Saturday, September 20, 2025
Lima, Peru
Holy, Blessed Father! Look where You have sent me! Peru at night.
It is late, the dark seems foggy and there are cool ocean breezes. There is traffic galore and we are told that a concert has just let out. The flow is further hindered by a stopped car that blocks the packed road. The driver who, it seems, has no such hindering flow problems as he personally waters a nearby tree. The sight takes me back to the drunk man on my brother’s first day in Ganado long ago…
The flight from Houston was fine though a bit agitating with turbulence both inside and out. I dropped an ear bud, then a pen, then the partner earbud…bent over in half, head between my legs, flashlight out, hardly breathing…I was tempted to look for the candid camera staff in my suffocating comedy of errors.
The road to the hotel is oceanside. There are towering walls of natural rock to the left with some covered in a shadowy green. These draw my eyes up to the high-rise hotels on top. The Pacific Ocean is on the right with its imperceptible waves highlighted by the curiously illuminated eye catching white foam. As we drive past, cars randomly park on the highway taking in the view without, it seems, any thought for safety.
After a full day of traveling, I am surprised to find myself smiling and energized. It is well after midnight when I lay my head down.
Midnight Mischief,
PeruAna?
Saturday, September 20, 2025
Sunday
It’s a beautiful quiet Sunday morning as I walk to the Good Shepherd Anglican Church for their English service. There are all kinds of dog walkers out with their beautiful huskies to tiny fluff balls. Most people, even the doggers, are bundled in their down coats braving the 67° weather. I am in my gauze skirt and short sleeves relishing every minute of the breezing. In Phoenix, you can always tell who the tourists are because they wear shorts in the ‘winter’. I am clearly a tourist in every aspect of my being just as my son predicted. It makes me smile at my ridiculous self.
In the afternoon, I take a walk to find the ocean. I walk past a bar called Eden. I wonder at what possible meaning it could have… full of snakes perhaps?
It is not far and soon I reach the east end of the ocean cliff park, the Parque del Amor. The walkway is lively with lovers and flowers, families and gazers. The young couples hold flowers bought from vendors. The older couples hold each other’s hands. Philip loved to give flowers. I wonder which set we would take after.
I expected to see a celebration of bright clothes in the riotous colors reminiscent of Africa and India, but it is not so. The voices and laughter, smiles and play tell this story instead.
The lush greenness of the park is home to vibrant birdsong. Birdsong always acts as a portal of sorts bringing my imagination to the true garden of Eden. I like to imagine walking with God in the garden in the cool of the day. It is especially lovely as there is no need to hide anymore since Jesus became God’s righteousness.
There is a misty haze to the air and horizon. The ocean wind brings the smell of rain. I rise from the trail to a vista of the western shore. The sun has broken through and electrified the white waters with its shimmering, magical effervescence. It is as if the veil has been torn and the glory of God rises to welcome me to Peru.
It is a fine beginning.
Later, as the night gathers in, I reflect.
Holy, Blessed One,
How precious to be present in Your presence this day in Lima. I boast in your safe keeping of me.
Dayenue: which would have been enough, but You also gave me welcome at church and old hymns to sing and communion to share and a personal prayer from the pulpit for my safe travel.
Dayenue: which would have been enough, but You also gave me ocean views and birdsong and your light upon the water–crisp, stirring glimpses of Eden.
Dayenue: which would have been enough, but You also gave me an ocean overlook centering prayer to nurture and prepare me for this time.
Dayenue: which would have been enough, but You also gave me a text from Barb and a call from Joe and a lovely meal on my own and then a fine, free pisco sour with a new friend and teammate.
Dayenue: which would have been enough, but You also gave me a sister-in-law to come home to…
Thank You, Holy One, for this most amazing day. I am wholly blessed by You, indeed (and in deed).
Welcome to Peru,
PeruviAnne?
