Up Close and Personal

I’ve been living in Poroto for over a year now, and with each passing day I find myself more immersed in the daily life of our community. Upon arriving in Poroto, I was quickly able to identify the typical adolescent issues- teen pregnancy, domestic violence, alcoholism, etc. However, during the first few months these community problems were evident only through simple observation or second-hand stories. The initial months were full of sensory-overload; new experiences, a foreign language, constant realizations, and cultural clashes. I was thrown into a completely foreign environment and did my best to embrace it, but I’m just now beginning to fully process it all. During the last 13+ months I’ve been able to form meaningful relationships with the members of my community and come to better understand the dynamic of their daily life. Poroto has become home, and simultaneously the intricacies of town politics have revealed themselves. I feel that I’ve earned the trust and friendship of many community members, which grants me greater access into the realm of local life.

Although I relish the deepening relationship with my town, this connection has opened my eyes to deeply personal troubles I was previously shielded from. It is one thing to recognize that alcoholism, teen pregnancy, malnutrition, and domestic abuse exists in your town, but it is an entirely different experience to witness the repercussions first-hand on people you’ve come to care deeply about. In the last several weeks there have been various encounters where I’ve been shocked by the information disclosed to me. It can be disheartening to realize how difficult it is to change deeply engrained societal problems. The cyclical nature of teen pregnancy, alcoholism, or even poverty as a whole can be daunting, especially when these issues are no longer statistics, but the faces of your neighbors, friends, and students.

Peace Corps is an incredibly unique opportunity because we are given the chance to live among a foreign community for two years, truly sharing in every aspect of their lives. Peace Corps volunteers understand how large-scale problems affect individual community members, offering powerful insight into development work in the most basic form. Unlike many other development agencies, Peace Corps volunteers are able to see and experience their community’s advancements, challenges, and downfalls first hand. Although seeing personal struggles first-hand is incredible opportunity, it can also be overwhelming and discouraging. Although we are living among our community members, we are still outsiders and our scope of assistance and true understanding will always be limited.

As these deeply-rooted societal problems become personal I think we have two choices. At times it can be tempting to resign to the power of poverty, corruption, or limited opportunities and grow cynical about the ability for change or to make even a minimal impact. However, we also have the option to embrace the situations we are given, taking advantage of our unique position as foreigners living as locals, and utilize the relationships we’ve formed and the trust we’ve gained to incite even the smallest positive changes in the community around us.

Gladys does the Great Amazon River Raft Race

On the Bote, Ready to Raft the Amazon!

The Real Adventure Begins…

Early Thursday morning a hodgepodge group of about 200 gringos and Peruanos gathered in a plaza in Iquitos armed with oars, chairs, snacks, foam, rope, and other building supplies. Collectively we were quite a sight to see. We all piled in buses and traveled to Nauta where we had a celebration for the commencement of the 13^th annual “Great Amazon River Raft Race” complete with jungle dances, a toast with jungle liquor, and a bienvenidos from the tourism director of the area. After a chaotic scramble to buy last-minute supplies (my favorite purchase being an enormous reed sombrero) we piled in boats and were transported across the river to the bank where we could be constructing our rafts. The sun was incredibly strong and the humidity made the air thick, but the views were gorgeous.

Lord of the Flies- Raft Building Chaos

We assembled on the bank of the river and in an extremely haphazard way we were released to begin the construction of our rafts. Given little warning or direction, we scrambled to select our 8 balsa logs- choosing only the ones we could lift (later we were informed the largest logs are the most buoyant). Materials for construction were extremely scarce, and no rope was to be found until it was already dark. Luckily we were able to rely on some locals for help, because without their guidance we surely would have sunk within minutes of entering the water. The entire day was a heat induced delirium surrounded by a chaotic haze of machetes hacking, chainsaws buzzing, and short tempers flying. The collective mood was not improved when our promised lunch and water didn’t arrive until 5pm. Despite the Lord of the Flies-esque environment, we managed to have fun building and decorating our raft, chopping down trees with machetes, and hanging out with the dozens of other Peace Corps volunteer participants. As darkness settled in we completed our raft by the light of headlamps and a campfire. An evening downpour soaked our already make-shift tent and sleeping conditions, so we slept uncomfortably close as water dripped over us.

