Crossing the border into Peru was like entering another world. Bolivia is wonderful – people don't harass you, and you get an authentic glimpse into what life is like for locals. In Peru you are a dollar sign – Puno was quite a shock – everything was incredibly expensive, and you get hounded by people to buy just about everything. We stayed in Puno to see the Uros islands, the unique floating islands. The beginning of the trip was fantastic – a really good explanation of local life and traditions – everyone was charming and sincere. Then things went downhill – we dressed up in local costume(innocent enough) but were then pressed upon to buy local products, then pay additional money to be taken in a reed boat to another island where we were pressed upon to buy food and drinks – the Uros people spoke English, Spanish, French and their native language – clearly tourism is big business. Bernard and I bought a lovely tapestry from our family, but I didn't haggle enough and were royally ripped off. We didn't take the boat ride – we felt we had invested enough in that community for the day! When we went to leave the island the mother of our family raced over and gave us, what felt like a very sincere thank you. That warmed my heart and so I at least left the islands without feeling bitter. I'm pleased to say that I haven't been that gullable since. Fortunately we had fantastic company in Fred and Emilie which helped. We laughed it off and were pleased that we visited the islands.
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