Day 24 – Peru Bolivian Frontera
Sunday, February 11th, 2007The more I think about the customs on the islands I visited, I am amazed. These people were never idle, even while walking a bull down the road, they would be spinning wool or knitting a cap to sell. Our guide explained the meaning of items of clothing they wore which all told a story. For instance, the colors or design of the cap would tell if someone was married or single. How they wore it signified if they were interested in someone, engaged, or having trouble in their marriage! Just after marrying, each spouse embroiders a belt saying what they wish for in the marriage. No pressure there, your promises are in colored thread around your waist! Must make dating on the island easy but you would think with only 4000, everyone know everyones business anyway.
Anyway, last night it poured in Puno again so the streets turning into rivers was not such an isolated incident. There is a big festival going on so all the marching bands from around Peru were playing in the streets. On the bus ride from Cusco, we saw them in dirt patches practicing and now here they were playing with huge metal tubas in the pouring rain. When I went to bed at 2300 I could here the tunes amidst the fireworks, when I arose at 0600 they were still playing! I grabbed a cab to the bus stantion and the driver told me it is customary for them to play all through the night and the festivities were not officially until Sunday.
My seatmate on the bus was from Oregon. I have only met 2 Americans travelling and they have both been wildland firefighters who work the season and then have 6 months off. Sounds like a great job though they only can save good money when there are big, intenses fires so whie the monetary reward is good, you risk you life in the blaze.
We had to get off at the Peru-Bolivia border. We walked in and dropped off our Peru tax slip and walked across to Bolivia to fill out another form and get a stamp. Not so tough. 8km and a 1hour time change later, we disembarked in Copacabana, Bolivia. There was a hotel at the bus stop and while I could have went hunting for a better deal, 5$ for a room with a private bath AND breakfast, I settled.
Priority number one was laundry. I had not been still long enough in one place to get it back dry and my 2.5 outfits reaked of moldy hotel room, machu picchu mud and amantani straw mats. I was incredibly more excited than I should have been when I found a woman who could have my clothes back to me tonight which mean she was not washing them in the river. yippee. you tend to take laundry for granted. I headed to the cathedral where they do blessing of the cars in the mornings. All these cars, buses, large petrol lorries were tricked out with flowers, streamers etc. to receive their blessings.
During mass, just after the homily, there was a wedding. Yep, that5 was a first, wedding rite in the middle of mass, low key way to do it though. Busy day, early night…
dunlewey