April 5- April 15
Hi All,
It’s been almost 4 weeks since we have been home and we are still recovering….say whaaaaatt?? Kathy came back with a cold that got worse and of course, then I got it a week later. It’s not Covid, just a coughing, sinus draining, good-old fashioned cold we think….yuck!! We are both on the recovering side so fingers crossed it doesn’t last much longer. And, good news, the MRI on Kathy’s knee confirmed she has a deep tibia bone bruise….painful yes, but at least nothing is torn or broken. However, it will take 3-4 months to heal so light duty for now!! She continues to prove just how tough she can be….the doc asked, so where did you do this…on a trip to Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu…..so you came home then…nope, sucked it up, used 2 walking sticks, Advil, Voltaren, wine, and a neoprene brace….gee, that had to hurt….thus the WINE!!:)))
Layover Day: As I said in the last blog, we had a layover day in Lima….good to rest a bit especially for Kathy’s knee!! We first had the hotel do some laundry and repacked later in the day. Out came the Machu Picchu mountain clothes and in came the rainforest and ship clothes….<50-lbs plus a carry on!!!!
Day One: Whoa….sleep in, meet in the lobby at 9:30am….wow, first time this trip we did not have to leave at 4-5am!!! We met our 2 Expedition Leaders, Angel and Mark, plus 23 other passengers. Normally the ship can handle 28 so a few short. A 2 hour flight to Iquitos, then a 2 hour bus ride to Nauta and then a skiff ride to the Delfin II. I surprised Kathy with the 2nd floor starboard, forward stateroom….a little larger cabin plus great viewing windows!!! Ah, she was quite happy to unpack one last time:)))) As described by the ship: “Our 4 spacious Master Suites are at the front of the vessel, with 180° panoramic windows to ensure the most wonderful views. A king-size bed with exquisite sheets and bedspread, all-cotton towels and bathrobes, the finest organic amenities, and individual reading lights create the epitome of calm and enjoyment.
I took pictures of most of our meals….all immigrant infused traditional Peruvian dishes….fish, chicken, meats, different vegetables, rice & potatoes. Breakfast was a buffet and lunch and dinner were both 3-course meals…EXCELLENT!!! And, I definitely bonded with Pisco Sours….the ship made several Pisco drinks…I usually had the Sour but sometimes the Chilcano….Pisco, ginger ale, simple syrup, lime and 3 drops of bitters…yummers….Oh, did I mention all Pisco drinks were free:))))
This Amazon River Expedition: “As the riverboat chugs its way up the chocolate-colored channel, fringed with dense rainforest, the primeval depths of the Upper Amazon beckon. Our focus is the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve at the mighty river’s headwaters, a 5-million-acre mosaic of flooded and dry forest, islands and tea-colored creeks laden with tannins. Containing some of the greatest biodiversity on Earth, it shelters the largest wildlife populations in the Amazon Basin. Explore by excursion boat and on foot, looking for pink river dolphins, monkeys, sloths, macaws and butterflies. Lagoons covered in giant lily pads teem with fish and caiman, while scores of marsh birds hunt from shore. Visit local villages, and learn about conservation challenges as we follow hundreds of miles of Amazon tributaries aboard a deluxe ship built for exploring the river system’s farthest reaches.”
OK….critter galore. I took almost 4,000 pictures and made 3 different galleries of about 450 pictures for all to see. Monkeys, iguanas, caimans, Macaws, Toucans, lots of other birds, and of course, the pink and gray freshwater dolphins. I will say though, that the quantity and quality of critters did not match the African safaris. Some of the difference is the sightings are much harder in a rainforest and the Amazon deforestation is certainly having an affect. We had several people tell us that the Nat Hab trip to Pantanal Brazil and the Jaguars might rival the African safaris in terms of critter sightings!!
One night near dusk we witnessed many hundred of thousands of Parakeets flying over an isolated island to roost for the night. The sound was loud and the view was spectacular. Reminded us of the fruit bats in Fiji and Vanuatu!! The night skiff rides were ok, not much to see but tiny frogs and small caimans, which did look ferocious. Kathy got bitten by noseeums at night, especially at happy hour on the ship. We were using 30% Deet wipes but no matter. We switched to the ship’s local spay with better luck!!
Days 2-4 we cruised the Maranon River, reversing course and cruising to the “confluence” where the 2 main tributaries, Maranon and Ucayali Rivers, merge to form the Amazon River!! Then Days 5-8 we cruised the Ucayali River and Day 9 we disembarked in Nauta. Days 4-8 we were in the Pacaya Samiria Reserve. The waters we saw in Machu Picchu eventually flow into the Amazon River…whoa….and very impressive!!! Each day consisted of 2-3 excursions….mostly rides in comfortable skiffs with a local Naturalist at dawn, after breakfast and at dusk. We did 2 rainforest hikes, and 2 village tours. Usually each day had a talk about the critters or Amazon River and the crew did several demonstrations….Pisco cocktails, fruit prep, trout ceviche, and origami towel folding!! Everyday our cabin steward left us a special towel folded critter…very creative and lifelike!!!
https://www.nathab.com/south-america/amazon-river-cruise?
