As we leave Peru for Bolivia, and look back on the last month, we decide to take inspiration from the Chacana and rule of 3 of Andean history to summarise our time in Peru. I also think of all the conversations, stories, ideas and experiences we’ve had along the way that don’t make it into a destination post, but we still want to be able to look back on and remember. After all, it’s not always about the destination eh! So, here’s that post. A summary and mishmash of the cutting room floor, probably more for us than anything else.
Peru Rule of 3 Summary
Highlights (Alex) – Inca Trail, Lake Sandoval, sharing almejas (clams) with James in Lima.
Lowlights (Alex) – constantly sweating in the jungle, feeling taken advantage of/conned, tummy trouble on the Inca Trail
Lowlights (James) – night bus to the jungle with farting and snoring passengers and getting thrown around on the winding road, Peruvian drivers with a death wish, getting mithered in Cusco by touts
Takeaways (Alex) – pachamama, what the world lost from colonialism here, how hard everyone has to work and does work (plants and humans)
Takeaways (James) – the disparity of wealth, kindness and hard work of people, what would have happened without colonialism
How to Describe Peru (James and Alex) – Historic, Exquisite food, Diverse landscapes
Favourite Foods
Ceviche (sea bass in Lima, trout in Cusco)
Polleria (rotisserie chicken) our most popular meal!
Stuffed avocado
Almejas (El Rincon del Bigote)
Cusco special meal, very tasty
Tent cake 🎂
Entertainment
Podcasts: Criminal, Talk of the Devils, A short history of.. Machu Pichu and the Inca Trail, More or Less, This Is Love
TV & Film: Nobody, Sex Education, Taskmaster, Ant Man Quantumania
Books: The Red Pony, Of Mice and Men, The Freeze, Treasure Island, The Midnight Library
The Bits in Between
Most of the people we’ve met are here for a short break. This teaches me that it’s still possible to have these amazing experiences once we come back, our travels don’t end after this trip.
How dry everywhere is, and how much harder that makes everything. From staying hydrated, to breathing, to staying clean, to growing anything, to surviving. Nothing comes easy here, for many reasons, but I hadn’t appreciated before just how dry everywhere west of the Andes is (we get told that 90% of water flows east from the Andes in a tour, but I can’t find a source to confirm that)
From our guide in Colca, Eric – tourism doesn’t just give opportunity and ‘wealth’ to guides and porters. It’s just as much about the restaurants, the launderettes, the mini-markets, the taxis… wealth from outside the country brought in through tourism brings opportunity to people through these means they would never have otherwise have, and they are grateful for it
The guides here have been some of the best I’ve had in the world, unsurprising because they have to spend 5 years at Uni to be one, which they have to pay for without such things as student loans.
This has a knock-on effect of us understanding and appreciating Peru, its history and its people in a way we just wouldn’t get through touring on our own or with less educated guides
When asked why there isn’t fixed accommodation along the Inca Trail (it’s just plots for tents and huts for toilets and porters), Odi pointedly explains it creates jobs for the porters, they need this work, it’s important for the betterment of their children’s lives. Efficiency isn’t everything here, quite rightly.
When Covid hit, it was harvest season at the olive grove. They had around 800 people from the jungle, andes, local region living there temporarily for that purpose, and the police came and shut them down. They eventually managed to get re-opened as an essential food service, but it was a scary and difficult time. Once the harvest was over, the people were stuck because roads were shut, the family tried to find ways to get them out officially, but the people here are resourceful and they found their own means.
During the pandemic, without tourism, most guides returned to their farms to help work the land, there was nothing else. We realise the money we pay for the guides and porters will feed into their children getting educations that may mean they become the next guides.
Tourism had almost returned to pre-pandemic levels before political unrest dissuaded people from coming again, and now it’s dropped.
Odi tells me how the political unrest wasn’t as bad as the papers made out, the people just wanted to be heard and they were largely peaceful protests. The media (influenced by government through money and power) made out that the situation was worse than it was to justify their aggressive (and sadly deadly) response. This tactic seems woefully familiar across the globe.
Odi hopes that with more people learning about their pre-colonial history the culture and language will return
Gabriella, the friendly face of PV Travels in Puerto Maldonado, tells us of her difficulty trying to acclimatise to the heat and humidity there from Cusco and also suffering (this makes us feel a bit less like pathetic gringos)
Gabriella recounts her experience of the strikes in Puerto Maldonado, of the roads being blocked for a month so they had no gas, fuel or food. People were cooking with wood, having to walk everywhere (hard in 40 degree heat!), eating only what food could be sourced locally. The end is brought about by protestors losing support from the community, and them realising the only people impacted are their family and friends, their voices aren’t heard out here
At one point, the protestors went to the governor’s house (a bog-standard flat in the centre of town) and pelted it with rocks smashing the windows. In response he leans out with a rifle and shoots into the air. The people start a meme of “The Governator” (a la The Terminator), the Internet is great.
