My adventures and misadventures in Iquitos and the Amazonian Rainforest (Part 1)

Let me first start by saying that this post is REALLY late....like over a month late. Sorry!! When I returned from my trip to Iquitos I was 1) exhausted 2) had people to see.things to cross off my list before I left Lima and 3) had to PACK.

I will try to be more punctual with my posts when I return to Lima in March...

After exams were over on December 4th, Ane Kine and I had decided that we wanted to go to the rainforest. So, we booked a plane ticket for December 5th to Iquitos, Peru. Iquitos is in the heart of the Amazon jungle, and is the capital city of the Loreto region of Peru. It is the fifth largest city in Peru, and it is also the largest city in the world that cannot be reached by a road!!!!! (it an only be reached by air or by boat). In the city, I didn't see a single car! Everyone gets around by bus, motorcycle, or by motorcycle rickshaws (called motokar or mototaxi). 

The flight to Iquitos was beautiful!! We flew over the Andes, and out over the rainforest. Below us we could see huge winding rivers and green trees for miles. Our flight stopped over in Tarapoto, and then we arrived in Iquitos. As soon as we stepped off the plane, a wall of heat hit us. Coming from Lima, where even in the beginning of summer temperatures only get into the high 60's and the sun is fleeting, this was a shock. Unlike in Lima, where summer was just beginning, Iquitos (and the Andes) were in the beginning  of winter. In the rainforest, "winter" just means that it is the rainy season, and that temperatures are "cooler", meaning the high 80's or low 90's in Fahrenheit (about 30-33 degrees Celsius (I am trying to learn Celsius but I still haven't quite got it yet....I had to look this up)). We were lucky this trip though and mostly missed the rain. We only had two occasions where we got really soaked!

I didn't take any pictures of the airport in Iquitos, but google came to my rescue. As you can see, the airport is VERY small....basically just one big room for check-in, one room to pick up your baggage, and one smaller room to wait for your plane.

Iquitos Airport

The really disconcerting thing about the airport was that outside where you exited the plane, right beside the runway, there were all these creepy abandoned planes/helicopters just sitting there....did not instill much confidence in the airport or the planes....once again google helped me out and I found a fellow traveler who was also creeped out by the planes:

creepy abandoned plane at Iquitos airport

We had reserved a room at a cheap hostel in Iquitos called Green Track Hostel, which also owned and operated a reserve in the rainforest. Coming out of the airport, you are swarmed by a group of motocar drivers, all trying to get you into their car, which is quite intimidating (and creepy when they are clearly wanting to drive the blonde, pale, and clearly foreign girls traveling alone). Luckily the hostel had sent over someone to help us get a safe motokar to the hostel. The ride from the airport to the hostel was about 15 minutes or so, and the road was swarming with motorcycles and motokars. Again, google helps me describe it with pictures:

main road in Iquitos (Prospero) FULL of motokars

When we arrived at the hostel we were hot, exhausted, and ready to sleep...which we did.... after booking our Amazon jungle trip with the hostel owner. And so ended our first day in Iquitos.