Team Gladys, Ready for an Adventure

Hacking down support poles with my machete

Enjoying the beautiful Amazon riverbanks

Gladys is finally constructed, by the light of headlamps, after an incredibly long day

We awoke Friday morning and “Gladys” (our affectionate name for our raft) was ready to take on the Amazon River. She may not have been the most quality constructed raft, but with the pink roof, convenient bag holders, and shiny flower decorations I think she was the prettiest. With lots of help, we moved the raft to the river and so began the voyage. We got off to a rough start and in the first 10 minutes I think we were all wondering what we got ourselves into. I imagined the Amazon River to be a narrow, fast-moving current; instead, it was an enormous wide body of water that seemed to move naturally in every direction but forward. However, after a bit of strategic rearranging and in-sync paddling, we found our rhythm and were able to enjoy the rest of the morning. It was pretty exhausting, but a midday torrential downpour actually served to lift our spirits. No other rafts were in sight as the rain started pouring down, but we embraced the cooling shower with laughter and continued on our way. The heavy rain turned the current into a crazy maze of whirlpools, so we spent the following several minutes paddling like maniacs only to turn in circles and zigzags. The rain was quickly replaced with sunshine and we finished our first day of paddling after 6+ solid hours, happy with our progress. We spent the night in a tiny village along the riverbank, arranged in refugee-camp style accommodations crowded in make-shift tents and a school.

Team Gladys, Ready to Rock

Embracing the Downpour and Upcoming Whirlpools

The following day the organizers informed us that the course was significantly longer than the previous day and it should take about 8 hours to complete (which meant much longer for us). If this were true, there’s no way we would finish before dark, but the race directors assured us that if we weren’t near the finish by 4:30 they would tow us in. We drug Gladys back into the water and began the day in high spirits; singing, joking, playing games. We were in a pretty good rhythm towards the beginning of the day, paddling hard and enjoying the wildlife and dolphins swimming alongside us. However, as the day went on we managed to find every obstacle, floating tree, and whirlpool to guide us off track. Around 3:00, after almost 7 hours of paddling, we were exhausted, hadn’t eaten lunch, and were trying to figure out where we were along the course. The support boat passed and told us we had 2 hours to go, so we mustered up our energy and continued on our way.

At around 5:00 we were in the middle of what seemed like an enormous lake with no signs of the finish in site. We assumed the support boat would soon be towing us in, but continued paddling. At 5:30 we saw dark storm clouds, thunder, and lightning in the near distance. Time passed and there was still no sign of the mysterious rescue tow-boat that was supposed to arrive at 4:30. We started to get a little nervous and picked up our pace as the sky grew darker and waves began to form in the river. The banks of the river were lined with steep, muddy cliffs so stopping seemed like an unlikely decision. However, as the sky grew darker and it started to rain and lightning over the river we decided abandoning ship was our only option. We paddled furiously to shore and by God’s grace there was a tiny little village on the bank. We jumped out of the raft just in time and the townspeople literally pulled us up the muddy cliff banks. They led us to the tiny school as lightning bolts hit the river we had just escaped from.

The people of San Jorge, a village of only 10 families, were the kindest, most hospitable people I’ve met. As we crowded in the school a group of small children immediately huddled around us, their deep brown eyes staring up at us in curiosity. After our racing hearts and nerves calmed down we learned the names and ages of the children and laughed together as the flashes of lightning illuminated their faces. I can only imagine what these little kids thought of us: giant, super-white gringos who washed up off the bank of the Amazon River and into their tiny little village. After awhile we saw a light in the distance and ran to the bank of the river, waving frantically to get attention. Finally, 3 hours after they indicated, the rescue boat arrived. At this point the search and rescue coastguard boat was in full emergency mode, making us all even more panicky. We ran to the riverbank and the coastguard was screaming into a megaphone “ONE AT A TIME, DESCEND THE CLIFF, QUICKLY!” as an enormous flashlight and emergency lights lit the riverbank. At this point the cliff was basically a mudslide, so we put on our lifejackets and slid down the bank. As we boarded the coastguard boat we were greeted by a crowded mess of other race participants who had also been picked up by the rescue crew. We piled on the crew bunk beds and began the rocky ride back to safety.

