Finally rain and lots of it on the day of departure!

The Traveling Hillbilly must admit I was truly looking forward to a thunderstorm while in the Amazon.  The weather report called for thunderstorms everyday while we were there, but despite multiple threats (dark clouds, rolls of thunder and some lightening in the distance) we never had more than a few minutes of light rain.   Well that all changed today!   A sudden downpour came on our ride down the river heading to the airport.    It made the boat ride quite damp and the muddy roads made the slippery bus ride all the more adventurous!

All in all, we got to the airport safely and arrived in Cusco only about 30 minutes late.  I am now safely in my hotel room in the Sacred Valley, thrilled to have electricity, hot water, internet access and even DirecTV.  

I’m ready for the 2^nd leg of this trip.   I’m sure Christmas Day on Machu Picchu will be an incredible experience, even if the forecast for rain is accurate.

For now, I have the wonderful memories of my Amazon tour and the truly beautiful people I met.   The Traveling Hillbilly really lucked out and had some great people in our small group.  You would never know the eight of us had just met and weren’t old friends.  We all got along so well and had such a blast!  To our guide, Eder, who we all adored, we know we drove you crazy, but thanks for making this trip so special.    I hope you get to meet Drew one day.   Just know that if I ever run into her in Los Angeles, I will send her your love!

Butterflies, Piranha, Lizards and Alligators oh my!

So after my first day in the jungle, I was thinking this is a little more touristy than I expected; hiking through the jungle, touring a local farm, and boating down the Amazon.   HOWEVER that opinion has changed a little.   This has truly been a great adventure!

After two days in the jungle, the Traveling Hillbilly has logged multiple hours hiking through the jungle and boating along the river, both during the day and night (scary dark), sat for an hour at the clay lick watching the macaws, (stunningly beautiful birds), gone caiman (alligator) searching along the Amazon at night (we even saw a couple of caiman), seen several monarch butterflies (such a bright blue hue) , got stuck knee deep in mud (more than once), seen multiple capybara (the worlds largest rodent), seen a few monkeys  and kayaked down the Amazon.   But it is still early, day 2 is not over.   At 4pm, we go to the “mammal lick” in the hopes of spotting some mammals.   We’ll see what happens.  

Well the Traveling Hillbilly needs to pack before the 4pm departure.   It will be too dark to pack by the time we get back tonight and we leave tomorrow for Cusco and the Sacred Valley!  I hope my time here in the jungle has prepared me for the challenge of Machu Picchu!

The Lodge Deserves Its Own Posting

So we arrive at the lodge and the first thing we see when we step in is the bar!   The Traveling Hillbilly is liking this place already.   The bar is all open air and made of local wood.   It’s very cool.   After the long journey getting here, I’m ready for a drink!  But first we have to learn about the lodge.   It’s a very environmentally friendly lodge and they have made every effort to make it “at one with nature.”     Their goal is to combine tourism with environmental  education to support conservation of the areas in which they operate.

 Now let me tell you about the rooms.  It turns out the bar is the only place that has electricity!  There are three “walls” and then just an open space facing out into the jungle.  The door to the room is just a pair of curtain panels, no locks, no keys.  There is a nice “refreshing” shower.   By refreshing, I mean very cold, no hot water!  We have mosquito nets over the beds.  The room is very nice, but I am going to miss electricity.    Plus it is difficult to navigate if you have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night! 

It gets dark around 6pm and I mean very dark.   But you can actually see the stars here at night.   They are simply amazing, such an beautiful sight.  The electricity in the bar shuts off at 9:30pm, but the bar remains open until the guests are ready to leave.     And there are a couple hours during the day, when you can “charge” your electronics in the bar. 

It’s going to be nice to be unplugged for a few days!

The Traveling Hillbilly Arrives in the Amazon

As we fly into Puerto Maldonado in the southern Amazon region of Peru, I notice how green everything looks from the plane.   Everything is so lush and tropical.  I half expect to see a T-Rex traipsing through the jungle knocking down the trees!    The river looks like a dirty brown ribbon wrapping its way around and through the jungle.   I wonder if that is same the river I’ll be going down soon.    The pilot announces the current temperature, which translates to 88 degrees Fahrenheit.  I can feel the humidity already!   Surprisingly, it’s not raining.  When I checked the forecast the day before departure, it looked like thunderstorms every day in the Amazon and rain every day in Cusco!

The airport is very small.  It reminds me of the one in Siem Reap, Cambodia.    It’s a much different experience than the arrival in Lima!   There is much less chaos.     I’m very excited for the trip to begin!

I’m even more excited when I see the bus we’ll l be taking.   It’s one of those smaller, rustic buses where all the luggage goes on top.   I feel like we are heading off on an African Safari.   We have to take the bus 45 minutes, through dirty and very muddy roads, to the “port.”   The port is basically a set of wooden steps that lead down to the river.  At the port, we board what is basically a motorized canoe and start our 2+ hour boat ride to our lodge, located deep in the jungle.

A couple hours in to the trip with no sign of wildlife.   I am anxiously waiting for my biggest fear to be realized.   I just know that a snake is going to fall out of tree into the boat.   Luckily, the river is wide and we have a canopy over the top of the canoe, so hopefully we’re safe.  And yes, the dirty brown ribbon I saw from the plane is the exact river we are heading down.  Again, it reminds me of a prior trip.  It’s similar to the river raft ride, Huckleberry Finn style; I did in Chang Mai a few years ago.  But this time, there are no elephants.   

The Traveling Hillbilly Goes off the Grid!!!!

So for my loyal followers, I apologize for not having posted anything for a few days.   I’ve been in the Southern Amazon region of Peru with no access to the internet and limited access to electricity!   However, I have been keeping a log of my journeys so you will see multiple postings appear.   

I had quite a few adventures in the Amazon and I hope you enjoy following along.   While you’re catching up on those, I’ll begin chronicling my adventures in the Sacred Valley.   If you’re ever been to Cusco or the Valley, please feel free to pass your words of wisdom along!  Or if you have any advice for Santiago and the surrounding areas, please share those stories as well.