When you take the bus from Cuzco to Puno you will travel 400 km on the Altiplano, the vast high altitude plateau of the Andes.

The highest point of 4338 meters is reached at La Raya, the mountain range where the Urubamba, the sacred river of the Incas originates. It is a breathtaking place, not only because oxygen is in short supply but also for the view.

The altiplano is a very poor region, where people basically live like there ancestors lived centuries ago; herding a few sheep, cows or llamas and harvesting the crop by hand.  No wonder that the people flock to urban areas like bustling Juliaca, but life does not seem much better there.

We did the Cuzco to Puno bus tour in June 2008 . It was a long day, but the Altiplano and its people left an unforgettable impression.