Amazonas
Must-see! Bucket-list-worthy! The top destination for 2020! These could be some of the tabloid-worthy titles if we were to write a tabloidy post about the days we spent in the amazing Amazonas region. Even if I wanted to, I could not take any credit for this part of our trip. Considering I am a bit of a geo-ignorant, I thought it's Brasil, not Colombia when it comes to Amazonas (now, I am much more educated on this topic :D).
I have already touched upon the subject of flights and accommodation in our last post so I will not bother you with that again. After landing at Leticia airport, we took a cab to the "port" of Leticia (more of a boat stop than a port but you know what I mean) and then went on by a private boat (arranged in advance by our accommodation). After a minute or so, we stopped at the crossroads and learned that the shore we saw to the left is Brasil, the opposite one was Peru and if we turned right we stayed in Colombia. So right we turned and in the next minute we were speeding on the Amazon river! (which is still - even now - unbelievable and unimaginable to me!!!) I think I was grinning like crazy the whole ride - which took an hour and a half :D. If you think, it must have been pretty boring, you are quite mistaken. Imagine sitting in a boat without any roof over your head in a quite humid area (some 80 - 90%?) and seeing a storm ahead. Our driver told us he was going to go around the storm and that he was taking it through Peru. In the end, we considered this an excellent idea and thanked him for doing so. That is, the first few drops were fine but after some time, when you're pretty wet and the wind is blowing constantly because you're speeding, it becomes a bit (only a bit, I swear :D) uncomfortable. And when you're eagerly waiting if you manage to ride around the storm or not while persuading yourself that you're really not dreaming but you actually ARE riding a boat on the Amazon in Peru/Colombia, the ride itself goes by in a blink of an eye.
Two and a half days were not too many to see and do everything and that was why, after right after arriving at Mocagua, we had 2 activities planned. A hike before dinner and a boat tour after dinner. In fact, we only had 1 afternoon free which was absolutely fine because the thing is you won't go wandering into the forest. Basically, the only things you could do when you had no activities was to relax/socialize. Anyway, wouldn't you want to "see it all" if you only had a couple of days?!
Back to the activities, though. Our first activity was my least favourite - nothing better than a good start, is there? :D. It was afternoon so it was hot, I was covered from head to toe so it was even hotter. The mosquitoes did not mind our repellent as much as I had hoped they would. Combine these three facts and you get one angry woman :D Telchac's edit: not really.
And then as the sun went down, my hopes went up :D. I was fed and it was not that hot at 8pm when we started our night boat tour. It was kind of scary and exciting and a real adventure! We were lucky enough to see little caymans, various frogs and toads or sleeping birds.
The next day we planned for some kayaking featuring some surprise fishing, pink dolphin watching in Peru (no biggie :D) and a night walk. My hopes, that were quite high after the night boat ride, stayed where they were or got even higher because it was absolutely fantastic.
I preferred the kayaking when we were using the engine instead of rowing :D but we could use some training after the amount we had eaten for dinner and breakfast and it was also completely fine when we stopped and were given fishing rods (Amazonas style) and some fruits and were trying to catch some fish. After catching his first three fish it became obvious to everyone that Telchac was a natural. He even advanced to fishing for piranhas and he caught some of those as well! On the other hand, I caught two fish in total. Yes, two fish. Neither three nor four and neither was it me who started competing with our guide who can catch a fish quicker... When I managed to catch a fish, I repeatedly swung my fish in a way that it hit Telchac's chest :D I do not know if it was because I am left-handed or because I am clumsy, either way, Telchac was hit by a slimy and wet fish more than once that day. No, I am not a natural when it comes to fishing.
As the dolphin watching required one and only skill - watching - we did not encounter any issues :D. There weren't tens of them but we found a group or two of five that circled around us for quite a while. As a bonus, we saw two sloths enjoying their dinner up in the canopy on our way back.
After our first hike, I was not sure what to expect for this second hike/walk. But again, as it was at night, it was much more comfortable than the one during the day. Also, I think we even saw more (and maybe more interesting) animals during this one. Spiders, insects, frogs and many more.
