Iquitos-The Strike, The Chavezes, And A Lot of Beautiful "Coincidences" 6/03/07 - Present

Iquitos... Iquitos is a "small" big city in the Peruvian Amazon. While being a home to somewhere between 500,000 to 1 million people (depends on who you ask),it remains a safe, friendly place. As a matter of fact, it is the world's largest city not connected by road to anywhere. Giggling kids say "Buenos dias" or "Hello" (to practice their English) as you walk down the street. Old women nod as they look on you from their windows. Partying locals graciously invite you to dance as they celebrate little girls' birthdays. My heart is at ease. Locals merrily engage us in a conversation as I practice my broken Spanish. And Peruvians are proud to be Peruvians. And of course you will hear, "Peruvians are not friendly!", as we've heard some travelers say. Don't listen to them. That has been our running joke for the last 2 weeks. We arrived in Iquitos a day before the strike. Strikes are almost an everyday thing in Peru. For many reasons, the main one being that the government is screwing the people of course, Peruvians go on strike all the time. The unique part about it is that they shut down everything in the city. EVERYTHING! And through a string of "coincidences" we were introduced to a family which allowed us to stay in their home for 4 days to sit out the upcoming strike before we jumped on the next boat out of town to continue our journey. We stocked up on food and watched the strike begin: By the end of the 3rd day all the streets were littered with cut down branches, broken glass bottles, and ash. It was disappointing to see a beautiful city get so vandalized, but on the eve after the strike, the whole community got together and cleaned everything up. Everyone from little kids to old people were sweeping the streets, clearing the branches and all. It was beautiful.Of course, while the grown ups are marching, the kids are playing football, chasing each other, jump-roping, and having a grand old time in the deserted streets.

Naturally, we got in on some of the action...

Our hosts Alfredo and Loyda were more hospitable than we could ever expect. Alfredo, who has been in tourism for over 35 years, speaks impeccable English. And Loyda, while barely being able to speak any English, had absolutely no problem in making herself understood. Though barely being able to clear 5 feet in height, she is an imposing figure. I could not bring myself to challenge the location of the pots or anything in the house for that matter. She would repeat any Spanish word until I understood. And both of them have so much love inside them. As a matter of fact, when the street money changers ripped me of, she had no problem retrieving my money from those bastards in mere minutes. Really! I wish that I could take Loyda with me throughout South America.To thank our hosts and their friends for their hospitality, we whipped up a great dinner, which at first, they were kind of afraid to try. But they loved it. Gringos can cook.

After dinner, laughing, and trying to understand each other, we partook in an old Peruvian tradition... karaoke. Here the ladies sing "Cielito Lindo", which is also the name of Alfredo's boat.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention. One of the friends of the family is a D.J. at a local radio station and one day gave us a shout out on the radio and played some of our favorite songs. Can you ask for more?

Ever watch Fear Factor?

Alfredo is also a shaman in an Indian Ayahuasca Ceremony. Which we took part of. An amazing and cleansing experience. We'll tell you the details if you ask. Here he is with the two other shamans, exhausted from a full nights work:

The beautiful Cielito Lindo, Alfredo's boat.

If my Princess is not eating fruit, she is smelling flowers.

Ahh... I am so lucky!

Where have all the Beetles gone? South America!

Sasha holding my hand. I'm a hairy little beast.