We received wake-up calls at 6:45 and had breakfast in the hotel. Rosse Mary and the bus arrived at 8:00 and we loaded up. Soon we were climbing out of the city to El Alto and onward to Copacabana. The clouds hiding the Cordillera Real gradually dissipated revealing their majesty under pristine skies. We stopped for a group foto along the road with the Cordillera Real behind us.

Before we knew it we were riding along the shore of Lake Titicaca . We arrived at San Pedro and took the ferry across to San Pablo . The lake was calm and most people photographed our bus which was ferried on a different barge. We reboarded the bus and stopped at an overlook above the strait separating the two towns. We continued on and stopped above Copacabana for more photos.

The last day of Carnival was being celebrated in Copacabana. We stopped to watch the colorfully costumed dancers parading around the central square. After a quick trip to the Hotel La Cupala to leave luggage we wouldn't need for our trip to the Isla del Sol, we went to the Colonial Restaurant where Rosse Mary and I ate in 2004. I had a great grilled lake trout. Some of the students went to change money while others shopped along the streets. Emily left her wallet at the money exchange place. By the time she got back to get it her money and ATM card were gone. She and Anne canceled the card.

I bought a floppy felt hat just before we boarded the boat. The lake had a mirror-like calm as we headed out to the island on an hour and a half trip. Low clouds above the lake along the eastern shore were dwarfed by snow-covered Illampu. We stopped at the Temple of the Sun. Rosse Mary's spiritual orientation was a wonderful complement to the silent ruins.

We hiked from the Temple of the Sun for several km to the Hotel Intikala at the crest of the island. The high elevation was hard on everyone as we walked through the tilted Cambrian (?) strata. The hotel was clean and simple with a gorgeous view across the west side of the lake to Peru .

After sunset, we walked several hundred meters to a tiny thatch-roofed restaurant that had no electricity. The island has only had electricity for several years. We had a merry dinner by candlelight. Our group completely filled the place. Afterward most returned to the hotel but those of us who stayed were treated to flan casero by the owner. He told me he would electrify next year, but would also build a patio extension that would preserve the current ambiance. As we walked back we stopped to look at the southern sky. We saw the Southern Cross, but a haze had developed to obscure the Milky Way. I went to bed as soon as we got back to the hotel and fell asleep instantly.