impede the remainder of our excursion. Despite the hour (it was now about 9 p.m.), we learned we would have to sit and wait it out. Alas, with nothing to do in the small town of Tiquina, our Argentinian friend and his amigo decided to regale the crowd with their guitars; some songs were traditional and others...not quite so. But it was a good time and helped us to survive the chilly and unexpected layover. Although we heard tell that the bus wouldn't depart until 3 a.m., our driver assured my friend (in a rather condescending tone) that we would leave at 10 and then kindly request of the protestors to dismantle and allow us to pass. 

An hour later we were on our way again, although we had little hope of swaying the strikers to put aside their road blockade. Not surprisingly, 30 minutes down the road, the bus paused, then stopped completely. Our driver turned off the lights and the engine, exited the vehicle, and left us alone without any instructions or any idea of how long we would be waiting on the cold, pitch-black bus. Upon texting the news to our friend back in La Paz, she warned us that we may not move again until morning. Indeed, all around us the Bolivianos were settling in for the long haul. Other than ourselves, our Argentinean buddy seemed to be the only person at all concerned by the sudden change in plans, and he and his friend opted to walk the rest of the way to Copa (30 more minutes by bus) - not a decision I would readily recommend, although he did survive the trek in one piece. 

At midnight, we realized that the strike had finally lifted. Buses and cars began passing on the other side of the road and the cars behind our bus were blinding us with their headlights as they swerved around our stationary bus. Excitement quickly turned to dismay as we remembered that our bus driver had, for all intents and purposes, abandoned us. Without knowing where he was, we had to sit and wait…again. At about 12.30 a taxi pulled up beside our bus and who should get out but our driver - fast food bag and all. As we resumed our drive around the fortuitous mountain roads, it didn't take long for the uneasy realization to set in: our bus driver was tipsy, to say the least. Holding our collective breath for the 20 minute ride, the bus twisted and turned, coming dangerously close to the sandy pullover as our Driver from Hell zipped in and out of lanes, overtaking the cars and other buses trundling down the mountainside. Needless to say, we were all relieved to jump off the bus in Copa and run away as quickly as our tired little legs would carry us. Too bad we now needed to find a hostel that had rooms available…and it was 1 in the morning. 

When we finally did find a hostel with open rooms - the dubiously-named Archangel Hostel - we were so excited we even took a photo of the wall full of unclaimed keys. Hey, us backpackers have to take what we can get! For the record, the hostel was not a bad place to stay for our two nights in Copacabana. A two-person room with a private bathroom cost us each Bs 40 per night, which is roughly $11 per person for a two-night visit. The water was admittedly freezing and the drainage system in the shower left much to be desired, but we didn't have to share our room or our toilet with strangers and the accommodations were clean and tidy. The man who runs the front desk of the Archangel Hostel also loves to chat and will talk your ear off about all the time he has spent in the United States and how he and his friends learned to speak "such good English". A lovely old man who also had a tendency to fall asleep at the desk at random hours of the day and night - and yes, I took a photo. 

One other thing to keep in mind: whenever you are hiking, hosteling or using a public bathroom in Bolivia, you will be expected to pay for your toilet paper. An odd concept to foreigners, but something we get used to pretty quickly. In a public bathroom at a parade or a bus station, this usually means a Bs 2 fee, but in a hostel it means you buy a roll or two of toilet tissue from the front desk. Our precious two-pack cost Bs 5, so if you are planning on backpacking and staying in several places, you might want to invest in some store-bought TP, which would end up being cheaper in the long run. 

The next morning we awoke at 8 a.m. to find it was raining. Not just any light drizzle, but a full-on downpour of atmospheric tears. Unable to force ourselves out of bed just to walk into a sheet of falling water, we lay snuggled in our (surprisingly warm) hostel beds for another hour - all the while bemoaning and cursing our fate, of course. After all, who comes to Copacabana, home of Sun Island, to walk around in the dreary, rainy weather? At 9 a.m. we dragged our butts out of bed and found a nice little "cafe" to enjoy a warm breakfast in. Head's up: when your breakfast in Bolivia claims to come with pancakes, expect something akin to a crepe adorned with an unknown sticky/sweet topping. Not unappealing, but certainly unexpected. 