You look around
(NOT to be construed as Pervy Anne please)
Sunday, September 21, 2025
Monday
Yesterday it was dogs in jackets. Today it is cats in condos. Kennedy Park is a city park not far from the hotel. It has been dedicated to cats. It is the Peruvian equivalent to a cat rescue. Concerned cat lovers have built cat condos and placed bowls for meals and the cats have moved in. They get vaccinations and health care and the freedom to lounge and prowl at will. A few joined us for dinner at an adjacent open air restaurant. Langostino Risotto was on my menu and I was not inclined to share though my teammates did. Our visitors were clean and healthy looking and so affectionate. Support animals for all the weary travelers. I wonder if crime rates are down in this part of the city…
We toured the Huaca Pucllana Pyramid today. I walked past it on my way to church. It rises up in the middle of a neighborhood. It is considered an expensive status symbol to live near it.
It is not a cone shaped pyramid as I am used to but an asymmetrical one. Tall and long. It is made of mud bricks that are stacked like books on a shelf. In the wisdom of the ancients this allowed for flexible movement that provided survival during earthquakes. This is one theory to explain its survival 2000 years later.
Our guide told us that the pyramid is a solid fortress without an interior and was presumably built to get closer to God. I’ve been studying Genesis, Exodus and Leviticus lately and this set off a flurry of connections for me. Feel free to scroll down should you prefer a travelogue to an emerging dissertation.
Our guide also said that to the builder priests, creation consisted of 3 realms: the heavens for the gods, the earth for living beings and the waters below for the underworld.
The job of living things was to appease the gods into creating favorable life sustaining conditions. If there was a drought, for instance, the ancients guessed that they had displeased the gods and sought ways to make them happy. Not having any rule book, they had to guess what the gods might want. This escalated over time to human sacrifices. It didn’t matter when the rain came, it was attributed to the success of the sacrifice and so became a repeating cycle.
In the time of the writing of the Old Testament, the world was seen in similar terms. The world consisted of the same 3 realms; only the waters below symbolized the chaos of pre-creation. Creation was the order made out of the dark void of chaos. YWH’s original intention was for man to live in His presence and steward the world with His life promoting wisdom, extending His creation and diminishing chaos. When the first humans decided to rely on their own wisdom rather than trusting YWH’s, chaos extended instead of order.
With a rule book being written by man, the spiral began. The knowledge of how to please God was lost and replaced with the kind of guesswork above.
But YWH did not leave us in our own chaos. YWH raised up the nation of Israel to reclaim His original intention: His people living in His presence stewarding His creation with His life promoting wisdom. YWH took the guesswork out of the equation. He established His law so that His people would know exactly what would please Him and what would not. The rest of the world, however, still lived in the uncertainty of guessing what the gods wanted.
And here we are back at the pyramid. Our guide postulated that the pyramid was built to please God. I wonder if it was a cover for seeking to live in the presence of God but doing it our own way instead His way. It is a picture of the tower of Babel all over again…a repeating cycle in civilizations everywhere. People have attempted to get to God using our own power; to avoid listening to Him, we vainly attempt counterfeits.
This pyramid is another example of man’s grasping for this counterfeit way to obtain that which YWH longs to give us: His people living in His presence, the source of all true life, stewarding His creation with His life promoting wisdom.
Mankind continually fails to understand that, that which God requires, He also provides. A back door is not necessary because He invites us into His presence through the front door!
There is so much more to this than I have words to fashion but even so… such a reaction to just one pyramid! I would exhaust myself if it wasn’t so energizing!
Another amazing day. Thank You, YWH!
Multilayered Mischief,
PeruAna
Monday, September 22, 2025
Tuesday
It is early morning-ish when we board a bus and leave Lima on the Pan American highway, a 19,000 miles road from Alaska to Argentina. It is an overcast misty air day. To the right, the Pacific Ocean peeks out at intervals. On both sides, the barren dirt hills rise and disappear in the clouds. Some have rocky nobs but most blend in with the color of the day, beige.
