Rio Amazonas

After six continuous months, we are away from the Temple for two weeks while basic maintenance and upkeep is performed.  Earlier breaks took us to Arequipa in the South of Peru, back to the USA for annual medical checks then North to Tarma and LaMerced.   The Lima Temple serves worthy members throughout the entire country.   It is used more than almost any one of the other 140+ Temples spread throughout in the world.  

During the past two years we've met people from most places in Peru.  We see that unless members live within a couple hours of Lima there are few chances to come to the Temple.  Therefore,  most people who live farther away in the provinces can only afford to travel to the Temple a few times in their entire lives.  Thankfully two more Peruvian Temples are in the construction or planning phases.  

In June we shared the day with all of the Temple employees families, one of whom is our Bishop Flores and his wife and daughter.  They give endless hours to the youth.  We grilled our lunch and played games with all of the children then the grown-ups played that national pass-time 'futbol' or soccer.  Bishop Flores is in very good physical conditioning because of all the work he does at home and around the Temple. He plays soccer very well along with many of those who work there.   

Because the weather is fairly constant, flowers grow year around throughout the entire country.  From very tiny to very large, they come in all shapes colors and sizes.  Peru is at the heart of west central South America. Ecuador is to its north, Chile and Bolivia to the south, Colombia and Brazil to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Its ancient history dates back to the presence of the Incas. Its estimated population of 30 million includes descendants of Spanish settlers and Inca and pre-Inca cultures. Peru’s flora reflects a similar pattern, based on its geographical diversity.

 Just before the end of June we attended a despidida or farewell luncheon for two mission presidents and their wives and two families.  These warm and gracious people - Pres Dorius (Becky), Pres. Blunck (Karen) return home to California and Oregon respective after serving the people of Peru for three years. Other members who work in Lima either for the U.S. Embassy or private companies are reassigned.  Each contributes to our feelings of belonging.  They all   go out of their way to make missionaries feel more at home.  

President Robert Lees and his wife Kay oversee the Temple ecclesiastically while the temple recorder is the business manager.  Each of them gave so very much attention to their assignment for these three years.  They will return home to Arizona later this fall.  On days off we've all enjoyed time together learning about Lima visiting the sights.  Food here is varied and plentiful.  Fruits and vegetables abound along with juices of every variety.  Most everything is fresh and very healthy.  We do take precautions to disinfect anything that isn't peeled.  

Five minute greeting friends

Not far from our apartment is a wonderful mall Jockey Plaza, in a large acreage that includes a track for racing horses.  It has very modern shops and stores, restaurants and conveniences including a financial center to retrieve cash from ATM's using our regular bank card.  This area of Lima is modern and safe.  Buses run everywhere all days of the week.  This family of three generations is typical.  

Dinner date with Adams

Archeological sights are plentiful in all of Peru.  This one in Mira Flores sits adjacent to a nice restaurant.  Our friends Derrall and Julie Adams took us there.  He works for a Danish company providing mining equipment solutions.  They are here for a few more years before returning to their home in Utah.  Between all those working in Peru we collaborate knowledge then visit places that pass the reality test of others.  We were new to South American ways displaying plenty of caution.  Not any more.  We are much more moderate and will travel most anywhere within reason.  Planes or buses access it all.

A portion of our great Map

So, a few months back we studied our trusty map bought the first week in Peru scouring it for interesting places to visit.  Friends had gone to the 'jungle' in Puerto Maldonado over a general conference weekend but the 'real' Amazon was lurking in our minds.  Talking options over with experienced travelers dispelled any questions or concerns before our plans were set.  Flying is the only way to get to the Amazon or Rio Amazonas except up river 4,000 miles from the Atlantic.  We took the scenic tour through Pucallpa, a city of about 200,000 located half way there, then on to Iquitos.  Our trip was two parts with five days on the Amazon down river from Iquitos at Ceiba Tops run by Explorama Tours then three days in the city on our own.  Landing and opening the door of the plane introduced us to the heat and humidity of this beautiful place.  Temperature was 80 with 90% humidity.  Our guide, Percy held up our name first on inside the terminal at baggage claim.  We checked two rollers and carried a backpack with our electronics.  The airport was simple and efficient so we were on our way, bags in hand within a few minutes.  We drove the few miles into town and on to the boat for the ride down the Amazon River.  