It started raining after the night walk and it did not stop until 3pm next afternoon which resulted in two things. Firstly, as I slept close to the "window" (no glass, just to remind you), it meant I got splashed approximately every hour. Mind you, my stupid half-sleeping brain thought I got peed on by some animal the first time it happened :D. Secondly, this meant we were not going and could not go for an early morning bird watching tour. We both were really sad about this as it was Telchac's most desired tour. Instead, we stayed in our cabin and slept till the rain stopped.
Our last activity was a visit to a monkey refuge. I am not really a big fan "let's exploit some tourists by showing them what is our typical day here" but this literally exceeded my expectations. There was one very nice man who told us about every inhabitant of the refuge and a refuge volunteer who got her glasses (not sunglasses but a much-needed prescription glasses) stolen by a white capuchin monkey who got so excited by a lens he took out, he started masturbating. It was really a funny and totally unexpected sight. Also, he stole our room key from the guide which became a laughing matter for everyone, except us :D. In the end, everybody got back everything and we even became used to being an unexpected landing surface for the monkeys. Still, it was perfect! (which I must stress I hadn't expected)
Our last day in Amazonas and day nb. 5 of our stay in Colombia was a frequent flyer's dream :D. Starting with an early morning boat ride to Leticia - during which two pink dolphins came to say bye! - and followed by a flight to Bogota and then a flight to Medellin. Nooooo, it wasn't crazy at all. On the upside, thanks to our luggage waiting for us at the hotel in Bogota, we could both take a quick shower and change from our outdoor wear to regular (and missed a lot) clothes.
If you got this far, you must really like us, so sending all the love back I would like to tell you it's worth coming back in two weeks if you want to find out about our days in and around Medellin. Until that moment comes, stay home & stay safe, follow our IG and C U then!
 |
| ...leave us there and we won't come back...because we had no idea which way we came! |
I have already touched upon the subject of flights and accommodation in our last post so I will not bother you with that again. After landing at Leticia airport, we took a cab to the "port" of Leticia (more of a boat stop than a port but you know what I mean) and then went on by a private boat (arranged in advance by our accommodation). After a minute or so, we stopped at the crossroads and learned that the shore we saw to the left is Brasil, the opposite one was Peru and if we turned right we stayed in Colombia. So right we turned and in the next minute we were speeding on the Amazon river! (which is still - even now - unbelievable and unimaginable to me!!!) I think I was grinning like crazy the whole ride - which took an hour and a half :D. If you think, it must have been pretty boring, you are quite mistaken. Imagine sitting in a boat without any roof over your head in a quite humid area (some 80 - 90%?) and seeing a storm ahead. Our driver told us he was going to go around the storm and that he was taking it through Peru. In the end, we considered this an excellent idea and thanked him for doing so. That is, the first few drops were fine but after some time, when you're pretty wet and the wind is blowing constantly because you're speeding, it becomes a bit (only a bit, I swear :D) uncomfortable. And when you're eagerly waiting if you manage to ride around the storm or not while persuading yourself that you're really not dreaming but you actually ARE riding a boat on the Amazon in Peru/Colombia, the ride itself goes by in a blink of an eye.
 |
| Is there a better view?! |
Two and a half days were not too many to see and do everything and that was why, after right after arriving at Mocagua, we had 2 activities planned. A hike before dinner and a boat tour after dinner. In fact, we only had 1 afternoon free which was absolutely fine because the thing is you won't go wandering into the forest. Basically, the only things you could do when you had no activities was to relax/socialize. Anyway, wouldn't you want to "see it all" if you only had a couple of days?!