During our breakfast the rain ceased its attack on our tiny seaside town and the sun began to come out and warm the streets. Our bellies full and our windbreakers un-donned, we headed back up Avenida 6 de Agosto to check out Copa's local cathedral, which sits across from Plaza 2 de Febrero. The church, formally known as Basílica de Neustra Señora de Copacabana (Basilica of Our Lady of Copacabana), was built in the 16th century and has since been a symbol of the city's religious devotion. Tourists and Bolivianos alike travel from around the continent and the world to pay homage to the Virgen de Copacabana and pray inside the Cathedral's chapel. Visitors are welcomed into the basilica every day and there is no entrance fee. 

Although a grand sight to behold, the Basílica was not our main reason for journeying all the way out to Copacabana. After a quick and unauthorized stop into the lakeshore military zone, we scoured the shore of Lake Titicaca to find a reasonably-priced tour of the area. We settled first on a private "tour" (I use the word tour lightly, as we were dropped off and left alone for 45 minutes) out to the Floating Islands (Islas Flotantes) which cost us Bs 40 (just under $6) each; after a 20 minute boat ride out to the islands and a rousing round of "Hey, look at our trucha!" (Copa natives are very proud of their locally-farmed trout), we were rowed ashore the Floating Islands in a small dingy and left to roam free. Word to the wise: there is not very much to do on the Isla Flotanes if you go without a guide. Tourist companies will offer package deals for locations like Copacabana and if you're dead set on seeing the Isla Flotanes, they're you're best bet. Sans guide, we wandered until we found a nice bevy of rocks onto which we could scramble and overlook more of the island and the lake beyond. If you do find yourself on the Floating Islands with little to entertain you, you can always do what we did and take a series of silly/pensive photos against a breathtaking backdrop. Certainly not a total waste of time - it is a beautiful island to visit.

Our total trip time to the Isla Flotanes took about and hour and a half (~20 minutes each way on a boat and ~45 spent walking around the island); however, if you plan to go out to the Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun) - and most tourists do - make sure you carve out a significant amount of time for your adventure. The boat ride to/from the island is about an hour each way and you'll spend a good hour or two on the island itself. Our boat ride cost Bs 20 ($3) roundtrip and if you are first in line you will usually be given the option to sit on top and enjoy the sun; there are also a good number of seats downstairs for those not quite ready for the Copa sunbeams. Either way, you will be seeing a good deal of sun once you reach the island, as trips only run in the morning and early afternoon. Read: bring sunscreen and water! 

In addition to our boat ride, we opted for a guided tour around the Isla, which cost us Bs 25 ($3.50) each. Be warned: you are not likely to find someone who can give you a tour in English! If you do not speak Spanish (or don't speak it very well), it helps to have a friend with you who does. I was lucky to be accompanied by one-such friend, and she was able to translate portions of the expedition and questions on my behalf. The guided tour is actually a good option in this particular tourist location for two reasons: firstly, you will learn more about the Isla del Sol than you would on your own, although no tour will be incredibly in-depth; secondly, your return boat will depart from a dock further down the island from where you landed and your guide will take you on a route that satisfies both your interest and your time crunch. Without a tour, you will need to either return to the boat on your own at the drop-off location (which severely cuts down on your time) or find your own way to the departure location. 

The Isla del Sol is one of six main islands that straddle the aquatic border between Peru and Bolivia. Isla del Sol is the most well-known of these islands and the most popular island for tourists to visit on their trips through Copacabana. In addition to its luminous weather, the island has a great deal of culture and history to offer its visitors. In ancient times, this island was inhabited by the Incas before later being discovered by Spanish settlers. The island was considered to be a sacred place by its inhabitants who believed that the sun god originated from this area. The site is littered with Inca ruins, including the remains of a small temple on the southeastern coast of the island. At the top of the famous Inca Steps lies la fuente - the Fountain of Youth. The fountain is certainly a welcome pit-stop following the steep and uneven trek up the Inca steps, which will wind most tourists, whether or not you consider yourself to be "in shape". The water that falls from the small fuente is drinkable and is said to have mystical healing powers; there is no fee to take a sip from the Fountain of Youth and its worth snapping a picture for your photo album. 