Iquitos is a city of about 600,000 people although we heard numbers as high as 800,000.  Mototaxis were everywhere, 30,000 of them.  Automobiles are a rarity due to limited access.  The entire city sounded like one continuous motocross race with all these taxis buzzing as bees.  Drivers rode the equivalent of a motorbike with this 'rickshaw wheeled carriage behind.  Capacity was all in the creativity of the passenger.  Families of five or more would all squeeze into to one taxi at times.  The cost was subject to the rules of caveat emptor so negotiation was done before the ride unless you were willing to pay any variety of price.  Working our way through town the hum of these 'moto-taxis'  became its own memory tag.  Later on I visited a sales room to find for myself what was the cost of these rascals anyway?  The standard units go for about $2000 but there are better and more sturdy varieties that cost $2,500.  

The main street in downtown Iquitos.

European-Peruvians established Iquitos as a Jesuit mission to the indigenous peoples in the 1750s. In 1864 it started to grow when the settlers created the Loreto Region and made Iquitos its capital. It is the seat of a Roman Catholic Apostolic Vicariate.

Iquitos was known for its rubber industry throughout the rubber boom decade beginning in 1900; it attracted thousands of immigrants from around the world, mostly young, single men who hoped to make their fortunes in rubber. The rise of the automobile and related industries had dramatically increased the worldwide demand for rubber. Some men became merchants and bankers, and made their fortunes that way. Many of the European men married indigenous women and stayed in Peru the rest of their lives, founding ethnically mixed families. The immigrants brought European clothing styles, music and other cultural elements to Iquitos.

Among the unique communities formed by the 19th-century rubber boom immigration was that of Sephardic Jews from Morocco. Many of the men married Peruvian women and made families in Iquitos. They established a synagogue and the Jewish Cemetery. By the end of the 20th century, four or five generations later, most descendants were no longer practicing Jews. In the 1990s, a descendant of a Jewish settler undertook serious study of the religion and began to revive Judaism among his family, friends, and other Sephardim descendants. After years of study, with the help of a sympathetic Conservative rabbi inLima and another from Brooklyn, New York, eventually a few hundred people learned and practiced and converted. (Conversion was necessary as their mothers were not Jewish.) Many of the converts emigrated to Israel under its "right of return" policy.

The wealthiest Europeans built great mansions in the late 19th century, some of which survive. Casa de Fierro (Spanish for the Iron House) was designed by Gustave Eiffel, designer of the Eiffel Tower. After rubber seeds were smuggled out of the country and began to be cultivated in quantity elsewhere, the Peruvian boom came to an end. The city is still an important trading port in the Amazon basin.

On 13 August 2012, a special plaque was placed in the plaza 28 de Julio of the city in a big ceremony to commemorate theAmazon River and rainforest as one of the seven natural wonders of the world.^[7] The 21st-century-style plaque was forgedalongside that of the Iguazu Falls in Munich, Germany

River Taxis shuttle visitors up and down the river daily.  The River also is serviced by River Buses that keep to schedules delivering passengers, freight and livestock.

Iquitos experiences an equatorial climate. 

Throughout the year, it has constant rainfall so there is no distinct dry season, and has temperatures ranging from 21 °C to 33 °C. The annual average temperature is 26.7 °C, with an average relative humidity of 115%. The average rainfall in Iquitos is 103 inches per year. Because the seasons are not sensitive in the equatorial zone, Iquitos has only two seasons.

It has a rainy winter, which arrives in November and ends in May, with March and April tend to include more humid climate. Precipitations of about 11.81 inches and 11.02, respectively. In May, the Amazon River, one of the rivers surrounding the city, reaches its highest levels, repeatedly fell about 9 meters or 12 meters at its lowest point in October, and then steadily increases cyclically.^[10]

Summer offers a very different climate. Although July and August are the driest months, remain some periods of downpours. Sunny days and good weather are common, and is utilized to dry things, high temperatures reaching 30 °C and an average of 32 °C. Rainfall felt over the years are more abundant than those of Ayacucho, Cusco and Lima.

