Welcome to the jungle ...

After our adventurous arrival at our lodge, we were completely happy. No traffic noise and no stuffy exhaust fumes. Just the sounds of the jungle ... Which are not always soooo quiet, but definitely more interesting. Our little hut was surrounded by trees, palms and co., a great place to relax.

We had the glorious idea of washing some of our clothes. Unfortunately, with the humidity, they hardly dried at all in the next three days - well done!

Since our lodge was so remote, Simone (our Dutch lodge manager) gave us a flyer for food delivery. That was exactly what we needed for dinner that night. Dos pizza grande, por favor! We still had some left for the next evening, they were so grande!

Our first excursion took us to the Ayashiyacu waterfall, probably the most popular one in the area, as it only takes a five-minute hike after a short drive. Luckily, our guide had umbrellas with him, because it was raining cats and dogs again, making the waterfall even bigger. Unfortunately, English was not part of the program, so we hardly understood anything.

Afterwards, we took a look at the center of Tarapoto and once again got caught in a heavy rain shower. We quickly ran into the nearest restaurant. Only then did we notice the great view of the rainforest from here, and the food was great too. The walk back to the lodge was much more pleasant without luggage. There was something to see everywhere, whether it was gross spiders, giant beetles, or millipedes, we were in full explorer mode.

Excursion number two took us deeper into the rainforest. Here too, we were accompanied by a Dutch guide - super friendly and he spoke English too. It was really necessary to understand what to do. Today's activity was 'abseiling' down a 50m high waterfall. After a short briefing on a large rock, the hike to the Pucayakillo waterfall started, which took about 45 minutes. We arrived pretty exhausted and completely drenched. Wow - we were speechless! It was also super cool that Simon and I were the only participants that day. So off we went and I started abseiling. Quite slippery and wet, but awesome cool! As Simon started, it - who would have guessed - started pouring rain again. Well, we were already wet anyway, so we might as well go for a swim. After a delicious lunch with the guide, we dried off a bit in the sun and then were driven back to the lodge.

The next morning, we went just around the corner to a small zoo or a rescue center for sick animals. Here we saw a toucan, many parrots, butterflies, and lots of critters. It was a good thing that the boa and the anaconda were behind glass, otherwise I wouldn't have gotten so close. So it was goodbye Tarapoto and hello Yurimaguas. Conveniently, Simone traveled with us, so we shared the cost of the car ride. Yes, you heard right ... a car! Not a bus or a minivan - Yippiiiii! After 2.5 hours and countless switchbacks, we finally arrived in Yurimaguas. This is where our boat is supposed to depart for Iquitos. There is no schedule, but Simone had made some phone calls and it is expected to leave the next day. So one night in a small hotel and hoping it all works out ...