These days the sun-filled Isla is populated by a few hundred native families whose main source of income and work include farming, fishing and - of course - tourism. Within their self-subsistent economy, these locals trade with one another using a bartering system rather than an economic system based on monetary gain. They do, however, supplement these customs with the money they make off the major influx of foreigners that walk the rocky isla terrain each year. For a few bolivianos you can have your photo taken with one of the island's domesticated alpacas and local women display handmade items for sale up and down the walking paths of the mountain. Be warned: if you are seen taking a picture of the animals by a native, they may expect you to pay them for said "services"; however, you should really only pay for your photo if you are in the shot alongside the animal(s). In addition to the abundant herd of alpacas, you may find sheep, pigs and donkeys wandering around the island trails. 

One interesting fact about the Isla del Sol that often goes unsaid is that overnight accommodations are offered on the island itself. A number of small hostels combine the backpacker's main travel cravings: cheap shelter, squalid amenities and unparalleled views from your mountainside balcony. Had we known about these lodgings in advance, we would have spent a night on the island to gain the full Lago Titicaca experience. C'est la vie. 

Many tourists also wish to visit the Isla de la Luna (Island of the Moon), which is smaller than the Isla del Sol and is said to be the home of Viracocha, the foremost deity in Inca culture; according to mythology, Viracocha used the Isla de la Luna to control the movements of the moon and rise it into the sky every evening. 

Two days is really all you need to spend in Copacabana to get the full experience, as the islands are easy enough to visit by boat and the touristy nature of the town disallows for much true Bolivian dining or culture; the "beachfront" is not a traditional tanning beach and serves mainly as a port for lakeside tourist travel. But the quiet seaside village is a nice place to relax and enjoy a book or some hiking trails if you choose to stay for more than a weekend. Many visitors use Copacabana as a stopover between the end of their journey in Bolivia and the beginning of their travels into Peru; if you are planning on spending time in both countries, Lago Titicaca is the best way to traverse the cross-country border. 

Our return bus ride to La Paz wasn't nearly as remarkable as our initial trip, except for the fact that we managed to miss our first bus by waiting in the wrong plaza! Copacabana has two main pradas; buses generally arrive in the main plaza in town (Plaza 2 de Febrero), but depart from the smaller plaza further downtown toward the lake itself. When leaving Copa, be sure to know which plaza you are meant to be in!

Once back in La Paz, we walked the short distance to the terminal de buses, a large yellow building with a decorated grassy knoll out front. Finding the terminal building is easy enough, and most people will be happy to give you walking directions if you ask politely. Ticket in hand (Bs 70 / $10), I stocked up for the 7+ hour ride at one of the little stands littering the terminal and boarded a 3.30 bus at around 4 p.m. Even the more "high-end" bus companies don't always supply working bathrooms on-board, so take advantage of any pit stops the bus makes during this long journey between La Paz and Cochabamba. Be sure to bring entertainment and/or prepare yourself for a long nap, as the trip is not a short one. My bus didn't reach Cocha until 12.30 (about an hour and a half later than expected), and from the bus drop-off you'll want to find a reliable radio taxi to take you to wherever you are staying in town. Taxis from the bus terminal will cost more than a taxi in town, and the general fee is around Bs 15 ($2) as opposed to Bs 8-10 ($1-1.50). 

Overall feeling about the trip to Copacabana and Lake Titicaca? Worth the hassle for what will probably be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Copa is one place in Bolivia you'll want to add to your itinerary, if for no other reason than to be able to use the word 'Titicaca' in conversation without being looked at like a total pervert. Just try not to giggle when you say it…too much.