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The Amazon Queen
Our slow boat down the Amazon. Given its proximity to the Amazon rain forest Iquitos seemed the perfect place from which to explore some of it, so we joined a three day tour headed for a lodge about 100km away. A huge slowboat took us 90 minutes down the amazon, our first of what would be many trips on the world's largest river. We then changed to a speedboat for 10 minutes to Indiana, a tiny village on the banks of the river. A 15 minute mototaxi took us across to the Napo River, a huge tributary of the amazon originating in Ecuador. The last leg was half an hour in a speedboat to our lodge, hidden in the Sukusary tributary, completely engulfed in rainforest.
The lodge itself was impressive. It was not quite luxury, but they provided good food and even had wi-fi! The most annoying thing about the jungle is the mosquitoes, but the lodge had nets up everywhere to stop their access. Both of us had bought lots of repellent and were planning to cover up, despite the heat and humidity! After having lunch and meeting our group - which comprised of an older American couple, who seemed to have been travelling for
Rivers meeting
Where the black Rio Itaya flows in to the brown Amazon. 30 years, and a Swiss guy with an afro who was already covered in bites - we headed out for our first activity at 3pm: piranha fishing.
A short boat ride away, somewhere up a small tributary, we sat with meat on the end of our makeshift fishing rods waiting for piranhas. We didn't have to wait long. While we could feel them taking the bait (which scared Carina somewhat!), they were far too quick for us; the boat driver caught two little ones though. They didn't look so fearsome, though they were babies! As we were preparing to leave we heard a huge splash. Our guide, Lucio, said it was a dolphin, so we sat in silence waiting for it to resurface for air. An age seemed to pass, and then suddenly, about 60m away, a huge pink body rose in to the sun's rays - half a second and it was gone. Our first glimpse of the pink river dolphin, and it wouldn't be our last.
We headed back for dinner before our first evening activity: a short boat ride through the trees with just the noises of the jungle for company. And maybe the odd
Ceiba Tops Lodge
We changed to a speedboat here. This is one of the company's lodges. spider! The jungle is a very loud place at night, with frogs singing for a mate and birds chirping for the hell of it. We saw a Kingfisher perched above us, listening carefully for prey, a hummingbird flitting around and we nearly drove head first in to a bat! After the trip we headed back to the lodge for the night. Sleep was accompanied by the never ceasing sounds of the amazon, which we heard clearly as the lodge was mostly open, with small walls that didn't reach the ceiling.
The reason we had chosen to go with this company (and the reason Carina had been going on and on about doing this tour!) was because they have access to a canopy walkway, a path built 30m and more above the ground, offering a completely different perspective of the rainforest. The next morning we got a chance to see it. An hour's walk through the jungle, past some black-mantel tamarin monkeys swinging high above us, and through millions of mosquitoes, we came to the walkway. We climbed to the first lookout and walked along the rickity bridges (there are 14 in total), getting higher and higher from the floor.
Indiana village
Where we changed to a mototaxi. And then the rain came. Lots of rain. Raindrops the size of your fist - and Carina hadn't bothered to pack her rainjacket!
We managed to get some photos before getting to the end of the walkway, where we waited for the rain to stop (which it didn't!) before heading to a nearby lodge to be picked up. Lucio promised us we could return to the walkway later when the weather would be better. The boat trip back to base was via a tight tributary of the Sukusary, with high water levels due to the recent heavy rainfall.
Pygmy marmosets cheekily gnawed at the bunches of bananas growing on the trees as we left our lodge after lunch for the nearby village of Llachapa to visit a local family. Their house was very open, with a roof but no walls, and animals littered around the place. They drank water from the river (which we assure you is exceptionally dirty) and their only source of income was selling manioc, a root vegetable which grows in abundance all over the amazon. It was interesting to see how the river-dwellers can live in this incredibly wet and uncomfortable habitat. Theirs are
not easy lives, but one thing that struck us was their spirit and friendliness - our guide said that Peruvian amazonians are more friendly than people from the highlands, something we perhaps agreed with.
We walked further in to the village to visit the school, which was surprisingly modern, with children (well, those who can afford it) coming from neighbouring villages to use the facilities. We then left the village and returned to the lodge.
As darkness approached we decided to go back to the canopy walkway to enjoy a sunset like no other. Squirrel monkeys leapt a few feet above our heads as the boat weaved up the twisiting tributary. We climbed back to the highest point of the walkway and waited for the sun to depart. We watched the night fall high among the trees, as orange-winged parrots flew overhead and a lone toucan sang from a mile away, it's giant beak just visible through binoculars. A once in a lifetime experience - we felt so far away from our normal world as the jungle engrossed us, and for a short while we were speechless.
The next morning we again woke early, this time to
take a short trip to see the giant lilypads. Stretching nearly two metres, they were quite impressive, as was our boat journey through the dense forest to the still lake where the pads live. Waddle Jacana birds skated on the leafy lake searching for food before flying away, their long legs trailing behind them.
We returned to the lodge for breakfast before leaving to start the journey back to Iquitos. A speedboat took us to one of the other lodges owned by the company, to visit a local Indian tribe living nearby. The Yagua tribe have been living in the rain forest for hundreds of years, their settlement being about 40 minutes away from the lodge. When visitors stop by they give demonstrations in hunting techniques and traditional dance. The hunting was very impressive: blowing darts through a pipe and hitting the target every time.
Lucio explained that the tribe (and many others) was dying out as most children move away when they reach adulthood. Many of the children were now going to school and in doing so learned about the world and no longer wanted to carry on their traditions. During the dancing we noticed a few
Up the Sukusari Creek to the lodge
This was a tributary of the Rio Napo. of the younger girls felt uncomfortable, both with the act and the attire. It would be a shame for tribes like this to become extinct, though it is impossible to begrudge anybody a decent education.
After lunch we caught the slow boat back to Iquitos (spotting Iguanas in the trees as were leaving), which took twice as long as before as we were heading upriver. We arrived as the sun set, dolphins playing in the water around us, and made our way back to the hotel. A quick dinner at a Texan-themed restaurant followed, before a well earned shower and bed.
We would need all the rest we could get, as soon we would be heading on a voyage 1600 miles down the amazon to Brazil, and more adventures in the world's largest rain forest...
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jennifer
non-member comment
Green Giant!
Oh boy......these look like a platter for those pizzas you eat, Chris!