Where's Warren?: 2018-02-11

Peruvian Jungle

By Allan Yuri Souza - 11:21 AM

Written by J. Warren:

My next stop after the Inka Trail was the Peruvian jungle along the Amazon River. What a contrast! I went from high altitude to sea level, cold weather to hot, and 1 million rocks per sq ft to 1 million mosquitos per sq ft.
The gateway city to the jungle is Iquitos, a gritty, noisy town on the banks of the Amazon. After a night in Iquitos, I met my guide who escorted me to a lodge on the Amazon river. The trip to the lodge started by car, but as the size of the streets narrowed, we had to switch to a mototaxi (a motorized tricycle) that took us to the banks of the Amazon where we boarded a boat that took us 90 minutes up the river.

Our mototaxi

Ayahuascan street murals near the boat dock

Along the river, there are small communities ranging in size from a handful to a few hundred people. The boat left us at a lodge next to one of these communities, Libertad. The lodge offered basic
accomodations- a cabin well off the ground, electricity 3 hours daily, cold water and a bed with mosquito netting.

The residents of Libertad live next to the lodge and many work there. I am still not clear if the lodge is a source of economic development or a company store. The community has a newly built school, several communal sources of water, and a communal bathhouse. Many houses have a generator and satelitte dishes for a TV. The community operates as a democracy with elected leaders empowered to establish local rules. Loud music is not allowed except on weekends when one of the huts is turned into a bar. There is even a local jail that is used for minor offenses such as killing an animal without reason. Offenders are forced to sit in a small box for a day or two, enduring the heat and the mosquitos.

The community of Libertad

The community store

The local jail in Libertad.

A novel umbrella

Even rain can’t stop the soccer game

A spontaneous swimming pool

I went with the guide for daily explorations- some by boat, others requiring walks through the jungle. The jungle walks were hot and teeming with mosquitos. A machete is a must as the dense foliage can be impassible. I have greater appreciation of how well use of “it’s a jungle” used at work reflects the reality of jungle life. It was much easier to get around by boat. I was able to enjoy the beauty of the river- the vegetation, especailly the Victoria lilies is awe inspiring. The river has many gray and pink dolphins (trivia- pink dolphins get their color from eating pirahnas). One of the best parts of traveling by boat is that it offered great chance to see monkeys, sloths and other animals. I only saw one snake- and it was small and non-venomous.

Victoria Amazonia lilies- all connected via an underwater root system.

Spikes on the bottom of the lily pad

A three-toed sloth

Lizard hiding in the bushes and waiting for prey

Look closely for the very large spider

Tarantulas come out at night

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Inca Trail

By Allan Yuri Souza - 7:30 AM

Written by J. Warren:

I had read about the Inca Trail before booking the trip. All of the materials describe hiking that involves climbs and descents across the Andes during a 4-day trek that ends at Machu Picchu. What the descriptions fail to mention is that people who want to undertake this hike should have genetic testing that shows their DNA is at least 1/8 mountain goat. In addition, persons over 35 should be required to undergo psychiatric examination before signing up for the trip. The second day of the trip was the most challenging. It took over 12 hours of hiking and required ascending 2 mountain passes higher than 13,000 feet, the most difficult is the aptly named Dead Woman’s pass.

It was hard, it was steep, I made it (barely).

Switchbacks on the trail (in Spanish “zig-zag”)

At the summit of Dead Woman’s

Pass- good reason to smile!

I traveled with a group of 13 hikers, all at least 30 years my junior, with Americans notable underrepresented. The group was mostly millennial couples who are taking 3-6 months off from work to travel, a phenomena I observed throughout my travels in Peru. Our band of 13 was assisted by 2 guides and 18 porters (yes, 18) who had meals prepared and tents awaiting for us at the end of the day. The porters carry enormous loads but fly across the trails, blowing past the hikers carrying only day packs. The group was in awe of their ability to do this.

The trek itself was fascinating as it offered an opportunity to see first-hand a bit of the lifestyle of people currently living in remote villages high, high in the Andes. Most people are farmers, eeking out an existence from the land. The scenery was spectacular- high mountain glaciers, waterfalls, azure blue skies.

I passed Incan ruins daily, an ongoing testament to the engineering and architectural prowess of the Incans (not to mention my amazement as to how the Incans could carry large granites boulders to the construction site when I was struggling to get myself up the hills). Do you remember the history of the Incans? Prior to the hike, I had only a vague recollection of something about Incans from Middle School back when we called it Junior High. The Inca Empire is noted for its expertise in agronomy, astronomy, engineering, and medicine- a.k.a. SCIENCE (am I allowed to use the word?). The structures built by the Incans in the 1400s still stand today without renovation. Incan architects and engineers polished and fitted rocks so that they fit tightly and can withstand earthquakes, unlike more modern buildings. The Incans also had a strong spiritual base tied to their worship of the Sun God. If things were not going well with the community, the Incans would sacrifice a noble child to talk with the Sun God. It was considered an honor to have a child sacrificed in this way.

One of the hikers in my group made an interesting observation about the Incan Empire and the current situation in America. She noted that the Incans are considered a primitive culture yet they made incredible advances in science and sacrificed a few noble children to address the needs of the entire society. On the other hand, in America, there are efforts to limit science and the children who are being sacrificed are those not wanted- the poor or immigrants. It begs the question about which is the primitive culture.