Lake Titicaca and Isla del Sol, Bolivia

So, after an amazing time in the Amazon we headed back up to altitude to Lake Titicaca. We arrived in Copacabana one late afternoon. The sun was shining and all was good.

We took a boat trip on the lake. We may have got ripped off as we think we misunderstood how much the lady said it would cost. Think we paid about the same as we would have done for the same trip on the lake in Hyde Park in London - oh well, we made someone happy that day!

Then we checked into our hostel....this is when it all started to go wrong.

Sarah: As soon as we got off the bus we went to find a hostel to check-in for a night. We saw one near the central plaza which was recommended by the Lonely Planet guidebook. Whilst I waited downstairs in the courtyard (not a courtyard as you would imagine, more of a wide space with a run down look), Matt went to check the room out. He came back and said it was very basic but fine for a night. As Matt has much higher standards than myself, I thought 'great and it's a bargain at £2.50 per person a night'. When we got to the room we dumped our bags and checked out the bathrooms. The toilet had never been flushed and it was in the same room as the shower. It's safe to say we went straight out to a cafe to eat and stayed in there as long as possible. When we got back to the room I discovered some blood on my bed sheets - luckily we had bought a blanket in La Paz so I slept on that instead. It was quite possibly the most disgusting place ever. It was, however, an experience I guess!

We then made our way the next morning to Isla del Sol...

Sarah: We both decided to splash out on a nice place after the crap hole we had just spent the night in. The ecolodge we  had booked was pretty high up at 4000 metres. Unfortunately we did not realise that we would have to walk almost 400 metres vertically uphill via steps to get there. I got half way and couldn't carry on with my 16kg rucksack. Matt had to go on ahead and dump his bag and then come back and get me (the gentleman that he is!). Safe to say that we didn't do anything for the rest of that afternoon. It was a beautiful place with amazing views so it was worth it until...

......the next day when my stomach flipped out big time. As I wasn't feeling that hot the next morning we took it easy and only started our trek to the Gate of the Sun at 10am. Unfortunately we got about 200 metres from the Gate when I could no longer control my stomach...or my bowels! I'm afraid the ruins may have had a bit of a refurbishment. I'm pretty sure that a couple of tourists had the pleasure of witnessing some horrific bowel movements too. So, after losing my dignity and probably being cursed by the sun gods for my uncontrollable actions, we slowly headed back to the lodge. When I say slowly, I mean pigeon footsteps as my stomach was constantly cramping. When we got back, I spent the rest of the evening in bed. The next day we left the island and took the bus to Peru. Unfortunately, this was not a great time for us but we survived!

Matt: Er, I didn't get affected by the altitude and was able to enjoy it a bit more. I'm just pleased I could look after Sarah as she was in terrible shape for 48 hours...

Nevertheless, Isla del Sol was beautiful, as was Lake Titicaca. Can't say we'll be going back anytime soon but we definitely won't be forgetting it either!

It was a sad way to say goodbye to an amazing country, but we were looking forward to Peru and the lure of Machu Picchu...

Rurrenabaque and the Amazon Basin, Bolivia

After getting on a little plane for 25 minutes, we were back at sea level in the Amazon Basin.

The town of Rurrenabaque

After exploring the town for a couple of days, we took a trip to Madidi jungle for four days. 

The 3 hour boat trip along the river...

Our jungle lodge,,,

The wildlife... in our room!

And outside the camp...Tony the Taipier was an orphan until the Madidi jungle guides adopted him. He lives in the surrounding jungle but comes to the camp everyday.

Spotting the wildlife on route to piranha fishing...

Hiking in the jungle to try and find a good spot by the river...

Matt caught 8 piranha and Sarah caught 2 - good effort all round.

The largest piranha was taken home for dinner....

After the fishing we got back into the boat and and got off at a single beach. Henry, our guide, said that one of the crew had found some jaguar footprints and we went to take a look. 

We then followed the footprints to the 'prize'. The jaguar had caught a capybara. Henry explained how the jaguar had killed it and showed us in detail! We then decided to get out of there sharpish as the jaguar was most likely watching us to make sure we didn't take his food.

After the excitement of the day before, Henry woke us up at 6am to see the howler monkeys - they were so loud that we were already awake!

Much of each day was spent trekking through the jungle with Henry. The diversity in flora and fauna was mind boggling, to say the least... 

The strangler tree..

A spiky tree...

On our last night, Henry showed the resident tarantula in camp. This is a baby.... about the size of my face!!!

We got to meet some of his neighbours on a 'night trek', including a Rainbow Boa Constrictor living just a few metres from where we ate dinner...

Sarah: Harmless apparently!

After 4 amazing days in the jungle we headed back to Rurrenabaque to catch a flight to La Paz. From there we headed west to Lake Titicaca, and a tough re-acquaintance with high altitude...