Iquitos also has microclimates: rain or drizzle may be present in some areas of the districts, while other parts of the city are slightly cloudy or clear. The temperature may vary.

The urban climate is slightly warmer than the natural climate, and would be reflected by the thermal sensation. It also suffers from a phenomenon called urban heat island, where the heat has difficulty dissipating into the night hours.

In 1808, Hipolito Sanchez Rangel, the bishop of Maynas, reported that the village had 171 inhabitants of Iquitos and the 8 June 1842, date where the town was elevated to district, had just over 200 inhabitants.

Rio Amazonas, slow moving cloudy water

In 1860, according to Paz Soldan, the town had only 300 inhabitants. Two years later, the population increased to about 431 inhabitants and in 1864, there were 648 people, predominantly mestizo due to the presence of families from Borja, Santiago, Santa Teresa, Barranca and others, who fled away from the attack on the Huambisas and Aguaruna native and destroyed the villages.   According Genaro Herrera, in 1866, Iquitos had a population of 648 people. For 1876, again the same author reports a population of 1,475 inhabitants.  In 1903, in the middle of the rubber boom, Iquitos had 9,438 inhabitants (census of Benito Lords), of which 542 were foreigners, most of them from Spain (95) Brazil (80), China (74), Portugal (64) and as many from Italy, England, France, Ecuador, USA, Russia, Switzerland andMorocco.  Currently, Iquitos has emerged as the largest city in the Peruvian Amazon and one of the most important of the Amazon in South America. Counted by the Census of 2007 with 406,340 inhabitants.  Current population estimates exceed 700,000.  

Giant buttressed trunk

Ceiba Tree with jungle vines - 125 feet tall

 No dominant variety exists in the jungle forest.  The selva is comprised of a large variety of plant life.  No one tree grows in groups.  Vines encompass a variety of plants, including lianas that hang from the treetops, bole climbers, which ascend tree trunks and stranglers, which wrap themselves around trees and sometimes choke them. They are present in both disturbed areas exposed to light and in forest interiors, and regardless of soil type. Humans have long used vines for food, medicine, hallucinogens, poisons and construction materials.  Vines are some of the elements that give rainforests their characteristic dense appearance. Apart from their structural role, they are essential food and "highways" for Amazon wildlife, including gringos from Utah.  

Jungle vines - 100 ft. Swing fun

Because most rainforest insects feed on plants, these have had to evolve survival abilities to defend themselves. Such techniques involve secreting toxic compounds that will repel the attackers … who in turn evolve abilities to exploit other weak points in the plant. 

Tropical rainforests set records in biodiversity: anywhere between 40 to 100 species of tree can be found in a 1-hectare plot of land. Take the Cocha Cashu Biological Station in the Amazon floodplain forests of Peru, as an example. There, at least 1,856 species of higher plants have been 

discovered.
The Amazon is home to as many as 80,000 plant species from which more than 40,000 species play a critical role in regulating the global climate and sustaining the local water cycle.³ But richness of species is one thing, and abundance another. While there may be many species in tropical rainforests, these often exist in low numbers over large areas.

Amazon plants and trees play critical roles in regulating the global climate and sustaining the local water cycle. The forests they form are home to the huge variety of animals found in the Amazon. 

But their greatest riches yet may be the compounds they produce, some of which are used for medicine and agriculture. For Amazon people, both indigenous and recent arrivals, plants are a food source and raw matter for non-timber forest products.

Rio Amazonas officially begins at Iquitos then flows East to the Atlantic twisting and turning 3,977 miles away.  It is the second longest river in the world and is by far the largest by water flow with an average discharge greater than the next seven largest rivers combined (not including Madeira and Rio Negro, which are tributaries of the Amazon). The Amazon, which has the largest drainage basin in the world, about 7,050,000 square kilometers (2,720,000 sq. mi), accounts for approximately one-fifth of the world's total river flow. 

River taxis run back and forth delivering people, goods and mail on a regular schedule every day.  The cost is very nominal and accommodations aboard varies by which one you use.  Many carry livestock and freight to the villages and products generated along the river back to Iquitos markets. By clicking on any of the pictures you will see the details by viewing the picture larger.