Down the coast, the hills begin to multiply and reach higher as they will become the Andes. Endless sand dunes pay homage at their feet.
There are scattered building projects on the way. Those that have been completed have sparkling white walls and lush green accoutrements. They stand out brilliantly against the beige and are completely foreign to the other side of the road. It is reminiscent of the early days on Sandy Beach in Rocky Point, Mexico.
As the day progresses, the hills fall away and we come to narrow, fertile valleys. Farms begin to take over the desert floor. Rows of scruffy palm trees and dusty green things separate the crops. Corn, cotton and peppers thrive here. The soil is rich with the glacier runoff of the Andes, add water and growth sets off.
We stop half way in Chincha at the 16th century San Jose Hacienda. It is a grand house with a long history. The house and grounds are lush and welcoming. We have a lovely meal on the veranda, are serenaded by a Peruvian woman with a gorgeous voice and Susan and I go out to see the immense Bao Bao like tree in the yard. We are lured to the front yard by a strange, loud wailing sound and we find the most extraordinary white peacock perched and posing for us. After lunch we tour the tunnels beneath the house where the family hid when Pirates attacked. It was much like I imagine the border tunnels to be in Arizona.
Our destination is Paracas, 5 or so hours south of Lima. We are staying at a beach side resort that is a walled oasis in the bleak dustiness of the town. The zero edge pool draws my attention to the sunsetting horizon with its magnificent pink and orange.
I sit, alone, hearing the waves lap against the rocky beach. I watch the birds fly so close to the water it looks like they are skipping on it. I am road weary but feeling so blessed and well as a bit of the white peacock’s elegance gathers in and settles in my inner being.
Thank you, Lord, for another most amazing day.
Mischief managed,
PeruAna
Tuesday, September 23, 2025
Wednesday
The 12 seater Sessna flight to the NASCA lines takes 20 minutes over the desolate sands of the coast. The smooth sands subtly give way to the endless, ever increasing heights of the Andes foothills that seem to peek (and peak) out from their coverings of dust.
It is not hard to follow the path of the water as there are natural wadis formed in the sand and dotted with random green bushes all along the route. Rain is non-existent but flooding caused by Andes’ glaciers comes once a year filling them up.
The lines or geoglyphs are really a variety of shapes in addition to lines etched in the sand. They are estimated to be 2000 years old dating back to the pre-Columbian era. There are about 300 different figures, including animals and plants.
I am told that the Hummingbird is the most famous geoglyph in the world and the Peru Preserve uses it for its logo. The hummingbird was believed to be a messenger between realms because of its ability to play dead and stop its heartbeat thereby having a foot in both life and death. Though there are many theories about the how and why’s of these mysterious lines, water has always been equated with life and it is believed to be a part of the answer.
Our first lines are found in the desert on the edge of the green valley of the city of NASCA. The valley abruptly appears between the barren sand mountains and, by contrast, is a visually, stunning surprise.
The little plane banks back and forth for ultimate viewing. This repeated movement disturbs my delicate balance and throws me into a cycle of intense nausea despite medicating beforehand. Nonetheless, I breathe deeply and try to pay attention though no photos are attempted.
There is the royal family with their fabulous hairs. The monkey, the dog, the flower, and the spirals! Doodles after my own heart only in football field sizing and all drawn with one continuous line.
In the afternoon, we are treated to a Dune buggy adventure. The Cierro Blanco dunes are golden dunes despite the name and are the only dunes in the world near an ocean. Their ever-changing, wind sculpted, wave-like shapes are the second highest in the world at 6,000 feet. They are part of a national reserve with controlled access and part of me is relieved that I don’t have to long for my Suzuki as I would not be welcomed to drive here on my own😉. (My mother would be secretly relieved as well).
The ride is compared to a roller coaster but it is way more fun than that. Wilbur, our driver, is a charmer and expert. The late afternoon is cool and the perfect time to speed. We dash along the ridges and dip abruptly into valleys. I have nightmares like this where I have to drive down impossibly steep hills where you can’t see the bottom but somehow this delights me here. I have been drawn to sand dunes ever since I missed going to the Muskegon, Michigan dunes as a kid. Today is extravagant!
