Copacabana Beach

On Saturday, April 23rd, after breakfast in our room, we decided to walk along the waterfront. It was a beautiful, sunny day. The previous afternoon, we had checked out boat trips to the Isla del Sol and had decided against it. The boat trips leave at 8:30 am and take 2 hours to get to the island. Most of the trips allow about 3 1/2 hours of hiking and sightseeing before there's a 2 hour  trip in the enclosed boat back to Copacabana. We didn't want to spend 4 hours in an enclosed boat cabin.
According to indigenous people's beliefs, the island is the birthplace of the sun while another smaller nearby island is the birthplace of the moon. The indigenous people also believed in "Pacha Mama" or Mother Earth and in various other spirits of the natural world. The Incas believed that the first Incan Emperor rose from the earth on the Isla del Sol. In those days, the village of Copacabana was a resting place before making a pilgrimage to the island.
Copacabana is still a religious pilgrimage destination but it is also a weekend tourist destination for people from La Paz. Along the lakeshore there are lots of food vendors, paddle boat rentals, boat tours and even a few personal watercraft rentals. The beach is stony and the water is cold but it's a beautiful, big lake. Unfortunately, at a couple of places there is raw sewage pouring into the lake. There's also lots of litter. Environmental awareness seems even lower in Peru and Bolivia than it is in Ecuador.
We walked along the shore out of town until we felt we'd gone far enough. We stopped and sat on a rock for a long time for a rest, chew of coca leaves and drink of water. After we walked back to town, we went up the main tourist street which eventually led to the cathedral and a nice square. Near there, we walked through the daily market and picked up a few more eggs and buns for breakfast. The market stalls and shops are typical of what we've seen elsewhere except that they're all run by short, full figured ladies in traditional big skirts, aprons, long braids and various bowler hats or fedoras. Buns in the shops are just piled on the floor in cardboard boxes. How many times they've been handled is a question. With luck, we get a plastic bag to put them in.
We walked back up the hill to our room and sat out in the sun on our lawn chairs for awhile. In the middle of the day it's great to feel warm in the sun while looking out over the beautiful lake. Eventually, we went back down to the main tourist street for an early dinner of pizza. Every town has roast chicken and pizza restaurants. People like to share a pizza as a social outing. Plus, right in the middle of the restaurants is often a wood-fired pizza oven, which provides a little warmth. As soon as the sun starts to go down, it's cold here. The waiters in the restaurants usually wear coats and hats, as do all the patrons. Although its not nearly as cold as it can be at home, buildings and homes are uncomfortably cool.
On our first night here, I couldn't get our little clay wood stove going because the wood and little bit of kindling that was left for me was too damp. On the second night, I made sure the fire got started so our room was much warmer than it had been. However, we still need merino wool underwear, a hot water bottle and lots of blankets.