Jamuy Amantani

Our group was made up of four adults and five kids under ten. We stayed for two nights on Amantani with Romulo and Silviana. It was just the coolest experience! Amantani is a little island in the middle of lake Titicaca. The village is filled with people who have been there for generations and mostly speak Quetcha. The guest house has windows our into the lake. The whole island is so peaceful, you feel like you've traveled back in time. Romulo was our host and guide. He speaks Quetcha (I might be spelling that wrong, but it's the indigenous language of the area) and Spanish. We speak a little Spanish, but got along with Google translate's help. He told us all about life on the island and in the community. He took us up to the white Jesus statue (the altitude was too intense for us sea level folks to make it up to either of the peaks of the island) and introduced us to his neighbors. The view of the lake from anywhere is awe inspiring. Silviana cooked us so much food for breakfast lunch and dinner that I (politely) asked her to make less. In true Grandma fashion she smiled and said she would, and then absolutely didn't. She let us come into her house, and showed us how to knit. She let our six year olds help her in her traditional kitchen. She strapped me and my friend into some of her own traditional clothes so we could attend the town fiesta. They welcomed us into their home, fawned over our kids and made us all feel like family. Our stay with them was the highlight of our whole two weeks in Peru.