The dancing shadows and light on the sand can be so mesmerizingly beautiful. We stop atop a tall dune whose edge is a bowl and out come the sand boards and down I go. It is a bit disconcerting when the bottom rushes up to meet me. I lose my nerve and tumble overboard halfway up the other side. Except for the walk back up, it was outrageously fun!
We toast the sunset with a glass of Peruvian Champagne and as the day gathers in, we ride off into the sunset, revived and satisfied with a well earned smile frozen in place.
Manic Mischief,
PeruAna
Wednesday, September 24, 2025
Thursday 🐧
Penguin Day!
And so I have been singing all day:
Penguin’s Lament by S. Boynton
“When you are a penguin
And see nothing but penguins
And frozen ground
When you are a penguin
And I am one
You have nowhere to hide
You have no way to run
Little leg cannot stride
So we rock side to side, side to side, side to side to move
We can’t even fly!
And I’m a little too cute
Oh, yes, I know
I′m all dressed up, but I′ve got no place to go…”
We board a boat for our excursion to Ballestas Island off the coast of Paracas, Peru. It is an island that non-scientific humans are not allowed to walk on but we are promised Humboldt Penguins, sea lions, Peruvian Boobies and red beaked somebodies.
The coast is desolation on steroids with its brown smoothness and not a growing thing in sight. The sky above is dank and grey. The air is misty and cold. Like a page out of Moby Dick, dismay hangs heavy on the horizon.
Nonetheless, our imaginations are quickly hijacked by stories of the bounty that is grown and exported out from this port. We are told of the scallops harvested here. They are the best in the world because of the icy and calm waters. Then there are the most exquisite blueberries, avocados and produce grown anywhere.
As we round the coast, we see the Candelabra geoglyph. It dates back 2000 years and is the symbol of Paracas. Some say it could be a depiction of the cactus used in ancient ceremonial rites. Others say it is possibly a rendition of the tree of life. I am surprised it does not have phallic connotations although tree of life might be an euphemism for such. In practical terms, it continues to function as a lighthouse pointing sailors home.
The limestone caves and arches captivate me and I turn from lush dismay to furtive expectation. The nooks and craggy bits are right out of a pirate movie and I imagine going exploring on the forbidden terrain.
We arrive at the caverns and caves and are treated to a rarely seen intimate moment between two sea lions.
We spot the Humboldt Penguins quickly. They are either solitary or in twos, with a dad and baby peeking out from a rock hole. The adults have a black stripe that is absent on the under-one crowd. There are two rounding a cliff and I watch amazed as they jump and waddle their way down the steep incline to the water’s edge. The one ahead of the other, he turns back abruptly and back up he goes, his companion in swift order. There must be a sea lion in the water. It is real life drama before my eyes:
When you are a penguin,
You have nowhere to hide
You have no way to run
Little leg cannot stride
So we rock side to side, side to side,
side to side to move
We can’t even fly!
Yet somehow their impossible movements bring them back up to safety. It is a nail biting wonder to watch.
Our afternoon is spent at the oldest distillery in the Americas. It creates Pisco, a clear alcohol made from grapes. The Pisco sour is the national drink of Peru. I was tired and reluctant to join but that which I resisted became my blessing. The beautiful sunny day, sweet breeze blowing, green grass, vineyard and trees, the Andes rising up from the plain… magnificent!
Magnificent Mischief,
PeruAna
Thursday, September 25, 2025
Friday
As I gaze out at the ocean this morning, Susan points out the Ballestas Islands off on the horizon and the Moby Dick harbor we passed is just across the bay. I was totally unoriented to my position yesterday. I suddenly feel my new eyes with wonder. In my mind’s eye, I know the vibrant we details of the forms I see only in shadows from here. The richness of color and movement, sight and sound, the freshness of the wind and the smells of the caves, not always pleasant. My spirit within me becomes giddy with the multidimensionality of it.
