Welcome to the Jungle (City)??? - Iquitos

So, I arrived to Iquitos, tired but excited to be in the jungle. It was a little more hectic (see pic below) than I had expected, so I decided to cut my trip there a little short and stay for only two days.

The first place I went, after being hassled a bit in the square and finding a nice little hostel, was a restaurant called, "The Yellow Rose of Texas". I did not mean to stumble into this strange, expensive restaurant, but I think I was suffering from hunger and lack of coffee... My only excuse.The food was not bad, expensive, but not bad. The decor, however was amazing.

The place had Texas memorabilia everywhere! The owner is from Texas, and he is still very proud. Interesting!

That evening, I took some time out to relax after the long boat ride and ate dinner at a nice, cheap, Peruvian restaurant. Went to bed rather early and woke up the next morning to explore.

The next day, I had a great, homemade breakfast and headed to a Butterfly Farm located about an hour away, by boat, from Iquitos. First, I have to give homage to the docks of the Amazon.

The water is very high right now, so there are many makeshift piers. The one on the left is literally pieces of wood placed, not nailed, over the water. There were also people swimming in between the piers.. Very different than Topsail Island, but just as functional.

I then got in a water taxi to the village where the butterfly farm is located. It is ran by a German woman who has been there for over twenty years. She was very knowledgeable and compassionate. You can see her below with the small monkey on her head. Not only do they

have butterflies at the farm, there is also monkey, sloths, a jaguar, an osolat, an anaconda, caymans, and birds. The animals are all in

captivity, but she acts as more of a sanctuary than a zoo. People here have traditionally eaten everything, including monkeys. So, in many instances there are baby monkeys on the back of the mamas that people have captured to eat. They bring the babies to places like the butterfly farm to

live. So, she uses the admissions fee to feed the large number of animals on her farm. It is sad to know that people eat these animals, but it is cultural, and therefore, I have to understand. And, these people are traditionally hunters and fishermen without the luxury of having an Earth Fare within walking distance. So, really who am I to judge?

My favorite animals there were the slothx (see me petting sloth) and the jaguar. The jaguar has to eat (a lot of) red meat, so a large part of the admissions fee goes directly to feeding the jaguar. He can not be

let back in the wild now because he is too accustomed to being around

people. She has notified the Peruvian government that she has the jaguar, but she has been waiting eight years for him to be moved to a more secure place..

And, of course the butterflies! She explained the life of a butterfly, and I learned that every caterpillar has a specific leaf. So, that is why is it is so hard to foster the growth of butterflies.

The flowers on the farm were also miraculous. I am (very) lucky to have lived in Hawaii, and many of the flowers on the farm reminded me of flowers that I had seen in Hawaii.

The butterfly farm was definitely the highlight of my Iquitos experience. The little village was also a great place to visit. I had an nice local guide walk me to the farm and back. He was learning English, so I guess I was his big chance to practice.

After visiting the farm, I decided to explore the market scene in Iquitos. There is a huge floating market in Iquitos called Belen where EVERYTHING is sold - monkey heads and all.

But, I heard it was a little dangerous after a certain time, so I opted for a more low key market down the road from my hostel. I ate river fish, chicken feet soup, and some type of potato cake. I finished the meal off with a Lukema, a type of Peruvian fruit, ice cream. It was a fun meal. My favorite part was exploring the market. It is where the heart of all South American cities lives.

I only had two nights in Iquitos. I wanted to get a glimpse of the beauty of the city, so I walked down to the Amazon riverfront and watched the sunset. It was peaceful and beautiful. And, although I did not see as many animals (in the wild) that I would have liked in Iquitos, I do believe that the local culture is equally as interesting. The homosexual population in Iquitos is thriving more than any place else I have seen in Peru or Ecuador. This is always a good sign!

I am in Santa Marta, Colombia now. I just finished a four day hike to the Lost City of Colombia - amazing. I am thinking a lot about returning to the states and putting energy out into the wide world of jobs and PhDs. I am trying not to worry myself too much about the outcome, but I must say, it's a struggle. Tomorrow, I am going to Parque Tayrona, a park 45 minutes from Santa Marta.