Exploring Iquitos

Today was our first day in Iquitos. We didn't have clinic, so they organized a tour of the city. We met at the AP office and from there took the motocarros (motorcycle front with golf cart like back), which is one of the few forms of transportation in the city, to the main market. There are some cars, but they are quite rare, and a few buses. There are also motorcycles, but we won't be taking those (and I would never so don't worry). The market was really cool with fresh piranha and river catfish, real grubs (look exactly like the ones in the Lion King), fruits, etc. we also got to see where the two rivers join to make the Amazon, which was pretty cool. Sadly I didn't bring my phone or camera, since they said things could get stolen, but everyone else brought things and I'm 100% positive I would have been fine if I made sure to pay attention. All of the pictures are courtesy of Caitlin.

Grubs

Various fruits and vegetables

Us by the water at the market

The boats near the market

After the market we went to the marina to see some of the boats that take people on multi-day journeys down the river and bring goods as well. They cram tons of people in and I'm sure it's not the most comfortable journey! We then went to the Belén neighborhood and took some boats on the river to see the area. The neighborhood is quite poor and has an open sewage system, but it was neat to see. We will have our first clinic say there tomorrow. 

Some of the boats that transport people up and down the river

In Belén

Taking a boat ride around Belén

Belén

After Belén we went back to the AP office for lunch, which was cooked by the chef Nancy and tasted delicious. We are very lucky to have her cooking for us during the trip, including when we are in the jungle. We had a fried rice type dish, plantains, a mango salsa, yucca, beans, and an amazing salad with avocado. We then had a brief overwork of the trip and a few very short lectures, including what we know about Zika. 

After lunch we walked around the area with Patty, who created the organization, and she showed us some places we could eat while in town. We then went back to the hotel and rested for a bit before Lindsey, Stephanie, Caitlin, and I walked around more ourselves. Today was the celebration of Carnival, so we saw the people dancing around this pole the put up that is decorated with baskets and colorful stuff that they chop down and grab like a piñata. It looked like they were having a lot of fun. 

When we got back to the hotel we met the rest of the group and went to Ari  Burger for dinner and to watch the Super Bowl! I had paiche, which is a huge river fish, with plantains, rice, and a small cabbage salad with passion fruit juice. It was all delicious! We stayed until just after half-time and then walked back. A few of us got some street churros for 1 sol (about 30 cents-ish) which were phenomenal, and then came back to the hotel where I got ready for bed and am not watching the final 3 minutes of the Super Bowl in my room. Lucky we have cable! Almost time for bed, but have to watch there last few minutes!

On to Iquitos

This morning was our last in Lima, though I will have many a long layover there in the next few weeks, so who knows, maybe I'll end up there for an hour or so again. Anyways, I didn't sleep super great last night since I was so hot! I realized late in the night that one of our roommates had closed the window, subsequently turning the room into a humid furnace. I opened it and just as it finally cool down slightly she closed it again. It was a tiny bit noisy, but she had ear plugs and I didn't have a refrigerator, so I wasn't super happy. They left early though and I reopened the window.

Anyways, after that I woke up around 7AM to finish my presentation and have some breakfast. We then packed and around 10AM decided we wanted to get some early lunch ceviche. We got a cab to La Mar Cebicheria (they have one in SF too!), but they didn't open until noon. We tried another place and they said the same thing, which was disappointing. Oh well. We thought it was a bit weird since we were told earlier that people from Lima don't eat ceviche after 1 or 2PM, but I guess things don't have to make sense. 

After our ceviche bust we walked the 25-30 minute walk back to the hostel. Along the way we stopped at a grocery store where we got some bread, spreadable peppered cheese, and avocados for sandwiches for the plane, as well as some tamarind, satsumas, and these mini watermelon things that turned out to taste like cucumbers. We also stopped by the cat park to see the kitties, but most were sleeping since it was hot out.  

When we finally got back we paid for the three nights stay and the waters we had purchased, and then caught a cab to the airport. Once at the airport I found a place to wrap my bag that was falling apart and then we checked our luggage. I had to pay about $37 for being overweight, but it wasn't too bad, and I got rid of all the over weight stuff in Iquitos. We saw our Kiwi friend from the food tours at the airport again and said hello, and then went to our gate. 

Getting on the plane meant taking a bus to the Tarmac. They loaded the bus way before it left, which was annoying, but we eventually got there. We were sitting together and no one was between us, so we had good space. I fell asleep for most of the flight to Tarapoto where we had a short layover (we got to stay on the plane), and I had my sandwich which was actually really yummy! I slept some on the next flight as well and we eventually made it to Iquitos. 