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 River flows range from about 2 mph to 6 depending on the season, high water to low water.  These seasons vary with the melting of the snowpack high in the Andes Mountains then encircle the Amazon Basin.

River Bus Stop

River Shuttle

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Each stop has its own name.  

Residents living near the river bus stop have small acreages they farm.  Crops of fruits and vegetables of every kind and description sustain them with excess production sold for cash.  

Flat bottom craft navigate the waters of the Amazon with ease and safety.  The River becomes the link between almost all civilizations on the interior of this vast land.  Visitors are able to enjoy beauty here every month of the year.  The Amazon River in Peru  has two seasons, a high water season (December through May) and a low water season (June through November). Traveling to Peru in either season offers rich rewards . . . fabulous sites . . . amazing opportunities to view plant and animal life . . . and hot weather with some rainy days here and there every part of the year.  

 The Amazon basin is as rich and lush and green as it is because it gets an abundance of rain (12 feet a year on average). In a typical year, the Amazon River rainforest experiences 200 rainy days, which means that there will be days of heavy rain even in the low water season.

 This 17 year old mother lives with her mother and raises her son as she prepares for the birth of her third child. One other child was born to her but died.  Her husband has gone to Lima to find work.  He is expected to return, hopefully.  Her sister is shown below.  She is 14.

This house uses logs for cooking fires.  These are kept going day and night in a simmering condition.

This young woman is 14 and just gave birth to a son 3 months ago.   Life is both very simple and highly complicated for the Indians of the Amazon.  

The mother of the two girls helps with their care in this 25 year old home.  It sits up on the river bank on stilts for predator protection as well as safety during high water.  Levels vary by as much as 25 feet rising to just beneath the floors on which she is resting her elbows.

 A three month old was sleeping in a hammock when we approached the home.  As he stirred his mother tended to him then brought him to see us.  As we talked to her mother she walked into the garden behind us and brought out a cucumber.  Other garden produce included yucca, potatoes, sweet potato and palm heart among others.

Alejandro and his mom tend a garden, collect eggs from the many chickens living around and under the house and wash clothes in the river.  Their days don't vary too much one to the next.  He was anxious to see the pictures I'd taken of them but didn't express much emotion.  The two girls smiled and shy but talked a little with us.  Their mother did most of the talking.  She was very matter of fact and direct talking to us.  We asked when last they had visitors to their home and learned it was perhaps a year or more back.   

Visiting a school was a grand experience.  The children were highly interactive so we looked at their workbooks and papers.  They loved being in the spotlight of pictures.  Talking to them could have taken the rest of the school day but their teacher was very generous with his time telling us about the classes (2) that he teaches.  Each hour he spends time with both of the two classes with open doors in between.  We could have stayed there for the day easily talking and playing with each of them.  Individual attention was given to many.

 One of the parents brought their entire family and prepared lunch for all the school.  The menu consisted of rice/beans and spaghetti with sardines. (not sure I'll order that the next time I'm at Market Street Grill)  This family had two children in school along with these two younger ones.  Parents take turns preparing lunch for the school.  We were so happy to see entire families together, children and parents.  Even working parents in the market brought their young ones to work letting them play nearby.  Entire families together is the norm in all of Peru

 This woman was infatuated with us and our camera so we talked with her then took her picture to show her.  Our guess as to her age is mid fifties at most.  Her granddaughter (age 2) was with her.  She told us about her family who have lived nearby for several generations.

 Max spent a few moments with this young man.  He impressed us as one hungry for learning.  His eyes communicated intelligence and interest in life.  His shirt was clean and orderly, not just a T shirt.  I would have loved to have talked with him more.  There is just nothing stopping these eager children from excelling in everything.

Taking interest in them individually creates immediate feedback.   Each of them brought workbooks and other papers to show and talked incessantly.

 As we left they all came to the river and waved to us.  Where the top of the bank sits presently is only a part of the way to high water.  The high water line on the school reached half way to the top of the wall.  2012 was a very high mark year.

 Another family we visited consisted of a mother and her three pre-schoolers.  They spent a while talking to us.  Her husband was working in the field behind the house (below) and their two older children were at school.  We had likely met them at school but didn't connect them as a part of this family.  

