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On the Inca mythology, the Sun Gods children Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo emerged from the Titicaca Lake to found the Inca Empire. The lake extends for hundreds of miles across Bolivia and Peru where the traditional Aymara culture still prevails. On the grassy plains graze herds of llamas and alpacas, whose fine

wool is woven into clothing sold in the markets of Puno and Juliaca. The men use totora that sprouts from the lake to build their rafts. The folklore is one of the richest in popular Peruvian art. On the Titicaca National Reserve, we can find the famous Uros totora island, the Taquile or Amantani islands.

The towns along the shores of the Titicaca contain many treasures of colonial architecture, such as the carved-stone churches of Juli and Pomata. And just off the highway between Puno and Juliaca lie the great stone funeral towers or “Chullpas” of Sillustani, huge stone tombs.