It is glimpse of the exquisite reality of 1 Corthinians:
“For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” 1 Corthinians 13:12
Some of my travel mates seem so eager to be known. They are friendly and kind and quick to share all their past adventures yet I often ponder why they do not seek to know others as fervently. There is even a tinge of desperation to some of them.
This morning has me wondering if they travel in search of the new eyes I was given today. Are they seeking to be transformed from shore sitters to those who know the intensity of life that awaits them in the distance?
“To know even as also I am known”. This is the marvelous two way beauty of being known by Jesus.
I am blessed to be born a listener and it frees me to receive their gifts and strivings. To give them a taste of the gift of being known if only in this moment.
We are heading back to Lima to catch a plane for part two of this trip: the Amazon!
Meandering Mischief,
PeruAna
Friday, September 26, 2025
Saturday
We arrived late and rested well. It is a cool morning in Iquitos but only because we haven’t left the hotel yet. Willie is our Naturalist for our journey. His fun and curious facts include::
The Amazon is 4266 miles long, the longest river in the world though not the deepest. It starts high in the Andes and winds itself to the Atlantic Ocean through Columbia and Brazil. We are just south of the equator here. There are few tall buildings because there are no rocks, only clay. An 11-story building was attempted but it sank and was labandoned. It lives next door.
Iquitos is a city of a million people. It is 645 miles from Lima and the only city in the world NOT accessible by any roads. You can take a 28-hour bus ride to southern Peru town, then take a 5-day boat ride but no road access, only boat or air. Oil, wood, tropical fish and tourism are the main livelihood.
Iquitos means ‘Slippery people’ and is named after the indigenous people who would disappear down the river when they spotted a missionary.
They have 255 days of rain a year: Dec-May so
there are no rings when a tree is cut down because there is no season change. So curious.
There is a festival for St. John the Baptist and they serve a meal in the shape of John’s decapitated head. It is considered a beautiful, snacky tribute. Again, so curious.
There is much talk of piranhas so of course I share about my brother’s pet piranha, Fred. Fred was a part of the family for 10 years or more. When he went to piranha nirvana, my mom taxidermied him and he hung on the wall for years. It is hard to imagine his golden, large self in the water I will be invited to swim in…
We spent the morning at the Amazon Rescue Center/Biopark. They rescue trafficked animals, heal and release them to the wild when possible. Birds galore: Macaws, toucans, parrots, parakeets and owls. Baby manatees, capybara, turtles, caimans, the tiniest monkey and fish.
The Piache are the largest freshwater fish in the world and can be up to 7 feet long. Their orange geometric scales are lovely. They have lungs and gills and are the only fish in the world like this. They breathe in through their lungs and out of their gills. Apparently, if you reach your hand down toward them they will jump and suck down your arm with their mighty suction power…
We rode one of the local wooden buses back to town. The base is metal and the rest wood. They play loud music to give it a fiesta vibe. Fun!
It is a humid day and our refuge in the hotel pool is refreshing and welcomed. Susan and I sip sangria before we call it an early night. Tomorrow! The mighty Amazon in earnest.
Mischiefing,
AmazoniAnne
Saturday, September 27, 2025
Sunday!
Commissioning day for my sister in San Francisco! It seems, the word of this has gotten out and the Iquitos military is setting up in the town square for the celebration! It is a sunny, fresh day in this neighborhood! Welcome Pastor Sally!
I still have the Penguin lament stuck on replay in my head. As I am not succeeding at replacing it, I’ve decided to change the words. If you are a rainforest, no one else like me, except every other rainforest, you ever will see. Miles of rainforest as fine as can be!
To the Amazon! Our rallying cry begins.