I would 100x prefer to be cold than hot.
Waiting and Views
The photos in between, of killing time, of room views, of watching the world…
Welcome to the jungle post. Here I’ll detail our three day experience in the sweltering Tambopata Jungle.
After a bus journey overnight from Cusco I’d rather forget, we arrive at 6.30am near Puerto Maldonado. The friendly face of Gabriella greets us at the bus station and we’re off to the PV Travel office in town. We need to wait for the rest of our group to arrive before heading to the jungle around 10am. With time on our hands we head for desayuno (brekkie). We try a Cafe but just after we order, a power cut hits the town and we’re out of luck. We have a bit of a wander around and stock up on supplies from a local chemist. After a while we find a decent Cafe, the owner hands us a large menu and says “you can have anything you want”. We enjoy breakfast in the breeze of a huge fan.
We return to the PV Travel office and before long the rest of our group is here and we’re ready to go. Jack a solo traveller from Shropshire and Harry and Siobhan from Bristol make up our group of five. We board a basic but sturdy motorboat below the impressive suspension bridge that looks a bit like the Golden Gate Bridge, connecting Peru to Brazil and Bolivia. On the way, Gabriella warns us not to leave our shoes outside the lodge as tarantulas might make a home in them.
Around 20 minutes buzzing down the Madre de Dios river and we arrive at the Paradise Lodge, and find out there’s not so much as a desk fan by way of respite from the heat. Saay (pronounced “sigh”) introduces himself as our guide for our stay in the jungle. We get the key to our rudimentary accommodation and immediately scan for creepy crawlies, we’re delighted not to find any extra roommates…
We rejoin Saay and the group for our first excursion, a biodiversity walk through the local jungle. We’re pouring with sweat in the unrelenting heat. Saay explains the weather is hottest at this time of year and it gets worse here everyday! The flora of the area is incredible, even within camp there are banana trees (at Alex’s dismay), pineapple bushes, birds of paradise and many more beautiful specimens flourishing in these warm and humid conditions.
We enter the jungle proper, slightly terrified by all of the scuttling around us as Saay casually exclaims “I just saw a tarantula run back into it’s hole.. You guys will be ‘lucky’ to see a snake”. We walk for around 90 minutes through the dense jungle, stopping frequently for Saay to explain the stunning ecosystem around us.
There are palm trees with sharp spikes to protect themselves while they grow, natives use these spikes as blowdarts, usually coated in the toxic resin from frogs; trees that latch onto other trees and smother them to take their place; walking trees that can move closer to sun or shade; a zombie wasp hosting a parasitic mushroom on its back; thousands of army ants forming lines of workers and soldiers like an organized regiment; giant termite nests that natives crack open for a source of protein and has holes built in for ventilation; a tree that has wedges in it for ants to live in that protect it from surrounding plant competitors creating a perfect simbiotic relationship (which Alex thinks us humans could learn a lesson from). Everywhere you look the jungle is teeming with life and a constant battle for sun, shade and rainfall is slowly happening before our eyes.
A “walking” tree:
We swat flies and mosquitos away and return to camp. Our lodge feels like a sauna so we wait for lunch in the hammocks outside the main shack. We enjoy a lovely lunch and we’re super grateful for the ice-cold local fruit juice.
Return to Monkey Island
The afternoon excursion involves a short trip downstream to “monkey Island” home to around 12 monkeys that were once held captive as pets. We cross the boiling sand and reach the 3km area of monkey territory. As we make our way through the lush jungle Saay calls out “Chico, Chico” and impressively replicates the sound of the local residents. There is no gaurantee to see them in their vast home but we’re in luck and each have the opportunity to feed these delicate creatures who now rely on human intervention as there is not enough natural fruit growing on the island.
Saay explains that tourists used to feed the monkeys cookies, candy and other unnatural foods that caused them to get closer and closer to tourists. Their previous alpha male Chico began to get aggressive when he didn’t get the sweet goods he craved and would scratch and bite visitors trying to take selfies and get too close. Eventually they had to revert back to natural foods and the monkeys now keep a safe distance. Much better for all involved in my opinion. Saay’s specialism at uni was eco tourism and we see his passion and consideration for protecting this region shine through. Sadly Chico met a grisly end as he was shot dead by a local miner, the family have a new alpha male now and balance appears to be restored.
