At 12,500 ft above sea level, Lake Titicaca is the highest and largest (118mi. by 50mi.) commercially navigable lake in the world. The most interesting part about the lake is the people who live on the artificially built islands, such as Uros. We had the experience of seeing how the islands were built and its truly amazing. The islands are created in layers, the first layer is a bouyant, root bound soil layer that is harvested in small square blocks (3ft tall) from shallow parts of the lake. The next layer consists of totora reeds found growing abundently in the lake. The reeds are layered another 3-5ft on top of the soil layer and are the top surface of the island. The totora reed is the primary material used for the island, all of the structures, and boats. The reeds have to be replaced frequently, especially on the roofs of the structures (every 6-8 months) and take about a month to dry for use. One question that wasn´t asked or answered was where do all the number 2´s go? I was bummed I didn´t get to take a swim.
Uros, Lake Titicaca from Julia Scheri on Vimeo.
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| Structure showing the dried reeds. Looks flammable and what about high winds? Their houses are lifted off the primary surface to reduce the humidity. |
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| The main form of transportation for the Uros people. They call it the Mercedes-Benz. It looks like a wicker toy. |
A small portion of the Uros islands, much larger than I expected. They have everything they need to sustain out here, the Mercedes-Benz for transportation, two schools, a more permanent medical building, and a live- stock area with pigs and cattle roaming around. The Uros created the island settlements originally as a form of defense from other tribes such as the Inca. Today they carry on the traditional way of life and choose to live on the lake.
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| The president explaining how the islands are created |
At 12,500 ft above sea level, Lake Titicaca is the highest and largest (118mi. by 50mi.) commercially navigable lake in the world. The most interesting part about the lake is the people who live on the artificially built islands, such as Uros. We had the experience of seeing how the islands were built and its truly amazing. The islands are created in layers, the first layer is a bouyant, root bound soil layer that is harvested in small square blocks (3ft tall) from shallow parts of the lake. The next layer consists of totora reeds found growing abundently in the lake. The reeds are layered another 3-5ft on top of the soil layer and are the top surface of the island. The totora reed is the primary material used for the island, all of the structures, and boats. The reeds have to be replaced frequently, especially on the roofs of the structures (every 6-8 months) and take about a month to dry for use. One question that wasn´t asked or answered was where do all the number 2´s go? I was bummed I didn´t get to take a swim.
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