We are taken to the market to experience the local culture. Here we are given funding and a Spanish word on a paper with instructions to buy the item. Susan and I have Arroyo. We will give our purchases to those we meet along the Amazon way. There is every kind of wild animal and fish meat splayed open and ready for purchase. I pass a vendor whose produce is labeled ‘Phoenix fruit’ and another with lush jumbo sized vegetables. I exclaim with delight, “Oolala” which I then hear him repeat several times as I continue on my way.
We begin on the Italia river, a tributary to the Amazon. The banks of the river belong to the poorest of the poor community. It is free to live here con amenities… no water, power or sanitation.
The water level is low now but will rise 9 meters by May. You find all of life floating together on this river: the market, dentists, school, gas, mechanics, church, bars and garbage, both internal and external and all man-made.
We stop at the home of Ruth Milagros and her twin, Luna Milagros. Their mama named them her miracle twins. Ruth is a dark haired beauty with a brilliant, welcoming, red-lipstick smile. She lives on the river where she grew up and now in a house built by her husband. She is expecting her second child in a month or so.
They tell us they have never had foreign visitors and are as curious about us as we are of them. I am drawn to them and wish I was part of a clinic so I could stay awhile. We give our earlier market purchases to them. They tell us that this community doesn’t look out for each other unless you are related; that they must struggle for every advantage and yet joy flows from them. My joy expands by just being with them.
We reach the Amazon river which is visibly marked by a change of water color from black to brown. The contaminated water seems to be replaced with random floating green plants like lily pads, river lettuce. It is breezy and relaxing and very wide. I am surprised by the gratitude that overtakes me on the boat. My heart is filled to bursting. I am on the Amazon!
50 river miles from Iquitos, we are welcomed to the Explorama Lodge. During high water season, we would disembark at the Lodge but today we must walk 25 minutes through the iconic forest.
The lodge is an open air/screened in, handmade, thatched-roof wonder. The forest surrounds it on all sides much like the bugs of unusual size surround my mosquito-netted bed. It is a bit of a reverse zoo as I lay comfortably within and watch the wildlife march by.
This is the land of the Yagua ‘red people’. We are greeted by several members of the community. They share their names and we share ours. Manuel, the leader, remembers my name telling us it means water in his language. I think of the living water Jesus gives and wonder if I can live up to my name.
We are treated first to a traditional dance which they offer to Mayantoo, the spirit of the rainforest. A blow gun demois next and we are welcomed to try. The blow gun is 6-7 feet long and the dart is launched by blowing. The tip of the dart targets the nervous system and is made from a mixture of Curare, scorpion, hot sauce, and poisonous frog venom. Hot sauce, imagine that! Philip could have used his own blood, I bet.
It is sunset in the rainforest. The sun glowing off the high tops of the trees. As I thank God for my Sister being commissioned right now, the birds and twittering things join me in this celebration of life, for her and for us.
Mischief magnified,
AmazoniAnne
Sunday, September 28, 2025
Monday!
It is our first walk in the rain! I have been wondering if it would rain at all… We are told this is mild rain at best.
Today is our ‘Day in the Life of…’ The part of the trip where we visit a village and are hosted in a home for lunch. A short boat ride brings us to Ramon Castilla Community and School. This is the second visit from this travel organization. These people do not have many foreign visitors.
The community families greet us from the top of the river bank. They are eager and beautifully welcoming. Just for our visit, they have built 35 wooden stairs and railings to ease our ascent!
After a visit with the elders, we are escorted to the school, a short walk down the village path, where each student pairs with one of us to share their schoolwork. I take the teacher’s seat and am quickly surrounded by Senora Gladys’ kindergarten class of four. I am in my happiest place among them. I read in Spanish to them from their teacher’s workbook without having any idea what I am saying. This warms them to me and the real work begins. We point out the circlos, quadraticals and trianglos and then get to color them Azul, verde and rojo! We are very clever.
Senora Gladys has prepared a song and play for us: The Three Little Pigs. Three of mine hold sticks each with a pig on top and another holds the wolf. Senora G begins the song and, holding hands, my pigs follow her. The wolf is supposed to break in and take them but my lobo gets a robust case of stage fright so I step in surprising us all! I put on my mother’s witchy face and growl as I chase them.
