The next day we woke bright and early to try and see the famous pink dolphins of the Amazon. I saw none but was happy to be in the boat again.
After a quick nap (funny how it's easier to sleep in the daytime than it is at night here...)
We headed deeper inside the jungle. A healthy drizzle of fresh rain accompanied us on our little boat...
Harry at the stern...
I'm not sure how long we were on the river because there seemed to be no sense of time in the jungle. But sooner or later, we landed at this farmstead, about two riverbends up from another village.
The cows here aren't as plump as the ones we pass on Interstate 5 back in California.
The woman who owns this farm stopped her corn-counting to talk to us about living in the jungle and to sell us homemade goods (she found success in Pame.) I am sorry to say I paid more attention to the dogs than whatever the woman was saying.
Even the dogs here are smaller!
The jungle is ever-encroaching on the farm, which provides a bounty of fresh fruit.
This guy was pretty sour and tasted suspiciously like Señor Perfilio's coconá concoction back at the lodge.
More fruit...
I don't think I got this one open. Well, I always knew I couldn't survive out here!
Just as Sigourney Weaver says on that
Planet Earth miniseries, in the rainforest, living things grab onto and grow from any surface they can find.
While Pame and the farmer were talking about who knows what, Cid and Harry took me fishing. Though we threaded chicken skin onto the hooks and waited patiently, the piranhas were too quick. Whenever we lifted a line, the chicken was gone but there was no fish in its place.
By another village (name forgotten but I think it's another San Juan) Cid showed us these "jealousy plants" (Cid called them
celosa but I think a better word is bashful.) The leaves start out open but once you touch it...
... the leaf curls up and tries to hide itself.
As Esa said, if leaves had fingers, they'd be flipping you the bird right about now.
The village seemed a little larger than San Juan de Huanshaldo... someone had definitely taken the time to clear out some land for this hamlet.
This village is large enough to have a soccer team!
The village clinic was the only building with signs of life. Everyone else was out... probably working or playing or napping (since it's so difficult to sleep at night, at least for me.)
I see a phone number on that banner... where's the village telephone?
As we said goodbye to Village No. 2...
... we paddled our way back to Village No. 1, San Juan! Our jungle journey was coming to an end but we were lucky enough to see some of the kids horsing around before we left...
Not your average diving platform...
As we boarded the motorboat back to Iquitos, Suzie just couldn't let us leave without saying goodbye.
Señor Perfilio brought a few more monkeys to bid us adieu...
... and Suzie tried everything to keep us from departing.
I really meant everything! Bad Suzie!
The journey to the lodge only took one hour but since we were heading upstream, our motorboat struggled for two hours as we slowly made our way back to a land with electricity. The waters were noticeably choppier on our return...
... especially when large craft passed by. At first I thought this was a small vessel under the banner of the Peruvian navy...
... but then the back view made it look like a prison boat.
Thankfully, we made it back to Nauta sans prisoners!
Cid was the only guide to take the return journey with us as the other three had several weeks of training left at the lodge. I found him to be a very knowledgeable and impressive guide and I hope that all his problems with his lady friend are resolved. Or that he gets a new lady.
Before boarding a taxi back to the city center in Iquitos, Cid encouraged us to try a local delicacy: grilled
suri (obviously, worms.) These worms look like the kind you see in
The Lion King when Simba, Timon, and Pumbaa sing "Hakuna Matata." Well, when in the Amazon...
I must say that the worms are actually quite good. The body tastes a bit like the filling of a beef wellington, it's meaty with a hint of earthiness (probably because worms live in the ground!) The head is crunchy, like a potato chip. I enjoyed my first two worms.
The third on the stick, however, was cold by the time I got to it. I left the worm by a dog, who didn't eat it... wait a minute, if the dog doesn't eat it, what does that say about suri!?
