Diarios en Bicicleta

Copacabana, September 27th 2008

Carnaval in the stomach

Most of us used the rest day in Puno to visit the Islas Flotantes in Lake Titicaca; the artificial floating reed islands constructed by the Uros Indians. The majority went by a ferry for just a couple of hours, but Andre and Gerard stayed overnight at the islands and slept, eat and shat with the Uros Indians. Everyone came back very positive and were impressed by the local culture.

Other cultures, other habits, other food, other bacteria… Result : “Carnaval in the stomach”. ( Almost ) everyone gets its turn. The day out of Puno it’s the turn of Mick, Karin, Kirsten and Georges. They feel weak, sick and miserable. No appetite, no power, no cycling…

Normally it’s just one day and then they are “back on the bike”. With the quartet in a “sick” taxi, we make our way to the Bolivian border. We cycle along the shores of Lake Titicaca, with 3820 meter above sea level, the highest lake with passenger boat service in the world.

It are 135 relatively flat kilometers to the Bolivian border. As expected we have some problems at the border to get the Chevy through the customs. Susana and Rob spent already the rest day at the border in Desaguadero to prepare our border crossing and to get all paperwork done before the weekend. The 30 hours they spent were not enough. When we arrived at the border the Bolivian customs wanted to see a special letter from the consul of Arequipa in Peru. Yes, why not… A letter of the consul of Peru to allow a car into your country. A few hours, phone calls, discussions and misunderstandings later we could pass the border with the Chevy. It was quite a help that Susana’s mum was the former Consul of The Netherlands in Peru. This opened doors… and finally closed incomprehensible borders.

Half a liter of Bolivian beer at the border didn’t help to cycle the last 10 kilometers to our final destination of the day : Copacabana. No, not the well-known beach in Rio de Janeiro, but a nice, a bit touristy, village at the shores of Lake Titicaca. The boulevard is a sand path and can’t be compared with the Brazilian version of Copacabana, but the little boats in the sea give the village a bit Mediterranean look.

It’s not Brazil, not the south of France, it’s Bolivia. Our third country on our route south…