Day 139 : Korean Craze

I had bumped into a Korean couple (Sujin and Wong Sang) last night in the main square of Cusco, whom I had met while I was in Puno and Uros, and we agreed to meet for lunch at a Korean restaurant at 2pm. 

So I invited Washuma to join me, his first time eating Korean food!

Food in Cusco seems to be on the more expensive side, and the Korean restaurant was no exception. 

It was a good thing they had lunch specials so we ordered Beef Bulgogi on rice.  As a typical Korean restaurant (it is run by Korean!), it came with a selection of kimchi, which was an extremely refreshing change from the typical South American food. 

To the Market…

We headed to one of the nearby markets to get a glass of fresh juice. 

There were rows of juice stores, all filled with customers, and they don’t seem to differentiate themselves at all as the menu were all the same.  So we settled at one of the stores and I ordered a glass of passion fruit, orange and pineapple juice. 

It took a while to be prepared, and when it was served, it was tangy and refreshing… Yum!

 

Day 138 : Cusco

Cusco is a really pretty city, with stone cobbled roads and an extremely Spanish feel in the main square, due to the numerous Spanish architecture as seen in the balconies and numerous churches (there are 11 churches just around the main square!).

Very pleasant for walking around and spending a few days here.  A very touristy town though as most people who goes to Machu Picchu will highly likely spend a few days here.  It is also the first time I see so many Asians in one location!  Most of them seem to be from Japan or Korea. 

Floating Islands Uros

Made a stop in Puno, enroute to Cusco primarily to visit the Floating Islands of Uros. 

Located on the Peru side of Lake Titicaca, lives a community about 30 minutes away by boat from Puno.  What is fascinating about this community is that they live on “man-made islands” that are created using a plant called Totora. 

Day 137 : Peru Immigration

On a number of occasions when I mentioned to others that I am from Singapore, those that have been to Singapore would always bring up the thing about the words they see on the Singapore immigration card (something about “Drug trafficking is an offense that is punishable by death” and in bold red).

So as I was given the immigration card for Peru and I saw on the back of the slip the following “In Peru, commerce sexual exploitation of children and teenagers is punished by jail”, it totally reminded me of the same words which others have said to me about the Singapore immigration card, and couldn’t resist taking a photo shot!

Parade on the Streets

Arrived back in Copacabana at about 11.30am after taking the morning ferry from Isla del Sol, and quickly went back to my hostel to pick up my luggage and do some final checks of my emails before heading out to the bus terminal.

The moment I walked out in the streets I found myself in a middle of a parade!  Not sure what was the occasion, but it was really bustling. 

Day 136 : Isla del Sol

Isla del Sol is located on Lake Titicaca, about 2 hours away by boat from Copacabana.  Boats usually land either on the northern part of the island (near the Inca ruins) or the southern part of the island (where town Yumani is based and where most accommodation are located).

The plan was to take a boat to the northern part of the island and trek for about 45 mins to the Inca ruins (Mesa Ceremonial & Roca Sagrada), and subsequently continue trekking for another 3 hours to the southern part of the island and find an accommodation for the night.

Recommendation : Las Velas – Isla del Sol

Las Velas, or translated as “The Candles” is located in Yumani and serves organic food cooked by a gourmet chef.  It is called Las Velas because at night, the place is only lit by candlelight.

Along with a couple of other travellers I had met in Isla del Sol, we decided to have dinner in this quaint little restaurant, nestled within the Eucalyptus forest and next to a wonderful view of Lake Titicaca. 

There isn’t an extensive selection in their menu.  Other than vegetarian pizza, spaghetti, cannelloni and 1 other pasta dish, their main house specialty would be the trout baked in white wine and vegetables in an aluminium foil. 

Day 135 : Copacabana

I was glad that there weren’t much of a road block today as I left for Copacabana, which is a small town located on the Bolivian side of Lake Titicaca.  Lake Titicaca is said to be the world’s highest lake, located at about 3,800m above sea level. 

The weather wasn’t that great either, being a cloudy morning when we left the city, and half way through our 3.5hr journey, it rained, making our boat crossing at Tiquina challenging.

Day 132–134 : La Paz

Picture a basin, with the centre of the basin as the main centre of the city and thousands of brick coloured houses spiralling around the hills upwards towards the edge of the basin.  And beyond those hills are views of snow capped mountains.  That is La Paz…

It was never how I imagined it to be and I was amazed at how the city looked and how it had grown, and there is an interesting character and feel to the La Paz city. 

Asian Food Craving

After hearing my hostel mates dinner last night at a Thai restaurant, with comments that it was pretty good, I had an Asian food craving.  Was considering heading to the same restaurant, but as it was getting late and I was too tired to walk any further, I decided to settle for something quick around the area.

The only Asian food I could find was a Chinese restaurant (Long2 Feng4 aka Dragon Phoenix), and I had always been a little hesitant eating Chinese food outside of Asia, as the quality aren’t always the best.  However this place had a small and really Chinese type of outlook and decor in it.  Plus there were quite a few people inside eating.

So I decided to take a risk and give it a try.  Looking at the interior decoration, I would have thought that it would have to be run by a Chinese, but turns out that the cook was a Bolivian!