Arriving back at the boat there is the opportunity to kayak or swim in the frankly quite dirty looking, piranha infested river. Alex and I are still adjusting to the 42 degree heat and opt to sit in the shaded boat while Gringos and locals wallow in the tepid water. We return to camp and share some tips over dinner with Siobhan and Harry who are doing the Inca Trail after the jungle tour. Even after the sun has long set the air is still incredibly humid and we’re in a constant state of damp sweat. We treasure the cold shower in the lodge (Alex is practicing a new ethos of ‘shower every hour’) and prepare for our night excursion, the same trek as before but this time in the pitch black when the wildlife “is different”.
The first stop on the trek is a dead palm tree in our camp, barely two metres from some lodges (luckily not ours). This tree is host to a family of tarantulas and Saay teases them out by making small vibrations with a twig. Eight large legs crawl out of the tree to investigate. Despite my phobia it was fascinating to see these horrifying creatures in their natural habitat.
Slightly shaking we head into the jungle. We are told to turn on our head torches and look for shining eyes of jungle inhabitants. Helpfully there is a colour scheme..
Green/yellow = spider or bug
Red = snake or rat
White = Wild boar
The first wildlife we see is of course another spider. This time with a large hole in the ground where it’s family live, the matriarch is teased out by Saay and the Black Goliath is easily the size of his hand. We’re told they can grow up to 25cm so I consider myself lucky we see this smaller chap.
We see lobster crickets, another huge brigade of army ants flowing like a river across the path, orb weaver spider, wolf spider, giant moths, large beetles and our trek comes to a sudden halt. Saay wants us to learn to live like an animal and orders us to turn off all our of lights. We oblige and are plunged into total darkness while the jungle hisses around us. He says we’ll stay like this for one minute, it feels more like five as he explains how each (sometimes deadly) animal adapts to the darkness. Some evolve their eyesight, others like bats use sound and sonar, others do something else but we were freaking out too much over each sudden movement or sound in the darkness to take in what we were being told. Afterwards you can taste the bright lights of camp but Saay warns us not to hold the handrail as Bullet Ants are on it. Bullet Ants have one of the most painful bites in the world and the pain can last up to 24 hours. Ominously we’re told it’s the kind of bite you would remember where and when it happened for the rest of your life!
Exhausted by a day of terror, heat and sweat we collapse into our mosquito net covered beds after another cold shower.
Ever want to come down?
We sleep surprisingly well in the warm night air, the jungle shifting all around us and a symphony from the critters and creatures ushered us to sleep. We’re welcomed with a mountain of fresh fruit, sweet pancakes and dulce leche (caramel spread), the only downside is the tar-like coffee.
Our morning activity is a return to the local jungle but this time we will be 70 metres up in the canopy for a new perspective. A hilarious “safety briefing” ensues next to the magnificent laputa tree. We’re told to hold onto the handrail but watch out for biting ants and spiders that live on them. Look where we are going but beware that bees might fly into our eyes, “just quickly roll them out”. We will be exposed to severe heat and our sweat will attract wasps to land on us to enjoy the salt. Look up for branches and ropes overhead but also watch your step as there are trip hazards. They may as well have told us the bridge rope is actually an angry anaconda.
Up we go:
Feeling somewhat nervous about the lack of safety gear, we scale the 60/70 meter stairs attached to the tree. I speak too soon about the stability of the rickety structure as it starts to wobble and sway around halfway up. Reaching the top, there is nothing to hold onto as it’s covered in bugs we start to make our way across the swaying canopy walk. We’re told this makeshift bridge can hold the weight of our entire group but as Alex helpfully points out there are recently replaced planks every few steps, wonder what happened there… I’ve done high ropes plenty of times and reassure myself that it’s fine because I’m attached to a rope in case I fall. Except this is Peru so I’m not, if I tumble over the waist high rope barrier, or a plank snaps underfoot, it’s a quick crash to the jungle floor. For the first time in my life I long for EU Health and Safety regulation.
Finding some courage I look up at the canopy view of the jungle biome and it is breath taking, there is an entirely different perspective up here. After walking 400m it’s time to zip wire down. The safety is still questionable but this is my favorite part of the experience as I zoom through the jungle trees, living life through the eyes of a local bird of prey for a precious few seconds.
