Chivay to Puno

Another early start today — 7am — and straight into one of the more memorable experiences of the trip.
Our first stop was a farm visit where we spent a couple of hours with a local woman learning about the grains and pulses grown at altitude. Quinoa, corn, broad beans and more — foods we see everywhere but rarely understand where they come from. It was a gentle stroll through the fields, although the altitude definitely reminded us we are sea-level people.
We were one traveller down today. Linda wasn’t feeling well with stomach cramps, so she stayed behind at the hotel in the village while the rest of us explored.
After the farm visit we returned to Chivay to collect our boxed lunches before beginning the long drive to Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca.
It was a big travel day — several hours on the bus with a few scenic stops along the way. One of the highlights was Patapampa, the highest point of our journey at just under 5,000 metres. The views across the Andes were spectacular — vast landscapes, dramatic skies and that unmistakable feeling of being very, very small.
We also stopped at a roadside junction linking Chivay, Arequipa and Puno to eat our lunch boxes — which felt very much like a school excursion moment… nostalgic, practical and, if we’re honest, fairly average.
The scenery throughout the drive was extraordinary — wide valleys, patchwork farmland, traditional dress, roaming alpacas and endless mountain horizons. Peru keeps delivering those “look out the window and just stare” moments.
It was a long, tiring travel day but a beautiful one.
We arrived in Puno around 5pm, settling in on the edge of Lake Titicaca — ready for the next chapter.
Altitude: felt.
Scenery: spectacular.
Lunch box: passable.
Memories: excellentRead more