Titicaca is a lake in the Andes, on the border of Peru and Bolivia. It is 3,811 meters above sea level and is the highest navigable lake in the world. Its total area is 8,300 km2. Twenty-five rivers flow into it. The winding coastline of Lake Titicaca forms numerous peninsulas and bays.
Around the lake and on the islands there are many settlements of the Aymara and Quechua peoples. Part of the population lives on floating reed islands (Uros).
Lake Titicaca has about 40 islands, some of them belong to Peru and some to Bolivia.
The most interesting islands for the traveler in the Peruvian part of Lake Titicaca:
Taquile or Intika (Taquile o Intika) is located opposite the Chucuito and Capachica peninsulas. Its area is 5.72 km2. The island is famous for its ethnic cultural values – the people of the island preserve the ancient traditions, especially that of weaving. The island was declared a “Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” by UNESCO in 2005 for the art of weaving.
The floating reed islands of the Uros (Islas flotantes de los uros) are more than 40 man-made islands created by the Uros Indians from the reeds growing on the lake. Legend has it that the Uros Indians were forced to flee here to escape the Pachacutec Inca who pursued them. This people pass their legends and traditions by word of mouth, keep them and follow them. The main activity of the Uros Indians is fishing and hunting. From the reeds they build not only islands, but also houses, boats, make souvenirs. This type of reed is also used for food.
Amantani is the largest island in the Peruvian part of Lake Titicaca. Its area is 9.28km2. It is located opposite the Capachica Peninsula in the province of Puno.
The Archipielago de Winaymarca is a group of islands and islets in the southern part of Lake Titicaca, called Huinaymarca, south of the Copacabana Peninsula, which is shared by Peru and Bolivia. The archipelago on the Peruvian side includes the following islands:
Anapia, a 3.4 km2 island with the city of Anapia, which is the capital of the Anapia island region of Yunguyo province. It is the second largest island of the Wayñamarca archipelago.
Caana
Suaana
Yuspique is the largest island of the archipelago. Its area is 3.20 km2. It is part of the island region of Anapia.
The Rock of Ccaño (Islote de Ccano)
The Rock of Huatacaana (Islote de Huatacaana)
The Rock of Iscaya
The funerary towers of Sillustani (Chulpas Sillustani)
The Chulpas Sillustani are located on the banks of the Umaio lagoon, 34 kilometers from Puno. The Aymara buried their rulers in round towers, up to 10-12 meters high, made of huge stone blocks. The body of the dead chief was mummified and placed inside the pyramid in a fetal position. They buried their belongings, food, drinks, jewelry, weapons, animals and other important things to ensure the ruler had no need of anything in the afterlife.
According to archaeological research, the chulpas on the banks of the Umayo Lagoon date back to the 13th to 15th centuries.
Aramu Muru Portal (Aramu Muru)
Aramu Muru is a giant rock wall with indentations carved in the stone, which form something resembling a gate. Local shamans believe that this wall is a portal for communication with the souls of dead ancestors and extraterrestrial civilizations. The exact purpose of Aramu-Muru is not known to us.
The interest of travelers to Lake Titicaca is not primarily related to its beauty, sights and rich flora and fauna, but to its historical significance and legends associated with it.
Legends of Lake Titicaca
Pre-Indian civilizations and the Incas themselves associated the origin of the human race with this place. The Incas considered the area of Lake Titicaca their ancestral home. There are many legends about how the ancestral deities appeared here.
According to one legend, the first Inca ruler Manco Capac, son of the Sun and the Moon, and his wife Mama Oylla, came out of the waters of Lake Titicaca and founded the city of Cuzco.
Another legend has it that the Inca progenitors, four brothers and their four sisters-wives, emerged from a cave on one of the islands of Lake Titicaca. One of them was Manco Capac, who founded the city of Cuzco and started the empire.
But these places had been inhabited long before the beginning of the Inca civilization. About 200 years B.C. the Tiahuanaco or Tiwanaku civilization emerged on the shores of the lake and built its city 20 km. southeast of the lake. Over time, the city grew to 450,000 m2 and had everything: religious, administrative, military, residential buildings, food storage facilities, and craft quarters. By the 9th century A.D. the civilization, for reasons unknown, had fallen into decline and gradually disappeared. But its fame was so loud that it reached the Incas, who admired it and tried to restore the monuments. What the city was called in its heyday is unknown. It is now called Tiahuanaco, after the culture that created it.