A short steep hike back up a narrow plank and it’s time for a final zip wire. Connecting back to the rest of the group, we rush downstairs to terra firma. My emotion switches from a mix of excitement and fear to joy as Pumba the local boar comes up to me and scratches his ears on my legs.
Our lunch is a local speciality, Pika(?) fish steamed in leaves from a local tree that essentially acts as a natural baking foil.
Alex and I have slightly acclimatised to the heat and the experience of the jungle. Agreeing we take it day by day, we’re glad to be here after much uncertainty on day one.
No rest for the wicked, this afternoon we will trek 3km through Tambopata Nature Reserve to Sandoval Lake, paddle around until it’s dark then return 3km for a night excursion before dinner. We are very fortunate to see nature putting on a show for us on the way to the lake. We spot a small female turtle, a rare find explains Saay but then main course slithers into view. “SNAKE” cries someone towards the back of our group. Saay carefully investigates and we witness the macabre display that is the circle of life. A green whip tail snake has snatched an unfortunate brown frog for it’s lunch. Trying to ignore the pleas of the frog to somehow help it we move on deeper into the reserve. We see macaws flying overhead, hear noisy parrots making a racket in the tall trees and witness monkeys passing above our heads.
We arrive at a make shift dock and board a rowing boat. Saay captains us through “anaconda territory”, the jungle swamp that connects to the vast lake.
Luckily all we see are some nice birds. We reach the lake and are happily paddling around the edges, spotting many types of bird and cayman crocodiles peeking out of the water when Saay spots a hunting opportunity. Across the lake there is a family of otters fishing for their evening supper. It’s all hands on deck as we race across the lake to capture another theater of nature. We get there in time to watch the otters glide through the lake seeking fish. They are successful and we watch with binoculars as they crunch their way through their catch. At the same time macaws fly past, monkeys (including the tiniest baby howler monkey ever) swing through the trees and cayman slip under the water all around us.
A beautiful sunset creeps up on us and glistens in stunning colours on the waters surface. We head back to where we came from noting the change in mood in the jungle as darkness falls. To my delight the only creature we see on the way back is a boat billed heron searching for a snack. A quick 3km march and we’re back at the edge of the river. While we wait for our boat we admire the constellations of Scorpio, Orion and Sagittarius glistening in the night sky.
Birds of Clay
Our final morning trip involves setting off on the boat at 4.30am so we wearily make our way in the dark to the vessel. We doze as we skim at top speed up the river, passing under the Golden Gate-like bridge to reach a small beach.
Around 30 metres away are some clay cliffs, rich in minerals and anti-oxidants that birds fly from miles around to feast on for breakfast. Patience is a necessity as the gathering flocks of birds land on the top branches of the trees and slowly make their way down. Any slight suspicsion amongst the dozens of birds spooks them into flying away and regrouping minutes later starting the whole process again. This happens a couple of times but eventually the clusters of macaws, parrots and parakeets gain enough confidence to perch on the cliff face.
We spend half an hour in the warm dawn sunlight watching this unusual scene play out. Eventually the birds have their fill and we head back to camp for our last breakfast. The coffee somehow tastes worse than the day before but it’s the price you payfor a caffeine addiction.
With a bit of time to kill I wander the grounds of the Paradise lodge. I walk between trees with some curious tropical fruit growing on branches also home to several bird nests. I spot some black and yellow birds and a beautiful cardinal with a black and white body and bright crimson head. Alex joins me and we watch these tame birds flit between the trees building nests and feeding their young.
Returning to Puerto Maldonado we reflect on our jungle experience over our favorite cheap lunch, rotisserie chicken, chips and a large jug of cold fresh lemonade. Still sweating from the heat we agree we made the right decision coming here and putting ourselves outside our comfort zone. The jungle is a delicately balanced ecosystem daring you to explore it’s depths and full of surprises. We look forward to returning to the cooler climate of Cusco but this dog leg trip has definitely been worthwhile.
Can you guess which famous rock song has lyrics peppered throughout this post? Bonus points for how many lines from the song are in here! Answer in the comments below!
James
*******
Adventure – Being immersed in a new biome, facing our fears, row boating through the swamp to the stunning lake, being so off grid there was only electricity for 3 hours per day, trying to use a bus toilet during the many switchbacks through the Andes
Excitement – The huge array of wildlife on display, zooming through the jungle on a zip line, delicious local food and juices for each meal at camp, sleeping soundly on the night buses (Alex)
Trauma – Stinky snoring passengers on the night bus (James) , sleeping in separate beds due to the heat, Jack being bitten by a mystery jungle bug (he was fine), finding new places your body will sweat from such as your knees!
