Day 9 Iquitos, Manatees, Home

Woke up just after 2am again; so got up and blogged.  Showered and went topside for 5am coffee.  

Unsure what life back home will feel like… now that I have seen and done these things this week.   

Still teary eyed...

Packed, showered and had breakfast at 7:30am.  Disembarked in Iquitos (Peru) at 8:30am.

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Given driving tour of Iquitos through the rain.  Still grateful that this trip had so little rain.  When it did rain, it was at unusually convenient (to us) times!

Iquitos' claim to fame is it is our world's largest city (by population) inaccessible by roads.

Political Posters - Mayor

One of two pigs/peccary loaded onto Tuk-Tuk

Tuk Tuks sporting rain shields

Saw many short 'man doors' inside larger doors

Iquitos has cars - even though the city is accessible only by plane/boat

Gassing up Tuk Tuks

Dirt roads are common in Iquitos

Manatee Rescue Center

On the way to the airport we stopped at ACOBIA-DWAzoo Amazonian Manatee Rescue Center in Iquitos and fed manatees.  Manatees are known also known as sea cows and measure up to 13 feet and 1,300 lbs.  All three species of manatee are listed by the World Conservation Union as vulnerable to extinction.

Logan of Suffolk, VA - feeding Manatees

Logan of Suffolk, VA - feeding manatees

Flights Home: 26 hours / 3 planes

1. Sat 4/11:  11am checkin for flight.  12:30pm - 2:30pm Iquitos to Lima (630 miles over Andes Mountains, all in Peru).
• At Iquitos' airport, we checked luggage and cleared security.  Again we were able to take though Security: any liquids, bottled water and boxed lunches.  And we did not need to undress or send laptops through separately.  
• As we enjoyed our boxed lunches as the gate, our expedition leader, collected food items we did not eat.  I saw the bag of our uneaten food given to the airport janitorial staff.  
• 4pm-10pm:  6 hours in hotel to shower/eat/nap - use free wi-fi (!) for first time in a week!  
2. 10pm checkin for flight. Sun 4/12: 2am - 9:30 am Lima to Atlanta (6.5 hrs, with time change)
3. Sun 4/12: 12:15 pm - 1:40 pm Atlanta to Norfolk

Inspiration (and validation for my craving) to travel: http://quoteslauraloves.blogspot.com/2014/10/travel.html

Link to trip's photos: https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/116319833256517272396/albums/6079311244192080433

Day 8 Float Plane

After lunch, our boat parked near a float plane.  In groups of four, we took a float plane ride (compliments of International Expeditions!) above the Confluence of the Marañón, Ucayali and Amazon rivers.  We had our second heavy (but short) rain - enough to soak our shoes - just dried out from yesterday's rain!  haha!  Not bad, considering we expected rain every day - and instead only had it twice briefly.  Even then it was at the end of both activities.

Pilot & Jeff

Our Boat: Le Estrella Amazonia

Confluence of 3 Rivers:  Amazon, Ucayali & Maranon

Start of the Amazon River (top right) - above the Maranon River

Flooded Flatland Village

Flooded Flatland Village

Day 7 Yanallpa Creek

The guides offered an optional 6:30am skiff ride.  About half of us went, and it was the only time we had all three guides in one skiff.  We saw SO much!  At one point, we had bats perched low and close to the boat, while we had a monk saki up ahead and saddleback tamarin on the right - with macaws flying overhead! The guides continue to be as excited as the guests at such sightings.

Great Black Hawk

Ringed Kingfisher

Saddle-Back Tamarin

Saddle Back Tamarin

Greater Ani - locals refer to their sounds as 'boiling kettle'

Long Billed Woodcreeper - sorry for lousy photo! 

Yellow-crowned brush-tailed rat (Isothrix bistriata)

Bees 

Scarlet crowed Plushcrown

Channel Billed Toucan

LineatedWoodpecker & Crimson Crestead Woodpecker:
(To enlarge view of photos is this post, click on any photo.) 

Need ID 

 Blue & Gold Macaw:

Choco Trogan

Night/Owl Monkeys, Three

Monk Saki: