A Totora Reed Island

Food is classically cooked in pots by means of pottery stoves; these are placed on flat stones to prevent the flammable reed islands from catching fire. To relieve themselves, tiny 'outhouse' islands are placed near the main islands with simple toilets installed in them. The ground root absorbs the waste. Most islands feature a standardized shower building with tiles roofs, water heating cells and a hot water boiler to allow for warm showers.

Houses on the floating islands are mostly made of reeds too, with some using corrugated metal roofs - but insulation exists only in few of them. All houses are built on top of an extra layer of dry reeds to prevent Rheumatism.