Getting on the plane to Iquitos

On arrival we met our driver as well as two girls from North Carolina, one of whom lives in Iquitos doing missionary work. They knew our driver so he have them a ride on our way to the hotel and it was nice to hear about the city from their perspective. The hotel is pretty nice, though basic, but it has AC and a safe for my electronics, so I'm more than happy. 

Once we put our stuff down we set out to bring the donations to the Amazon Promise office, but it was then pouring! I put on my rain jacket, but apparently it is not so waterproof, because my arms were really wet. My pants and shoes are still soaked hours later. I'm hoping they don't get all mildew-y and and praying for some good overnight drying. Thank goodness we got those donations there though because my suitcase was really falling apart. I noticed as we were taking the bags the four blocks to the office that one of the wheels fell off on the flight here. Luckily I was getting rid of it now anyways! 

After dropping the donations we went back to the hotel and connected with Stephane and Lindsey and the rest of the team. We all went out for dinner at a local Italian place where I had a yummy calzone. I also finally got a Pisco Sour and its National Pisco Sour day, so that was fun. After dinner we picked up some big waters and now it's time for bed. Tomorrow is a city tour and I'm hoping to avoid rain, though it doesn't look promising! Suck a stark difference here from Lima, where the average yearly rainfall is 2mm!!

Lima Day Two

First of all an observation. The Peruvians in Lima love Schnauzers. I see there everywhere. I have never seen so many in my life as I have in the last two days. Most are normal sized, but I have even seen a Giant Schnauzer. On to my day...

This will have to be short because it is 1AM, I haven't finished my presentation, and I am dead exhausted. I got up around 9AM this morning, and had a quick breakfast before heading to our bike tour. The tour was really nice, especially since we were the only two one the tour, making it more personal and customizable. We biked through Miraflores and Barranco and learned a bit more about the city while seeing some lovely views. We also stopped for a sandwich at a cute place in Barranco, which was really nice as a snack around lunchtime. The terrain where we biked was mostly flat, so overall the day was quite pleasant despite some intense sweating due to the heat!

Our Bikes

Parque del Amor

Biking in Barranco

The main square in Barrance

After the bike tour we took off some of our sweaty clothes and changed before heading to downtown Lima. We decided to take the Metropolitano, which is basically an express bus. Wow, was that bus ever crowded. We were packing in like sardines like I never have been before in my life. I couldn't move or reach a place to hold on for lots of the trip. Now add the heat on top of that, and ugh. Not my favorite. We eventually made it to downtown and started walking around. Since we ahdnt had much lunch, but our food tour was coming up we decided to have an ice cream. I had the lucuma flavor, very which was interesting, but not bad! Its a very Peruvian fruit. We then did a quick walking tour of the downtown area based on Caitlin's tour guide book and learned a little about downtown before eventually meeting the food tour group.

Plaza San Martin

Random man sitting in downtown with a rat on his shoulder

Church off the Plaza de Armas

Plaza de Armas in downtown

We weren't exactly sure where to meet, since all we knew was "the fountain" and later found there were multiple fountains, but luckily the girl we met yesterday has quite red hair and we spotted her and found the group. Today there were five of us, the three from yesterday plus two Australian girls from Adelaide. We went all over downtown trying different street foods. It was really fun! Everything from the freshest most unique fruit, to the most traditional Peruvian dishes, to Chinese food in China Town! Lots of fun for sure.

Street art downtown Lima

Market in downtown Lima

So many delicious fruits

Our guide showing off the cherimoya

Eating soup

Potato with a cheese sauce

Fried dough things with pumpkin, and some other stuff

The above dough thing

Potatoes with cheese and spicy sauce

Where the potatoes came from

Plaza de Armas at night

Interesting rice pudding thing

When we were all done we were all going back to the same area so we shared a cab back to Miraflores. Turns out the park across from our hotel is basically a cat park with lots of cats everywhere, but it was closing when we got back so we will have to check it out tomorrow. Once we were back we took showers and got ready for bed and now I'm working on finishing my presentation. I'm so tired though, I may sleep some and get up early. Anyways, tomorrow its off to Iquitos! Pictures to come later when I'm done with my presentation or if I get bored.

