Welcome to Travel Tuesday! Today I’m going to walk you through Day 7 – Flying to Puerto Maldonado, boat ride to Posada Amazonas. This is a nine part series of my excursion to Peru. If you haven’t read the Travel Tuesday entries please take the time to check it out.
Just a quick recap:
Sunday, May 11, 2008 Day 1 - Flying from LAX to Lima, Peru
Monday, May 12 2008 Day 2 – Sightseeing in Lima
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 Day 3 - Flying from Lima to Cusco
Wednesday, May 14, 2008 Day 4 – Traveling by train to Machu Picchu
Thursday, May 15, 2008 Day 5 – Tour Pisac Market & Ollantaytambo
Friday, May 16, 2008 Day 6 – Tour City & Ruins Tour
Saturday, May 17, 2008 Day 7 – Flying to Puerto Maldonado, boat ride to Posada Amazonas
Sunday, May 18, 2008 Day 8 – Tour Tres Chimbadas Lake
Monday, May 19, 2008 Day 9 – Walking tour to the Clay Lick
Tuesday, May 20, 2008 Day 10 – Airfare One Way Puerto Maldonado to Lima then Lima to LAX
In this blog entry I’m going to walk you through my day 7 in Puerto Maldonado on my way to Posada Amazonas.
Let’s begin. Saturday, May 17, 2008 Day 7 – Flying to Puerto Maldonado, boat ride to Posada Amazonas
The morning begins with me finishing packing my hotel room in Cusco and getting ready to head to the airport so I could fly to Posada Amazonas. Just the thought of flying to the Amazon is exciting to me still to this date. It’s a point in my life I’m proud to experience. If you couldn’t tell, I really do love nature. The funny thing, I love nature but what I’m about to experience is nothing short then a raw experience. When I booked my trip I was going to orginally visit Lake Titicaca. But I had the option to book the Amazon instead. I thought I would be adventurous as it would give me the chance to see wild life. As you’ll learn the jungle could be very “unpredicable”.
As my plane flies over the Amazon floor I couldn’t help notice the shadow from the puffy clouds on the ground.
To get to Puerto Maldonado you’ll need to fly from Lima or Cusco. Takes about 90 minutes.
I’ve never been in such a small airport. It was something I’ve only seen in the movies. Puerto Maldonado only has two terminals.
While waiting for the bus I noticed this family riding on a moter bike. The strangest thing was the driver had a helmet while the child in the front and the passenger on the back didn’t. So much for passenger safety.
From the airport we were transported by bus to the Infierno River. While we were at the Infierno River dock, I noticed a little girl holding a Howler Monkey. One of our guides asked to hold the monkey.
To me it was strange as I could only think about what the mommy howler was feeling not having her baby near. If you haven’t ever heard howler monkeys in the wild, it’s a sound you’ll never forget. I’ve experienced it in Costa Rica. It’s a very intimidating experience.
From here we board our boat on the Infierno River and took a boat ride for a forty five minutes to Posada Amazonas. Below is the boat we boarded which was going to take us to Posada Amazonas. It’s amazing the people you met along the way. As I look back on this photograph I see Sharon was the first to board the boat. Sharon and her husband Keith became great friends of mine as we were about to have this “raw experience” in the Amazon.
It was funny seeing young kids driving boats by themselves.
We had an active group of kids laughing and waiving to us tourists.
Seeing these smiles again couldn’t help but to bring a smile back to my face. At first when I took this photo I thought the kid had a beer in his hands but quickly noticed it was a shoe. Regardless of what it was, they were having fun!
While on the boat ride we saw an American Crocodile.
Quickly I noticed a bunch of butterflies gathering on the clay. They were eating the sodium from the clay.
I even saw a butterfly on the head of a turtle.
Black Vultures were flying above us and then suddenly swooped to land by rocks.
Posada Amazonas is located ten minutes walking from the river, in the heart of the Amazon Rainforest. It’s built using a combination of traditional native materials (wood, palm fronds, wild cane and clay) and architecture and modern day Eco-lodge technology. The lodge itself consists of a complex of four sections: rooms, dining area and kitchen, relaxation area and internal support facilities. The entire roof of the lodge is constructed using high quality crisneja palm fronds, whereas the floors are of tropical mahogany.
The rooms complex is built of four 9 X 24 meter structures with six rooms per facility, for a total of 30 double bedrooms. The rooms are 7 x 4 meters so they can comfortably hold three beds, although most are set up for two. The walls dividing each room are built using cane, and extend from the floor to about 2.5 meters height making each room private. The side that looks out to the forest does not have a wall or screening of any kind, acting as a large window facing the forest. The reason we have been able to incorporate this “luxurious” design into our lodge is because mosquitos are not really a problem around the lodge clearing and the open section allows for an intimate contact with the rainforest. A second small window on the opposite side, set up very high, keeps the rooms well ventilated. Doors are replaced with drapes. Rooms are not soundproof.
Each room has a private bathroom with cold water only. Rooms and bathrooms are separated by drapes. Each room has beds, mosquito nets, bedside tables and hammocks or lounge chairs. Rooms are decorated with bas- relief wood-carvings representing stories and characters from Ese-eja traditions
When my room was assigned I got excited until I kept walking and walking down the row of rooms. I finally come the dead end where my room was. As you see in the photo below, we have one open wall facing the Amazon. Behind the bed was a wall which behind that was the Amazon and the other side of the wall behind where I was taking the photo was also the Amazon. So I was surrounded by the Amazon as to where in normal rooms only have two walls facing the jungle I have three!
Posada Amazonas has no electricity. Light is provided by numerous kerosene lamps (which gets turned off at 9 pm) and candles. A generator is turned on once a day to recharge batteries for guests or lodge facilities.
Canopy Tower is a twenty minute walk from Posada Amazonas leads to the 30 meter scaffolding canopy tower. A bannistered staircase running through the middle provides safe access to the platforms above.
From atop you obtain spectacular views of the vast expanses of standing forest cut by the Tambopata River winding through the middle.
Now and then toucans, parrots or macaws are seen flying against the horizon, or mixed species canopy flocks land in the treetop next to you.
I had to ask one of my fellow vacationers to help and take my photograph at sunset high above the Amazon Jungle.
We climb down and start walking back to the lodge. It’s getting dark and only being in the Amazon for about 2 hours, I don’t know my surroundings and now I’m having to retreat to bed as the lodge was getting close to turning off the lanters! I’ve never been in this raw experience before so I’m a little scared. Remember my room is the furthest room into the Amazon. I’m going to bed with my flash light and a knife in my pocket. It’s hot and muggy and I’m going to sleeping with my clothes on as I hear things falling or climbing on the the trees outside my room. The only protection I have between me and the jungle is a mosquito net and those are thin!! How will I ever get to sleep.
This concludes Day 7 evening in Puerto Maldonado at Posada Amazonas. Will I survive the night so I could wake tomorrow to catch a boat ride to 3 Chimbadas Oxbox Lake! I was so excited as I heard their are lots of things to see. I even heard we might get to see the Hoatzin. So please come back and read all about it next week.
Anthony Lujan Photography
Serving Inland Empire, Orange and Los Angeles Counties
Individual | Family | Wedding | Maternity | Children & Newborns | Pet | Travel
9 comments