Holy humidity!

Arrived in Iquitos around 5:30am and was met by someone from the Explorama company who put me on a very strange old bus that was all wood planks inside. I met Debbie and Jan, and Marlene and Carl - two couples from the states on a tour vacation. They were very nice folks! We drove through the villiage just outside of Iquitos which was very primitive. This was my first real look at Peru and I was having severe culture shock! We then drove through the city of Iquitos which was much bigger than I had imagined and so colorful! All of the buildings and umbrellas and signs on the street were every color of the rainbow! There were even tuk-tuks which were also in Thailand. There is a building in Iquitos called Casa de Hierro which was designed by Eiffel (yes the Eiffel Tower dude).

Kinda funny. This building just seemed to have typical shops in it now, not sure what it was used for originally.

We arrived at the Explorama office and boarded a boat. The ride for me was 45mins down the Amazon River to Ceiba Tops. The others were going to Explorama Lodge so they had twice as far to go.  Once at Ceiba Tops, I met my guide Louis and the 4 other Norwegian people who were in my group. It was raining. Not Just raining but RAINING. The Amazon rains 250 days a year!! I cant believe how humid it was, I have never experienced humidy like that! I got soaked just walking from the lodge to my room. The room was huge, airconditioned (essential in the jungle!! Not only because it is so hot but also necesary to dry your clothes!) and had 2 comfortable beds with comfy fluffy pillows which is rare in Peru, and a nice bathroom.

The window looked out on the jungle which was around 15 feet away. Really beautiful.

The rain stopped and our first excursion was a boat ride and then tuk-tuk to the village of  Indiana. The main street had bushes all the way down it that were all kinds of shapes - mermaids, people, jugs, ducks, llamas, etc. Lots of beautiful flowers. There were a lot of kids, dogs and chickens hanging around. After walking around for a while we ran into a girl that had a pet Woolly Monkey. It was sooo cute! Back at Ceiba tops, I saw red macaws and saddle-back tamarins in the trees.

It was a wonderful first day and Louis was an awesome guide!!