Archive for the ‘Bolivia’ Category
Balsa Wood Rafting On The Tuichi River In The Bolivian Amazon (8/21/19) — Image by kenne
The fog was beginning to lift,
one hour after breaking camp
on our first full day on the river.
I’m sitting in front with my camera,
Matt paddling behind me as Padro
stands in the rear, steering the raft.
Except for our companion balsa raft,
the river is our’s, stopping only for
fishing and exploring the jungle line.
Padro has promised us that we will
see a jaguar at least once during
time in the Amazon on the Tuichi River.
— kenne
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Tuichi River Birds — Photo-Artistry by kenne
This world is but a canvas to our imagination.
— Henry David Thoreau
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Birds On The Tuichi River, Bolivian Amazon (8/23/19) — Image by kenne
me ignoring you
ignoring me.
— dmperez
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Mouth of the Tuichi River in the Bolivian Amazon — Photo-Artistry by kenne
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Lake Titicaca (World’s Highest Navigable Lake) In The Andes Mountains (World’s Longest Mountain Range) — Photo-Artistry by kenne
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Cable Cars Connect El Alto Plateau With La Paz In The Valley — Images by kenne
A PAZ and EL ALTO, Bolivia — In these two cities, geography and rank stand in inverse relation. La Paz — the seat of government, old money, and a lighter-skinned elite — sits in a valley. Above it on a high plateau is the frenetic city of El Alto: poorer, younger, and generally darker-skinned. La Paz has always looked down on its upstart younger sibling above.
Now, that relationship is being challenged, and this urban Möbius strip, where down is up and up is down, is getting a new twist. A mass-transit aerial cable-car system, a cross between a ski gondola and an elevated train, is being installed to better connect them, chipping away at the physical barriers and possibly some of the psychological ones. Read more here.
Subway In The Sky
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Cholita Women In La Paz, Bolivia (08/19/19) — Image by kenne
City of the full moon & speckled dove, of breathlessness,
thin air spiked with smog & the clay-colored fingers
of La Cordillera Real cutting a serrated skyline
behind grey buildings. City of black-haired women,
stout cholas sharpening their eyes under
the curled brim of a bowler hat
tipped to one side, their shoulders swimming in shawls,
hips wobbling the hem of a bell skirt. City
of open-air markets where chilies spill from burlap sacks
wrapped around the vendors like colors in a palette
running from rust to buttercup yellow.
— from “Boarding an Overnight Bus – La Paz, Bolivia” by Marty Saunders
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La Paz Buildings (08/17/19) — Image by kenne
Bolivia
Perhaps instead of expecting things
Expecting everything to end the way you think,
It is better to leave them to the unknown.
To leave them empty so as you travel,
As you evolve…
And the pages will follow.
— Andrea
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Illimani As Seen from La Paz, Bolivia (08/18/19)– Image by kenne
The Legend of the Illimani and Mururata
The Legend of the Illimani and Mururata,
a story of mountains in which,
takes place in the middle of the Andes,
in a country divided by mountains,
Bolivia.
The Legend goes as follows,
long ago,
there were four lords watching over the Andes.
Huayna Potosi, Lord of stone
Illampu, Lord of light
Mururata, Lord of air
and lastly,
Illimani, lord of water.
They were ruled by the main god,
Viracocha,
who favored Illimani the most.
Mururata envied that Illimani was favored,
so much so,
that he started a brawl between him and Illimani,
that went on for years,
until Illimani had won.
As punishment to Mururata,
for causing too much trouble,
he was beheaded,
and his peak,
was left in the Andean plains.
If you look up,
La Paz, Bolivia,
you will come to find a beautiful mountain,
watching over the city,
that is Illimani.
— Marcelo_lelo12
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Isla del Sol Boat — Photo-Artistry by kenne
Isla del Sol Boat
Life is made of simple things
Don’t complicate it.
–– kenne
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Captain’s Daughter — Images by kenne
The captain of the boat that took us from Copacabana on Lake Titicaca
to the Isla del Sol had his daughter with him who was his little helper.
She was so cute with her matching colors against the lake and the clouds.
* * * * *
“As long as one and one is two
There could never be a father
Who loved his daughter more than I love you
Trust your intuition
It’s just like going fishing
You cast your line
And hope you’ll get a bite”
— from “Father and Daughter” by Paul Simon
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Lake Titicaca Sunset — Image by kenne
To see the sunset is to recall the earth.
— kenne
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Puerto Yuman
Puerto Yuman
Before returning to Copacabana, we boarded our boat for a short ride to Puerto Yuman
where one of the island’s many ruins, a staircase up to the village of Yumani.
Ancient stairway with statues of Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, the world’s first two Incas.
The Incas built 200 steps to aid in the climb to the top of the island.
The stairway also leads to a scared fountain said to be a fountain of youth.
Ty, Michael and Matt — Images by kenne
Because of our limited time and no transportation allowed on the island,
we missed out hiking the island trails and visiting
most of the ancient ruins and beautiful views from the top of the island.
— kenne
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Michael is pointing to where most of the hotels and restaurants are on the Isla del Sol.
We docked for lunch in a cove just west of there.
The captain’s daughter helps tie the boat to the dock.
Lake Titicaca has 41 islands, some of which are densely populated.
Lunch on a deck overlooking Lake Titicaca.
Lunch On The Isla del Sol
Lunch On The Isla del Sol
Lunch On The Isla del Sol
View of Lake Titicaca — Images by kenne
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Isla del Sol, Lake Titicaca Sunset — Photo-Artistry by kenne
In the fifteenth century, the Incas invaded the island taking control of its people at the time. Like a lot of conquerors, they created a story of Incan lore. Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun) is both the birthplace of their revered Sun God and the world’s first two Incas; Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo (the Adam and Eve of the Andes) in an attempt to not only justify their reign, but to identify themselves with the pre-existing Tiwanaku civilization whom they considered to be a great source of religious and ideological identity. This image is my attempt to capture the spirit of the Incan lore.
Walking to the boat dock.
The only way to get to Isla del Sol is via the glimmering waters of Lake Titicaca. Michael had arranged for a boat (a captain and his daughter) to take us to lunch in the Comunidad Yumani on the south side of the Isla del Sol.
Because of an ongoing dispute between two local communities (Comunidades Challapama and Challa) has seen the north side of the island become off-limits to foreign and domestic tourists since February 2017. The bitter feud began when the Challa community, who live roughly in the center of the island, built a series of guesthouses near a northern Inca ruin to try and earn a slice of the tourism pie. The Challapama believed the new buildings broke one of Bolivia’s laws, which relate to construction work within a certain distance of sacred sites. After an unsuccessful attempt to appeal through bureaucratic means, the folks of Challapampa decided to resolve the matter vigilante-style by blowing the guesthouses to smithereens with a dose of dynamite. The stand-off remains.
Leaving Copacabana
Tom, Ty and Michael
On the boat ride, we spent most of the time drinking Singani and Altbier and resulting in drinking conversations.
The terrace landscape reflects the Inca influence on the Lake Titicaca agriculture.
Images and Video by kenne (This Is Part-One of a Three-Part Series on Isla del Sol)
— kenne
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