Finally Back to Safety, Thanks to the Coast Guard Search and Rescue Boat

Needless to say, Gladys was abandoned off the coast of San Jorge, but I’d like to think the little kids are now parading around with glittery leis around their neck and a pretty epic story to share. Since we were raft-less (along with 7 other teams) we were barred to the support boat for the last day of the rafting race. However, with hammocks and free cerveza, life could be worse. We also got to cheer on all the other rafting teams, including the incredible Peruvian teams who flew past us before we could even catch a good glimpse of them. All in all, the “Great Amazon River Raft Race” was quite an adventure. I’ll leave you with the ridiculous but entertaining rap/chant/pep-up song Team Gladys created while rafting down the Amazon. The chant began on day 2 and we repeated it every time we passed another team (or better said, they passed us) or needed some entertainment. As you can see we added extra stanzas to reflect the conclusion of our river rafting escapade.

Watching the Non-ShipWrecked Rafts Begin Rafting Day 3

Day 3- Trading the Raft for the Support Boat

We the girls with the pink roof

We gonna float, we don’t need to proof/

I ain’t gonna lie,

We might not fly/

But at least our boat,

Is still afloat/

Circlin’ in whirlpools is what we like to do

But that’s just cause we’re more fun than you/

Erin is the captain o’ mine

She likes to keep us in line/

Kim likes to rock the life vest

Maybe cause we ain’t the best/

Kelsi is team cheerleader

Singin’ and rhymin’ is why we need her/

Beth forgot her gloves, sista’

Now she’s got a nasty blista’/

Paddle hard, we did try

Til lightning filled the sky/

We thought the rescue boat was near

But we had reason to fear/

Abandon ship in San Jorge

Otherwise we’d be swept away/

Against the shore the waves were crashing

Coastguard’s lights were flashing/

Down the muddy cliff we did slide

The rescue boat took us for a ride/

It’s not that we weren’t tough enough

But the water just got too rough/

World’s biggest river we’ll never forget

It was an adventure we won’t regret/

Gladys was lookin’ for action

Amazon River provided satisfaction

Team Gladys- Celebrating the Survival, Post-Race

Adventures in the Amazon!

Ready to land in Iquitos, the Amazon River beckons

Enjoying the city of Iquitos

Ready to board the bote

Cruising down the Amazon for our jungle adventure

Our selva home for a few days

Our mosquito net beds

Lunchtime! Anaconda?

Boating through lily pads and making friends with spiders

Hoping for a prince

Our entire jungle expedition group, ready to enter the selva

I have experienced many “firsts” during my time here in Peru. I am continually amazed by the plethora of breathtaking sites, invigorating adventures, and new experiences I am exposed to during my travels throughout this country. Peru is famous for its coast, mountains, and jungle, and these three distinct geographies are woven together to form an incredibly diverse and beautiful country. I’ve explored the coast and mountains significantly during my first year in Peru, and recently experienced my most epic adventure yet: the jungle.

It all began several months ago when former volunteers were describing a crazy vacation in the Amazon jungle. Their experience sparked our attention and we were immediately intrigued by their stories of a 3 day rafting race down the Amazon River. We immediately decided we also had to be a part of this monumental competition, and signed up months ago. Despite the detailed anecdotes and candid warnings of last year’s escapades, we could have never expected what was in store. I’ll begin by sharing the more tranquil part of the trip, and the fact that this “tranquility” also involved piranhas, jungle hiking, vine-swinging, tree-climbing, Amazon-river-exploring, and alligator-hunting is an indication of just how ridiculous this rafting race was.