Cat park (Kennedy Park) near our hostel

Lima Day One

Today was our first day in Perú and both of our first days in South America! It was quite a fun day overall, and I am really happy we are spending time in Lima before heading to Iquitos and the jungle. We started off our day around 9AM and had the free breakfast of croissant like breads and cereal at the hostel and then set out for the day. We tried to find the grocery store, but were unsuccessful and instead walked to the Huaca Pucllana, which is a ruin in Miraflores, the district where we are staying. The ruin was originally from the 4th century AD in the Lima culture and was later used by the Wari culture. We toured the ruin and learned a bit about it, which was really interesting. It was initially used as a ceremonial site by the Lima culture, but was later used as a burial site by the Wari culture, although both cultures buried people at the site. It was covered by the final culture that used the site (the name of which I don't remember, but it was pre-Inca) so the area just looked like hills. The site was excavated until the 1980s and the excavation still continues, so as a modern landmark it is relatively newer. They also had some plants and animals that were domesticated at the time the site was used, so there was quinoa, maize, different fruits including the Peruvian Lucuma, as well as guinea pigs (one mama guinea pig had four little nuggets and I was smitten), two alpacas, and two llamas! It was pretty awesome.

The pottery sacrificing room. The human sacrificing square was next door. The made sacrifices when the renovated each room, which happened when the governments changed roughly every 25 years.

Mama and baby guinea pigs!

Here's a llama, there's a llama!

View from the top of the pyramid of the lower ruins

Caitlin and I with our awesome guide

At the top of the pyramid

After Huac Pucllana we decided to walk towards the beach and we stumbled across a vegetarian restaurant along the way. Since Caitlin is vegetarian we decided to stop there for lunch and it was really good! I had a soup with artichoke, a mushroom (i think...) dish, and some apple jelly thing that came with the meal, and it was all just under $4! Not too bad! After lunch we walked to the beach, which consisted of a ton of steps and vertical distance, but was really nice. There are a ton of surf school at the beach, which could have been awesome if we'd had more time, but instead we sat on the stone beach and watched the waves and the surfers. The stones made an amazing sound as the water receded, which was really cool.

Walking down to the beach

The beach!

On a pier at the beach

After sitting for a while we made the long and actually quite strenuous hike back up the cliffs. I was pretty out of breath, but I made it! We walked around along the cliff for a bit and saw a very American style mall that could have been at home with a Banana Republic, Nine West, Desigual, etc, but it was right on the cliff edge, built into the side with amazing views! We then walked back towards our hostel and booked a bike tour for tomorrow along the way, so that should be fun.

View from the cliffs

Apparently Paddington is from Perú. This statue was a gift from London in 2015.

When we got back to the hostel we didn't have much time, so I quickly rinsed off and changed and then we took a taxi to the Barranco district for a food tour! We met at the Starbucks in the main square in Barranco (that wasn't a stop, don't worry) and set off. Our first stop was for crab broth at a cevicheria. It was amazing and had a small crab in it. You added a spicy sauce, lemon, and corn puffs that all went so well in it, and when you finished to broth you at the crab.

Crab broth

After that stop we went to the oldest bar in Barranco (88 years) for a really interesting dish with a potato and lime juice "mash" (not mashed potatoes, but smooth like them, but different) with scallops, octopus, and tuna. I didn't eat the tuna because it was super mayo-y, but everything else was really yummy.

The potato stuff with toppings

The three of us at the oldest bar in Barranco

We then went to see the sunset over the pacific, which was beautiful, and we also passed the bridge of Sighs. When you cross the bridge you hold your breath and walk all the way across and make a wish. I had a hard time of it cause we had just walked up a ton of stairs and my heart was beating really fast, but I made it! We passed an American gospel choir preforming for African-American history month, which was funny.

Beautiful sunset

The Bridge of Sighs

Our next stop was at a restaurant called Charlotte, which I think was my favorite stop. We had a rice and corn mix that was slightly fried and topped with shrimp and a yellow sauce. It was literally amazing and I would eat it again over and over! I also had a Passion Fruit Sour (a Pisco drink) that was one of the best drinks I've ever had!

The next stop on the tour was at this street vendor that sold a traditional drink. It was really tasty, but weirdly slimy. I kind of loved the sliminess, which was from the aloe vera in the drink. The drink also had a sweet syrup, chia, some spices, some fruit something. It was strange, but I loved it.

This is where we had the odd drinks

Drinking and getting slimy

Next we went to the Chocolate Museum, where we learned about the chocolate making process, tried cacao nibs, saw the ingredients of chocolate, and got to taste chocolate jams and liqueurs. I loved the chocolate banana jam so much I bought some. Sadly it shouldn't be kept out too long, so I can't bring it home to the states, but it will be well loved while here! We eventually had out desserts, and I had a brownie with dulce de leche and it was amazing!