Back to the activities, though. Our first activity was my least favourite - nothing better than a good start, is there? :D. It was afternoon so it was hot, I was covered from head to toe so it was even hotter. The mosquitoes did not mind our repellent as much as I had hoped they would. Combine these three facts and you get one angry woman :D Telchac's edit: not really.
 |
| Isla Mocagua aka my "favourite" hike |
And then as the sun went down, my hopes went up :D. I was fed and it was not that hot at 8pm when we started our night boat tour. It was kind of scary and exciting and a real adventure! We were lucky enough to see little caymans, various frogs and toads or sleeping birds.
 |
| Just a lil' termite sauce (kumache), provechito! |
The next day we planned for some kayaking featuring some surprise fishing, pink dolphin watching in Peru (no biggie :D) and a night walk. My hopes, that were quite high after the night boat ride, stayed where they were or got even higher because it was absolutely fantastic.
 |
| Hello there! |
I preferred the kayaking when we were using the engine instead of rowing :D but we could use some training after the amount we had eaten for dinner and breakfast and it was also completely fine when we stopped and were given fishing rods (Amazonas style) and some fruits and were trying to catch some fish. After catching his first three fish it became obvious to everyone that Telchac was a natural. He even advanced to fishing for piranhas and he caught some of those as well! On the other hand, I caught two fish in total. Yes, two fish. Neither three nor four and neither was it me who started competing with our guide who can catch a fish quicker... When I managed to catch a fish, I repeatedly swung my fish in a way that it hit Telchac's chest :D I do not know if it was because I am left-handed or because I am clumsy, either way, Telchac was hit by a slimy and wet fish more than once that day. No, I am not a natural when it comes to fishing.
 |
| Basically, I caught none of those :D |
As the dolphin watching required one and only skill - watching - we did not encounter any issues :D. There weren't tens of them but we found a group or two of five that circled around us for quite a while. As a bonus, we saw two sloths enjoying their dinner up in the canopy on our way back.
After our first hike, I was not sure what to expect for this second hike/walk. But again, as it was at night, it was much more comfortable than the one during the day. Also, I think we even saw more (and maybe more interesting) animals during this one. Spiders, insects, frogs and many more.
 |
| the more colorful, the more poisonous |
It started raining after the night walk and it did not stop until 3pm next afternoon which resulted in two things. Firstly, as I slept close to the "window" (no glass, just to remind you), it meant I got splashed approximately every hour. Mind you, my stupid half-sleeping brain thought I got peed on by some animal the first time it happened :D. Secondly, this meant we were not going and could not go for an early morning bird watching tour. We both were really sad about this as it was Telchac's most desired tour. Instead, we stayed in our cabin and slept till the rain stopped.
 |
| looking for 1 bedroom, bathroom does not have to be en-suite, higher floor preferable |
Our last activity was a visit to a monkey refuge. I am not really a big fan "let's exploit some tourists by showing them what is our typical day here" but this literally exceeded my expectations. There was one very nice man who told us about every inhabitant of the refuge and a refuge volunteer who got her glasses (not sunglasses but a much-needed prescription glasses) stolen by a white capuchin monkey who got so excited by a lens he took out, he started masturbating. It was really a funny and totally unexpected sight. Also, he stole our room key from the guide which became a laughing matter for everyone, except us :D. In the end, everybody got back everything and we even became used to being an unexpected landing surface for the monkeys. Still, it was perfect! (which I must stress I hadn't expected)
 |
| Let me introduce you to Elena. She's a mono churuco or woolly monkey. Suits her right, doesn't it? |
Our last day in Amazonas and day nb. 5 of our stay in Colombia was a frequent flyer's dream :D. Starting with an early morning boat ride to Leticia - during which two pink dolphins came to say bye! - and followed by a flight to Bogota and then a flight to Medellin. Nooooo, it wasn't crazy at all. On the upside, thanks to our luggage waiting for us at the hotel in Bogota, we could both take a quick shower and change from our outdoor wear to regular (and missed a lot) clothes.
 |
| The Amazon river was on the right side of the plane. Despite that, we loved this view! |
If you got this far, you must really like us, so sending all the love back I would like to tell you it's worth coming back in two weeks if you want to find out about our days in and around Medellin. Until that moment comes, stay home & stay safe, follow our IG and C U then!