The textiles
Fine handwork.
H.dav.are — CC BY-SA 4.0 · H.dav.are — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original uploader was Bcasterline — Public domain · Pavel Špindler — CC BY 3.0
A long rocky island in Lake Titicaca, five and a half kilometres long, home to about 2,200 Quechua-speaking people who keep a traditional communal way of life. Its summit rises to about 4,050 metres, with views over the vast blue lake and Bolivia's snow-capped mountains on the horizon. The people of Taquile are famous for their fine handwoven textiles, proclaimed by UNESCO in 2005 a masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity. Curiously, knitting here is done only by men, from boyhood, while women spin and weave the wool, and the colours and shapes of hats show a man's status and marital state. You climb from the pier on a stone path between farming terraces and stone arches to the main square, where a cooperative sells island textiles at fixed prices. Lunch is served in villagers' homes, usually lake trout and quinoa soup. The climb is tiring at this altitude, so walk slowly and drink water. The trip is usually a full day from Puno with the Uros islands, and you can stay overnight with families on neighbouring Amantaní island.
Fine handwork.
And Bolivia's peaks.
Trout and quinoa.
Lake Titicaca, about 45 km from Puno, two to three hours by boat
Handwoven textiles and knitted hats from the cooperative on the main square, at fixed prices, so the money goes straight to the islanders.