IQUITOS & ENVIRONMENT

The city of Iquitos, in the heart of the Peruvian Amazon, is possibly the most isolated large city in the world - a distinction that gives it a unique character and charm all its own. With a population approaching 1/2 million, the city holds almost half the population of the Departamento de Loreto, the largest of the Peruvian states, and is the only state lying entirely within the Amazon lowland rainforest area. The city's isolation is due to the rainforest and rivers that surround it - the Amazon, Itaya and Nanay Rivers all bound the city, the surrounding rainforest is mostly road-less as soon as one leaves the city, and many river miles separate the city from the nearest rail- and road-connections to the rest of the world.

There are NO road connections to Iquitos (despite the plot-line of The Celestine Prophecy), and access is by air and river only. Road building in the region is extremely difficult - this western portion of the Amazon Basin was once an inland sea, and deposits of silt, clay and fine sand up to 1000' feet thick overlay the bedrock below. There is no stone or gravel available for building roadways or foundations, and the clays, sands, and silts are easily eroded. Bridge building is even more difficult. With river levels rising and falling 30' to 45' annually, bridges must be elevated, and establishing a firm foundation is difficult if not impossible in most cases.

Despite being over 2000 miles up the Amazon River (from the mouth of the river in Brazil), Iquitos is only 300 to 350' above sea level, and about 3^o S of the Equator, so the climate is uniformly warm and humid. There is a definite wet and dry season, with the dry season corresponding roughly to the northern summer, and the wet season to the northern winter. Even in the dry season, it generally rains every few days, and no month of the year has less than 100 mm precipitation on average.

Iquitos is named after the now vanished or completely assimilated Iquitos Indian tribe. Two religious communities were established in the vicinity by the Jesuits in the 1740's. These communities soon joined, and moved to the present location. In 1864, Iquitos officially became a city and the first port facilities were constructed. In 1897, the city became the capitol of the Department of Loreto.

Starting in the early 1880's, the industrial revolution and invention of the automobile created an increasing demand for natural rubber, all of which came from the Amazon Basin. With skyrocketing prices, Amazon cities like Belen and Manaus in Brazil, and Iquitos in Peru, flourished, and vast fortunes were made overnight. Entire buildings were imported from Europe in some cases, and one fine example designed by Gustav Eiffel of Eiffel Tower fame, still stands on the Plaza de Armas (central square) in downtown Iquitos. The excesses of the era are easily seen in the beautiful, but weather worn and neglected wall tiles and fine ironwork that decorate many of the buildings in the historic center of Iquitos. Most of these were imported from Italy, Spain or Portugal toward the end of the 19th century.  The Iquitos cathedral located on the central Plaza de Armas, is an excellent example of neo-gothic architecture, and was completed in 1911.

By 1910, however, English-established rubber plantations in Malaysia started to produce rubber, and with the production of plantation rubber and the subsequent invention of synthetic rubber, the boom came to a crashing halt. Iquitos slid into a deep decline, and only the discovery of oil in areas on the Peru-Ecuador border turned the decline around. Since the 1970's, rainforest tourism has become an important contributor to the city's economy, and the city often refers to itself as "Iquitos - ecological capital of the world".

Today, the city's economy is based on government (civil government and all branches of the military), service industries, oil and gas exploitation, lumber extraction, fishing, and tourism. Most goods and services are readily available - cybercafes abound, and ATMs are easy to access. The city boasts a major university - the Universidad de la Amazonia Peruana, which includes a well-regarded medical school, as well as two private universities. The Peruvian center for Amazon Research (Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonia Peruana [IIAP]) is also located here, and has contributed considerably to our knowledge of the biological and physical processes that occur in the Amazon.

Iquitos is known in the rest of Peru as a party-town, and with good reason. The inhabitants are laid-back and friendly, and social events and gatherings are part of daily life. All holidays are observed, and parades are frequent. These may be in honor of someone or something, or to promote things as diverse as childhood vaccinations or to protest the use of mercury in gold mining operations. If you are in town around Christmas-time, don't miss the display in the Plaza de Armas - the creche comes complete with a variety of Amazon animals, supplemented by lighted reindeer, snowmen, snow-flakes and Santa Clause! Many night clubs and bars serve both locals and visitors, and the riverfront walk is alive with families, couples, entertainers, and vendors on weekends. A wide variety of restaurants means that most tastes can be easily accommodated. There are a number of regional specialties that everyone should try, however. Happily (at least in our opinion), there are NO fast food-chain restaurants in Iquitos! You can still get a good hamburger and fries, however.

Getting around Iquitos is easy. Regular taxis are few and far between, but the streets are filled with motokars, three-wheel motorcycle-powered taxis. Fares are cheap, and you never have to wait for long before one comes by. Since all vehicles have to be shipped to Iquitos by plane or boat, private vehicles are not common, and most people depend on public transport or motokars to get around.

On weekends, Iquitos residents often head to beaches and lakes on the outskirts of town. One popular spot, the Quistacocha tourist center, is a zoo located on a scenic lake with a white-sand beach. The zoo displays only animals native to the Amazon, and many of the zoos animals have been confiscated from people trying to illegally sell wild animals. To the surprise of many visitors, the zoo is an enjoyable visit - the grounds are spacious and attractive, and the animals well cared for. It is also clearly evident that the zoo administration is doing what it can to provide appropriate housing for the animals, and also to convey a conservation message. The zoo grounds also house a medicinal plant garden, with a large variety of native plants which are used for a wide variety of medical and health-care purposes.

A must-see site for any visitor is the famous Belen Market. This market is open every day of the week, and mornings are the best time to visit when it is cooler and the market is busiest. A huge variety of produce is available, both cultivated and harvested from the rainforest. Imported and locally manufactured goods are also available, as are services ranging from fortune telling to dental work and shoe repair. The streets are narrow and crowded, and taller visitors will need to watch out that they don't hit their heads on awnings and sun-shades. Because the market sprawls across many blocks, streets and alleys, and even out onto the Itaya River, first time visitors should probably visit with a guide. This is not a tourist market, but a hard-working market patronized by the residents of Iquitos. There are several smaller produce markets in other parts of the city - these too are worth a visit if time permits. As in any crowded and busy area, be careful of pickpockets! The Belen district is a hard-scrabble working-class neighborhood built on the Itaya River floodplain. Most houses are built on stilts or on logs, so when the floodwaters rise, residents either move to a higher floor while fish take over the lower levels, or their houses float up with the rising water level. Access is by small boat or rickety wooden walkways spanning the floodwaters. This is a very picturesque part of town best visited by small boat, and there are plenty of boat operators vying for your business!

Visitors looking for souvenirs can find a modest selection at stalls located on the river front near the Plaza de Armas. Better quality goods, including beautiful bloodwood bowls and carvings, can be found on the first few blocks of Prospero Street (leading from the Plaza de Armas). An entire artisans market, the Mercado Ferial de San Juan, has an excellent selection of handicrafts and souvenirs, and is located in the district of San Juan, about half-way from Iquitos proper to the airport (a 10-15 minute motokar ride, and ~s/3 (=$1.00). Before souvenir shopping, however, please read the Responsible Ecotourism page!

Exploring and experiencing Iquitos is well worth it. Basic common sense will ensure that you don't run into any problems, and residents are helpful and friendly. Many visitors wish that they had more time to spend in and around Iquitos. You can always come back, though!

mionectes (at) aol.com