I won’t give all the Amazon River facts…except to say it is the world’s largest river as well as river basin. It has over 1100 tributaries, 17 are more than 1000 miles long. Now there is a bit of controversy on the longest….Egypt says the Nile and Brazil says the Amazon…hmmm…both are over 4,000 miles long…..pretty cool that Kathy and I have now down both the Nile and Amazon…whoa!!!
Day 2-4: ok….now for the earl birds….each day started with a 6:00am skiff excursion….had to be there for the sunrise and jungle waking up!! For Day 2-4 we cruised the Maranon River and did 2 rainforest hikes. For the hikes they gave us rainboots as the river was way up, in fact way over flood stage, and the walks were very wet and muddy. Kathy did not do the walks due to her knee, and while I’m glad I did them, they were very hot, sweaty and not that many critters, But, we did see an Anaconda snake…whoa!!! The village guide had found him in another location and brought it to a pond near us. It was a juvenile about 12′ long. At one point while I was viewing and taking pictures, the snake went under a bush….the guide grabbed the trail and threw him near me and Jorge (The Nat Hab Naturalist). Jorge grabbed me and said watch out as the snake kept swimming toward us… Yeppa, I was about to scream like a girl but it veered off, plus the guide still had its tail so all was safe….but, purely by reflex, I kept taking pictures and whoa…some great shots!!!
Day 5-8: Early morning of Day 5 we went to the Confluence…the merging to the 2 tributary rivers to form the Amazon River….pretty cool!!! “The Amazon River was named after the Amazon women of Greek mythology, a tribe of female warriors, by the Spanish explorer Francisco de Orellana in 1541. Orellana encountered indigenous women warriors during his exploration and likened them to the legendary Amazons.” Think Wonder Woman….ok, sorry, but the Naturalist said it:)))
Day 9: Well….and so the return home marathon starts. What should have been a 24 hour trip turned into 55 hours….arghhhhh!!! We are on the Latam plane in Iquitos to Lima on the runway when it stops….and we wait, and wait….mechanics come on board….yeppa, mechanical issue, back to the lounge and more waiting. Rumor spreads a plane is being sent for us…relief…we have a 11:20pm flight so still should make it….but then, Angel & Mark who have been heroically at the head of the line for ~4 hours in an unaircondioned airport, and on the phone to Nat Hab, tell us no plane, booked on the same flight tomorrow and they have found us a great hotel 1/2 hour away and an airconditioned bus awaits…yea…sort of. We get to the hotel and I spend the next few hours with the Nat Hab travel agent going through a myriad of options. No business seats anywhere so we book the same flights as before, just a day later, in Economy Plus, and get a huge refund on Delta…which we will most likely will never use….since they have only been late 80% of the time this year causing major disruptions!!! Oh but wait, the Lima to Atlanta flight is 2 hours late….no reason given….missed our connection in Atlanta….had to rebook twice as the 1st time Delta gave us an illegal connection in LAX….arghhhhh….TG Nat Hab saved the day and got us a nonstop later that morning to SFO. But Wait….John gets stopped at Global Entry….no reason given…15 minutes later an Agent asks a few questiosn then says free to go. Now this is the 3rd time this year we have been stopped entering the USA. I ask him why and he gives me a pamphlet and says go to this link and file a complaint to get off the target list…what target….he says look around…there are 3 older white guys with wives standing around….hmmm and yikes!!! I have filed but no response as of yet. But Wait….our driver goes to Sacramento and not SFO so we take Uber instead….as we are about to get on the Bay Bridge it shuts down….for hours…big wreck…it takes us 4+ hours to get home!!! So 55 hours later and 5 rebookings we get home only for our cats to sort of wake up and say, what took you so long…meow:))))
Hope all is well!!
John
PS: 3 photo galleries at:
https://mysticmoonvoyages.com/photo-gallery/nggallery/album/amazon-river-part-1
https://mysticmoonvoyages.com/photo-gallery/nggallery/album/amazon-river-part-2
https://mysticmoonvoyages.com/photo-gallery/nggallery/album/amazon-river-part-3
Amazon Confluence: The Maranon and Ucayali Rivers merge to form the Amazon River!
Too many to count Parakeets flying at dusk to an isolated island to roost for the night
River dolphin…..look closely, they are fast!!
Jorge imitating a Howler monkey plus a few dolphins!!
I never did get the money shot but not bad!!
The last night the crew gave a performance of traditional Peruvian songs!