Every day seems like laundry to mothers.  Nothing changes just because we lack modern laundry equipment.  All clothing is hand washed in the river then hung out to dry.  Describing their home is simple.  There are no doors, windows or rooms, just dividers.  The entire structure is on one level, made of wood with a thatched roof.  This thatch lasts for seven to eight years then needs to be replaced.  We passed one boat loaded with thatch replacement panels.  Thatch is one of the oldest forms of roofing, dating back thousands of years. It is found in almost every country, from savannah grasses in Africa to coconut palm fronds in the Caribbean to banana leaves in the Amazon. It was the predominant roofing material in Britain up until the 19th Century and thatched cottages remain a hallmark of the English Countryside.

All sorts of plants have been used for thatching in Britain: oats, reeds, broom, heather, bracken and various grasses. But today only three main thatching materials are used: water reed, wheat reed and long straw.

Water Reed is the most popular thatching material. Both water reed and wheat reed (actually a straw but cut with a binder and combed to give the appearance of reed) give a compact and even texture when applied to a roof. This is in contrast with long straw (wheat straw that has been threshed so that the ears and butts are mixed up together), which gives a shaggy, rounded appearance. The lifespan of thatch is around 30 to 50 years, although this varies widely depending on the skill of the thatcher, the pitch of the roof, the local climate conditions and the quality of the materials.

 Two examples of Thatch from the inside.  Walkways or hammock houses protected us from the rain and extreme heat of the sun being so near the equator at 3.5 degrees South Latitude.  

 We're up early and on the river before sunrise.  The river is still flowing with swirls and currents running throughout.  Easily navigable if you know all the islands, inlets and estuary locations.  Our capitans have piloted these craft with passengers for many years.  It is likely they know every village and resident for many miles.  Our speed averaged about 42 kph or 25 mph.  

 Each house is different in construction.  While most are on stilts to accommodate the fluctuation of water level there are others higher up with less or no elevational construction.  Residents continually access the river, either to fish or move about between land masses.  The family car is a dug out canoe, self constructed with narrow beam but good length.  The draft of each canoe is shallow.  

Another Family along the river.  Their house is back in the trees.  Never any electricity out in the jungle (selva).  Imagine how your day would be without it.  When do you go to bed and get up.  No electronics of any kind.  No internet, kitchen appliances of any kind, only pots and pans.  No sink.  The river is your sink.  No laundry equipment.  Not even a scrubbing board, just water and buckets.  Food is what you raise, hunt or catch----in the river.  The River is life here.  Happiness is enough food and family to watch out for you in your youth.  After that its up to you.  

The vines plants of the selva became a beautiful backdrop for our 50th anniversary picture.  Our personal guide Percy had worked in this lodge for sixteen years.  His knowledge of plants and animals is exceptional.  His photographic skills always were voluntarily given.  He takes no responsibility for the photogenic acceptance of his subjects.  

High on the 'Canopy Walk' we pause to enjoy this beautiful place.  Nothing can take its place for variety, symmetry and contrast.  This is a very exceptional place in all the world.  

The highest tower on the canopy walk at 115 feet.  Looking down the floor of the forest was completely obscured by plant life.  Survival in the selva (forest) is dependent on sunlight for each plant and tree.  The continual fight is for light.  This walkway was originally built to accommodate study of the selva then it became more self sufficient financially when visitors gained access and user fees were charged.  

One word.... Scary !!

If ever you wanted to see the selva from a birdseye view the Canopy Walk is the way to go

Canopy height is 100 ft.

photo via Dawn On The Amazon

photo via Dawn On The Amazon

Colorful Parrots

                                                                               

Monkeys of many kinds danced through the trees

As you explore the vast isolation of the headwaters region, you don't feel like you are disturbing nature, but gliding through it unobtrusively. Easing up a stream with treetops so close you are practically sitting among them, you have the privilege of enjoying a close intimacy with the natural world from the deck of your boat with binoculars and camera in hand. Every creature in the selva is cautious and wary.  Survival is the ultimate objective therefore what may be confusing is the level of shyness in each animal.  Unless they are cornered their behavior is generally non-aggressive.