This morning we had breakfast with our family then headed to the dock for the next leg of our trip. A 30 minute boat ride away was Taqulie island. It was another hour long hike uphill to the town plaza. During which I decided that the lazy girl who lives inside of me should get a vacation she enjoys sometime too:) Taquile island's population is about 2,000, with about 500 separate families, our guide alluded that the gene pool on the island is getting small and inter marriage is an issue but didn't go much further than that. We were lucky enough to arrive during the Festival de San Santiago which runs from July 25th to August 5th. During the festival each day the townspeople gather in the plaza and watch a group of musicians preform and dance a different cultural dance each day. Today's dance was "Secures" which is the name of an instrument similar to the Sampo. Around the edges of the plaza are a couple of dozen vendors selling their crafts, mostly traditional clothing.
After enjoying the music for awhile we hiked to the other side of the island and had lunch on the rooftop of a local restaurant. Needless to say the view was fantastic. Our boat had driven around to this side of the island and we climbed down 511 stone handmade stairs (a girl in our group counted). It was easier on the heart & lungs going downhill but tougher on the knees and by the time we got to the boat I was was ready to sit. After the 3 hour ride back to Puno we checked out the local "strip mall" where we spotted a restaurant which we returned to after showering at the hotel. The hot running water was very welcome!
The agent had great response to questions and coordinated well to create an itinerary that met our expectations.
Bob Sunshine
1 day ago
Very responsive to all questions
Teresa Cardoso
2 days ago
Kelly and Rhenee were excellent to work with on planning our trip. The logistics all worked smoothly and everyone was friendly and on time. Our accommodations were very good, particularly the incredible Patagonia Camp in Torres del Paine! Our guides on every excursion were outstanding and made the hikes memorable! Overall we had a wonderful trip with incredible memories!
Scott Gibson
2 days ago
Adventure Life is definitely a first-class safari tour company, and our representative was Franny Friesz. First of all, she responded immediately after we contacted Adventure Life. We told Franny that we had never been on a safari, and she was more than eager to offer a mountain of information about the trip. She informed us fully about all the ups, downs, and all arounds! She even prepared a number of packages for us to review -- even after we made changes to the areas we wanted to explore. Friendly, helpful, professional, and extremely knowledgeable -- these words describe Franny, and what a wonderful trip she prepared! We couldn't have asked for better service than Franny of Adventure Life. We HIGHLY recommend her and her outstanding company! Bon Voyage!
Prima Burke
3 days ago
The staff at Adventure Life made planning my family's trip to the Galapagos Islands as easy as possible. They listened to what we were hoping to experience and made thoughtful suggestions about how to accomplish our vacation goals while meeting the needs of travelers ages 17-76! They patiently answered questions and follow up questions in the months leading up to the trip. They helped us trouble shoot and customize the trip in every way possible. The logistics involved in traveling from Boston to the Galapagos are innumerable. The Adventure Life staff helped us arrange every detail and the team they assembled in the Galapagos was tremendous. I have never done a trip this big before and after working with Adventure Life this time--would not hesitate one second in working with them again.