It's time to tell you about our fairy tale in Copacabana. Lonely Planet and I get along really well, but rarely does it surprise me like it did in Copacabana. We were looking for a nice hotel to celebrate Jochem's 26th birthday at. Lonely Planet recommended Las Olas and we booked it. We were in for a big surprise! I can't speak highly enough of this hotel. It is the best hotel that I have ever stayed at - not just in Bolivia, or in South America, or even during this trip. I literally mean that this is the BEST hotel EVER.
For starters, it's not a conventional hotel. The complex exists of 7 individual suites that are set on a hill overlooking Lake Titicaca, far away from the touristy tackiness that makes up the rest of Copacabana. These suites were designed by a local artist and his wife who basically made everything up as they went. If you're lucky, you will see this very same artist walking the premises and he'll be delighted to tell you about this special project. There are plants and flowers everywhere. There is a jacuzzi overlooking the lake. In the afternoon a neighboring local lady comes over with her flock of sheep (cute little lamb included) to cut the grass. The hotel functions on solar energy.
Our suite, number 7 called the Sea Tower, was the latest addition to the hotel. It looked like a castle from a Disney movie. We had 3 floors, 5 beds, a kitchen, a bathroom with 2 showers (and hot water 24/7, which is surprisingly rare in this cold part of South America), a space heater, a fireplace with complementary wood and paper, hot water bottles to take into bed, a tower, a small garden with sun chairs and hammocks and panoramic views of the lake. All this cost us less than 30 euros a day. We took one look at the place and decided straight away to stay for 2 extra nights. 2 days after that, we added another 2 days for a total of 7 days. It was paradise and I could have stayed forever.
We find that South America, and Bolivia in particular, is not the easiest place to backpack around in and we were quite tired, so we used the majority of our time in Copacabana to enjoy our castle. We walked around town a couple of times and we hiked along Lake Titicaca, but mostly we just enjoyed our surroundings. Our only exception to this rule was when we took a boat to the famous Island of the Sun. In Inca mythology, Isla del Sol is the birthplace of the sun. The boat first dropped us in the north at Cha'llapampa. After we visited the small museum, a local guide took us on a 1-hour walk to the Chincana Ruins where we saw a ceremonial table and a magnetic rock. From here you could walk all the way to Yumani in the south, but we chose to take the boat instead due to the heavy terrain, 4,000-meter altitude and time limit. In the south we had some time to see the Inca Springs and the Inca Stairway and to admire the beautiful locals.
With pain in our hearts we said goodbye to this little slice of heaven to embark on a new adventure: PERU!
If you'd like to see more pictures of our world trip, check out our picture gallery here!
For starters, it's not a conventional hotel. The complex exists of 7 individual suites that are set on a hill overlooking Lake Titicaca, far away from the touristy tackiness that makes up the rest of Copacabana. These suites were designed by a local artist and his wife who basically made everything up as they went. If you're lucky, you will see this very same artist walking the premises and he'll be delighted to tell you about this special project. There are plants and flowers everywhere. There is a jacuzzi overlooking the lake. In the afternoon a neighboring local lady comes over with her flock of sheep (cute little lamb included) to cut the grass. The hotel functions on solar energy.
Our suite, number 7 called the Sea Tower, was the latest addition to the hotel. It looked like a castle from a Disney movie. We had 3 floors, 5 beds, a kitchen, a bathroom with 2 showers (and hot water 24/7, which is surprisingly rare in this cold part of South America), a space heater, a fireplace with complementary wood and paper, hot water bottles to take into bed, a tower, a small garden with sun chairs and hammocks and panoramic views of the lake. All this cost us less than 30 euros a day. We took one look at the place and decided straight away to stay for 2 extra nights. 2 days after that, we added another 2 days for a total of 7 days. It was paradise and I could have stayed forever.
We find that South America, and Bolivia in particular, is not the easiest place to backpack around in and we were quite tired, so we used the majority of our time in Copacabana to enjoy our castle. We walked around town a couple of times and we hiked along Lake Titicaca, but mostly we just enjoyed our surroundings. Our only exception to this rule was when we took a boat to the famous Island of the Sun. In Inca mythology, Isla del Sol is the birthplace of the sun. The boat first dropped us in the north at Cha'llapampa. After we visited the small museum, a local guide took us on a 1-hour walk to the Chincana Ruins where we saw a ceremonial table and a magnetic rock. From here you could walk all the way to Yumani in the south, but we chose to take the boat instead due to the heavy terrain, 4,000-meter altitude and time limit. In the south we had some time to see the Inca Springs and the Inca Stairway and to admire the beautiful locals.
With pain in our hearts we said goodbye to this little slice of heaven to embark on a new adventure: PERU!
If you'd like to see more pictures of our world trip, check out our picture gallery here!
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