Our next stop was the island of Taquile.  It was a rainy, steep climb, but we were rewarded with views to Bolivia from the main square.  We spent some time looking around, and saw a photo exhibition of pictures taken by local residents that was amazing.  We learned about the local dress, similar but markedly different from the people in Amatani.  In both islands, daily dress speaks for you.  It tells if you are single, married, looking, how old you are, how many children you have, etc.  In the case of Taquile, different colored pom poms worn on the women’s shawls even told whether they were having a good day or were having problems.

Taquile is more developed, and receives more tourists, but they still maintain a very traditional lifestyle.  Everything is cooperative and profits from tourism are shared equally.  All of the restaurants have the same food, and prices for food as well as handicrafts are fixed.  Families rotate operating the shops and restaurants.  The system (Amatani follows these rules as well.)  is based on the Inca moral code “ama sua, ama llulla, ama qhilla” (Quechua for do not steal, do not lie, do not be lazy).

There are a number of Inca ruins here, but most of the rest of the island is dedicated to agriculture.  The two-day trip was a wonderful experience, and we spent the long boat trip back to Puno reflecting on what we’d learned.

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