Mmm mmm brownie

The final stop on the tour was at a local beer place, and we each got two 2oz beer tastes to end the night. I had a Peruvian Wheat beer and a beer called Menage a Trois, both of which were really good. There was also a Kiwi girl currently living in Australia on our tour and she was really nice. The three of us all decided to do the downtown street food tour tomorrow, which sounds really interesting and exciting. It sounds like we will be in areas that are less touristy and we wouldn't want to go to alone, but the guide is really familiar with the area and it is very safe for the tour. I'm excited!

Dos cervezas poquitos

The beer place we went

After the tour the guide helped us get on the bus back, which was really simple with his help (without it is quite confusing) and we got back quickly. We both got some water and took showers and now we are really for bed! Tomorrow should be another exciting day in Lima (hopefully one without additional sunburns through the 70spf sunscreen!).

Off to South America!

Today was my travel day down to South America! I packed and prepared until about 3:10AM, then took a nap until about 3:45AM and got ready to head to the airport. Typically Mossy packing scenario. As usual I changed which suitcase I was taking after having packed most stuff in my backpack when I realized it was a tight fit due to all the medical stuff I had to bring with me. It all worked out though because now the packing isn't very tight and I have room in case I acquire anything down there. Anyways, after getting ready Caitlin came in our Lyft and we headed to the airport. My bag was 47 lbs and the bag with all my donations was 50.0 lbs, so JUST made it without having to pay! Score. I got pre check as usual, so got through security very easily and waited for Caitlin to go through the regular line. We then sat at the gate for a bit before boarding the first flight to Miami! 

(Black and white really makes us look less tired!)

The flight to Miami was uneventful and I slept so deeply I don't remember taking off and I only woke up when we landed. I would say that is the definition of a great flight! I also had no one in the seat next to me which doesn't hurt. 

When we landed in Miami we decided that the airport was definitely not a fun place to hang out for five hours, so we caught a cab to the beach. The driver tried to charge us $5 extra but we caught it and all was well. We walked on the beach a bit and then sat down and enjoyed the ocean and the warm breeze. There were a ton of Portuguese man-of-wars all over the beach too. They are really cool looking, but definitely not something I want to be stepping on! 

Portuguesa Man-of-War

Miami Beach

Seagull caught a little fishy

After walking on the beach we went to lunch at a place called Puerto Sagua where I had pork stew with rice and maduras. Definitely a yummy lunch. We then walked a bit more and laid down on the grass near the beach to enjoy a little more warmth (but in the shade this time). We eventually caught an Uber back to the airport. There was a surprising amount of traffic, but we had plenty of time. 

Once we got to the airport we got through security quite easily. We decided not to take the tram within the airport so we walked from D20 something to D50 and by the time we got to our gate the flight was starting to board! Good timing. 

 The plane wasn't my favorite. One of the less comfortable planes I've been on with small seats that have a fairly low back and little leg room. The lady next to me also encroached on my space frequently which drove me mad! On the plane I watched Carrie (the new one with Chlöe Grace Moretz, not the original) since it was downloaded on my iPad and then played some games and read a little. I'm finally reading the diary of Anne Frank, probably many years later than I should have. It's quite good. Anyways, the flight was overall uneventful. 

When we landed in Lima there was a long line through immigration, but it was smooth. We then went to baggage claim and three of our four bags were out. My donation bag eventually came and we went through customs with some difficulty. They made us sit there for about 15 minutes while checking out the vitamins, but luckily we had both printed out the donation letter and we eventually got through. My suitcase was a casualty though, as the zipper fully busted on the Salvation Army buy. We had some tape and taped it together and hopefully that will hold until we get to Iquitos. 

Bag problems led to a hasty tape job!

After getting through customs our taxis drivers were there to meet us. Somehow they had booked us two taxis so we took separate ones to the hostel. The drive was nice, but it was dark so I couldn't see much. We got to the hostel and got all checked it without any issues. The place is nice and all the people here are really nice, so I'm excited to check out the city tomorrow!

Getting Ready for South America

Interview season is officially over, and now I just have to make my rank list! There are a ton of good programs, so luckily wherever I end up I'm sure I will be happy. I have finally returned to Ann Arbor, but I'm just packing to leave again for Peru on Wednesday! Lots to get together before I leave!