Roaming South America

Yuli, Perú: Stop for the Quiet and the Views

May 26, 2026

Juli, population about 22,000. It has a long history, supposedly going back 10,000 years. But, before getting into that, Juli is located at the edge of Lake Titicaca, at a southwestern bay. It's picturesque, small, and cold. And hilly. Which means, at this elevation, 3879 meters (12,726 ft), where I am in my room, it's almost a struggle to walk anywhere. The main center of town, the Plaza Mayor, sits in a saddle between hills. The lake is a bit downhill, the bus terminal is also a bit downhill, but on the opposite side. Other than a few blocks on top, it's all up or down, in the thin air of the high Andes.

The Pre-Inca Chullpa - what it's really about

About a half-hour walk down, then up outside the city, you can find a place on another hillside called Chullpa Inka on Google Maps. It's actually a pre-Inca site, a funerary tower. Actually, it's what's left of the tower. As you can see in the photos in my photo album, it now appears to be a four-sided structure mostly filled in with dirt/grass/tree debris. But that's not the main reason to visit this thing - it's the tranquility, the view you have when you're standing or sitting on this hillside. In one direction is Lake Titicaca, bluer than the sky; in another are more hills with scattered homes and farms; and in another is the town of Juli. In case you're wondering, here's why they built this one structure, a funerary, on this hillside -

These societies, Pre-Inca, were very intentional about who got seen and from where. Placing structures uphill means:

• they’re visible from the valley
• they dominate the landscape
• they quietly say, “this matters”

For chullpas, the dead were meant to “look over” their land and people.

In Andean cosmology, elevation isn’t just geography, it’s spiritual hierarchy.

• Mountains (apus) are sacred
• Height = closer to the spiritual realm
• The sky, sun, and ancestors are all tied to elevation

So building uphill is less: "better vantage point," and more: “closer to the forces that actually run the world”

A lot of these structures were aligned with:

• sunrise (east-facing openings)
• solar cycles
• seasonal markers

Higher ground gives cleaner horizons and unobstructed sunlight.
For tombs: the dead greeting the rising sun was a real concept

The locations were also about practical preservation. This part’s less romantic, more practical:

• better drainage (no water pooling)
• less flooding risk
• drier air = better preservation of remains

If you’re building something meant to last… don’t put it in a soggy valley floor

You’re looking at a mindset where:

• landscape = meaning
• elevation = power (spiritual + social)
• placement is never random

So when you see something uphill in the Andes, the default assumption isn’t: “military strategy.” It’s: “this location meant something.”

You can almost feel why they chose that spot. Not just “higher is better,” but this exact rise, this exact angle, this exact silence. The kind of place where the wind sounds like it’s saying something, even when it isn’t.
And it’s funny, because on paper you have: one small ruin, no ticket booth, and no crowds.
Sounds like nothing. But in reality, it’s one of those places where the landscape does most of the talking.
This is what you get if you visit: Lake Titicaca off in the distance; terraced hills rolling out like a patchwork just enough trees to break the wind; and that chunk of stone sitting there like it’s been waiting centuries for someone to notice it again.
No noise. No vendors. No one is trying to sell you a “cultural experience.”

The Blue Flags of the Altiplano: Why Quinoa Wears Plastic Hats

While out walking, I came across these plants being protected by plastic bags. I've seen these all throughout this region of Peru. There is a photo in the photo album. They are quinoa plants, and it turns out that birds love quinoa. Not just as a snack, but as an all-day meal. So, the locals protect their plants with plastic bags. Just drape a bag over the plant head, where the seeds are, and there will be no more bird problems. In the pic of the small farm I passed here in Juli, some of the quinoa plants have been harvested, others have had the bags torn to bits. And plastic bags are cheap or free. You get them when you go to the store, and this is one way to put them to good use.

Juli, interesting, but is it enough to stop and visit?

Juli’s Two Plazas: Where the Town Steps Back to Let the Cathedral Breathe

So, what visiting? There are some interesting sites, including very old churches, two of which are now museums, and another is closed for renovation. One, the main cathedral, is active. But it is a small town, so there are limited options, especially for dinner. Most restaurants close in the late afternoon. Most restaurants that are open for dinner are downhill from the city center. So, if you walk, it'll be a good uphill slog after dinner, probably not a bad thing. Should you plan a visit? No, but if you're passing by, certainly stop, have a meal, maybe visit the ruins, walk around in the central plaza, it's more of a garden than a plaza. And that plaza doesn't just end at the curbs - across the street is another plaza, similar yet more formal, and then behind that is the cathedral. It's uncommon to find a double-plaza anywhere anymore. I think, if you're passing through between Cusco and La Paz, Bolivia, stop, enjoy a meal, and some peace and quiet.