Hola Amigos! We have finally reached Internet access again! After trying to sleep on the Lima airport floor for a few hours we were able to get our boarding passes at 4 AM for our 6 AM flight to Iquitos, Peru. We flew Peruvian Air which is a new airline. We later found out (and tried to ignore)that they are currently under investigation for possible cocaine smuggling. Both of us were running on just an hour or two of sleep since Portland, had not taken showers, and were still in the same clothes we left home in so we slept for the first hour of the flight. When I woke up I looked out the window and saw what I had been imagining for 30 years in my mind...the Amazon jungle....as far as the eye can see. Not a human trace in sight. My stomach instantly got the butterflies. I couldn't´t believe we were here. The landscape is so wild and diverse and looked almost prehistoric. Then, almost on queue, the Amazon River came into view. It is enormous and weaves and curves and looks like a snake from the air. I poked Rob as he was still asleep and we just stared at it until they announced our final decent. Iquitos, Peru is a town of a half million in Northeastern Peru close to the Brazil border. It is only reachable by plane or by a multi day boat ride. The airport is on the edge of town so you don´t see much of it from the air. We landed and much to both of our amusement immediately made a u-turn and taxied down the same runway. You don´t see that at O´hare. hardy har har. We exited the plane from the back(?!) and walked from the tarmac to the airport terminal. We passed a couple abandoned planes and multiple helicopters. The heat was intense, as expected, and it was on 8:30 in the morning. It was about 85 degrees and full humidity (and this isn´t even the hottest season!) As promised, our first guide, Mario, was waiting for us. He pointed out the other 9 who would be with us for this adventure. It turned out to be a group of Americans, three from Minneapolis and a couple from Seattle. All friends travelling together. There were also two other couples. One being a woman from Peru and her German boyfriend. We had recognized them from the flight from LA and later found out the German lived in San Jose, CA and his girlfriend was a Peruvian from Lima. The last couple to join the group was an Australian named Jono (pronounced John-o)and his German wife, Uta. They all looked to be approximately the same age as us. Mario directed us to the waiting bus outside and after strapping our bags on the roof we took off. We were amused again as "Turn around....bright eyes...every now and then I fall apart..." (bonnie Tyler's song from the 80´s) blared on the radio. Traci...i thought of you! :-) Iquitos was a culture shock. Actually, that is an understatement. It was a MAJOR culture shock. There were almost no vehicles (car or buses) on the street. 95% were motorcycles. Many with two seater attachments on the back for carrying passengers. They surrounded us, passing in oncoming traffic, carrying babies in one arm and driving with the other. The sidewalks were filled with people selling everything from soda pop to Amazon tree medicines. Dogs, cats, and chickens roamed along side the people. The buildings were a mixture of beautiful European colonial buildings and run down, cinder block homes. Many had thatched roofs. We made our way through he streets to the main office of the Eco lodge. We got off the bus and went inside and paid for the excursion to be and picked out rented wellies.(rubber boots). They assured us these would be needed for jungle hikes. We then made our way to the waiting speed boat. Many children followed us. It was like being the pied piper of hamelin. The boat seated about 12 and was covered. Here, we transferred guides and took off down the Amazon. We passed floating thatched boats, canoes made from tree trunks, small fishing boats, and large house boats that almost appeared as if they would sink at any moment. Everyone smiled as we cruised by and the children waved. The Amazon has the color of chocolate milk. This is due to the sediment that it carries. It is some of the cleanest water on earth, despite its dirty color, due to the lack of human pollution. The main channel is about a mile wide. The ride took about 2 1\2 hours with one bathroom stop in a small riverside village. About two hours in we turned off the Amazon onto a small tributary and at about 12:15 we pulled up to the dock at Muyuna Lodge. Once again, we had to pinch ourselves. This place was a thatched village on stilts. Even the walkways were about 6 feet above ground to accommodate the yearly flooding. As we climbed off the boat we were given juice that had been made from a fruit neither of us had ever heard of. IT tasted a bit like pineapple juice and was very refreshing. We were given a brief run down of meal times and daily activities and then were assigned to our cabins. ok....once again it´s past midnight and Rob is asleep upstairs (this time in a bed! hooray!) and i need to hit the sack as well. We have a lot to share...and will post much more in the days to follow. Hope you enjoy what i can post for now.
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