As our flight descended over Iquitos we could see the winding Amazon River surrounded by green masses of trees, and as we stepped off the plane we were greeted by a wave of intense humid heat. The adventure began early as we were carted off to our hostel in a “taxi” that seemed like it was about to explode. Fortunately our hostel was a step up from the transportation provided, and even had a pool we immediately took advantage of. Iquitos has a very different feel from other cities I’ve visited in Peru and I truly felt like I was on vacation. The city swarms with motorcycles and mototaxis weaving through the streets and the dense heat penetrates the city and seems to impact the laid-back feel of this jungle town. We explored Iquitos, strolling by the river and trying local cuisine; fried banana balls, roasted fish and vegetable skewers, exotic fruit juices, and lots of frozen treats.

The following day we began our jungle expedition with our fearless tour guide, Wilson. My friends and I had the entire tour to ourselves, so we were able to monopolize Wilson’s attention with our questions and special requests. We departed from Nauta, a small port town South of Iquitos and boarded a “bote” that carried us 3 hours down the river to our jungle lodge. As the river narrowed we were surrounded by unique jungle plants, birds, and animals.

Our jungle home for the next 3 days was a rustic wooden lodge built on stilts and carefully protected with nets to avoid mosquitoes. We each claimed our beds, which were thin mattresses on the ground surrounded by princess-style mosquito-net canopies. We enjoyed a delicious welcome meal of what we thought was Anaconda (Wilson later told our gullible-selves that it was really just fish) and departed on our afternoon boat tour. We traveled along the narrow river enjoying monkey howls, colorful birds flitting against the trees, and strange insects joining us in the boat. We took a brief break from the boat to trek around the jungle a bit and then began our nighttime alligator hunting expedition. Wilson took his alligator hunting very seriously, but as usual I had quite a hard time maintaining the requested silence. Despite Erin and my suppressed laughter we were eventually able to find a mini-alligator along the swampy brush. After playing with our squirmy alligator friend for awhile we returned back to our lodge, enjoying the brilliant stars overhead. We enjoyed dinner and cards illuminated by kerosene lanterns and retired to our mosquito net beds, greeted by malaria-medicine induced dreams as we drifted off to sleep.

The following day we awoke ready to trek through the heart of the selva. As we wondered through the dense vegetation we saw enormous 400+ year old trees, long lines of tiny ants carrying leaves 5 times their size, medicinal plants claimed to cure everything from diarrhea to cancer, winding vines for Tarzan swinging, and more. After hours of trudging through the muddy jungle trails in the intense heat and humidity, I happily jumped in the river, regardless of what creatures may have been swimming with me. In the afternoon Wilson took us to the pueblito where he was from, which featured small, open, bright colored houses constructed on stilts to sustain the heavy rainy season. Local children played soccer in the grassy streets as adults kept cool in the hammocks on their front porches. After our brief tour of Puerto Miguel we continued on the river where we found the famous pink dolphins jumping and swimming along our boat. We were able to swim in the warm river water, admiring the grayish-pink dolphins as they gallivanted past. As the afternoon progressed we could see dark storm clouds advancing and powerful rain hitting the water in the distance. We managed to return safely and enjoyed the heavy rain storm from the comfort of our jungle lodge.

The last day of our jungle expedition began with an early morning boat trip to fish for piranhas. Wilson guided us through the morning mist to a piranha cove and we commenced with our high-tech fishing. Armed with wooden sticks, fishing line, a hook, and fish meat we were able to catch dozens of piranhas without too much trouble. Their sharp teeth were intimidating at first, but I ended up having way too much fun playing with my little piranha friends. When we ran out of bait, we chopped up the littlest piranha and used him to lure more of his buddies to our line- just a little cannibalism in action. After our morning fishing trip we relaxed for awhile while the chef fried up the fresh piranhas for lunch. Piranha meat is quite delicious, and the ferocious-looking piranha heads provided some serious entertainment.

After an epic nighttime search, we finally found our guy!

Dinners by candlelight in our jungle lodge

Trudging through the mud- I had to be literally lifted out of my boots more than once

Climbing 400+ year old trees

Tarzan!

Exploring Wilson's pueblito... in the rainy season, you have to access all the houses by canoe!

Local kids outside of Puerto Miguel

Swimming in the Amazon

Post swimming with the pink dolphins

Fishing for Piranha is surprisingly easy.

I was brave, look at those teeth.

Mmmm, Piranha.

Eating our fresh-caught piranhas and having too much fun with their heads