We close with a round of the hokey pokey much to everyone’s delight. The laughter, even the elders, is contagious. This may be my even happier place!
We are welcomed into the Pastor’s home for lunch and feast on pollo noodle soup, El Dorado fish and rice. His midwife-wife and daughters and grandchildren gather with us. My little shy lobo is among them. They kiss me on the cheek and call me family. It is a delight and so reminiscent of my clinic trips!
On the boat ride home, Willie is at it again. The depth of his Amazonian knowledge seems as vast as the forest. This time we are looking for the famed but rare Amazon Pink Dolphin and we find him!
Pink dolphins are freshwater mammals whose skin is pink. Their snouts are long and their foreheads enlarged for enhanced sonar capabilities. They have tiny eyes and are almost blind but as the water is opaque and dark, they are not much needed. When a baby is born, the alpha male catches the newborn and throws the baby out of water to teach it to breathe before he gives it back to mom.
We catch multiple glimpses of its glistening pink self. Outstanding!
Arrival at our lodge has Susan and I running for a cold drink for revivication. There is nothing like a sweaty, hot day reversed with a Coke!
The forest outside our screened room is alive and awake. The song of the honking frogs, night birds and cicadas, which live everywhere I guess, become our bedtime lullaby. We, like the pink dolphins cannot see but our sonar is strong!
Blessings upon blessings,
Marvelous Mischief!
AmazoniAnne
Monday, September 29, 2025
Tuesday! Canopy Walk Day!
We begin at dawn just as the blackness of night gives way to the softness of sun tinged skies. A mist rises off the river giving a myst-ical majesty to the river bank. The light on the water is pure liquid silver and gold.
This part of the river is 5 miles wide. You can see how high the water rises by the clear high water mark on the trees. There is gunmetal grey mud on one side and brick red on the other. Willie tells us that the ground in this Amazon basin is made up of layers of soft clay and sand deposits over 13,000 feet thick. This means there are no rocks here. What a thought! This boggles my mind.
We begin our hike to the canopy from Exploronapo lodge. It is a rustic lodge 50 river miles from our last one. It is a haven for researchers. The last two weeks they have hosted ornithologists with telescopes! The Chachalakas are singing loudly today. Their voices tell this world that the river is rising.
This part of the forest is called ‘terrafirma’ meaning it is not reached during the high water season. It is, however, far from firm. Our journey is an impossibly squishy one. Muddy, bottom of the lake kind of mucky mud makes me alert for slippage. The leaves of every variety of plant and the air, drip with the moisture and soon I am as wet as they. The humidity has a way of calling forth my own inner wet. Even my back side is dripping in a steady flow like the army ants below my feet. There is a point in the process, however, when the complete drenching turns cooling but it doesn’t last as long as I’d like
Did you know that Tolkien’s Ents actually live in the rainforest? They are called walking palms here. They can move more than 5 inches over time as they look for nutrients and sun. Their roots are a good source of calcium for the lactose intolerant.
The canopy walk will take us to 120 feet above the forest floor through the five levels of trees:
Forest floor, Understory, Canopy, Upper canopy, and Emergent. There are a series of towers connected by cables with chest high wire mesh ‘walls’ and wooden board lined pathways. Each level has its own distinct smell and temperature. If my happy place was yesterday, then this is my happy adjacent place.
It is easier to walk on these swaying pathways than the ground below. I have to watch my feet down below but here I can ‘walk’ with my hands. Hands on the cable and head in the trees, since there is no slippage, my feet can be on their own.
I am giddy with the delight of it. I love the tops of trees! They call me to join them in their haven of clean lines, strong branches and vibrant surrounding colors; forest and sky connected.
My words are so inadequate in describing the beauty, joy and gratitude racing to gain utterance from my deepest being. So, my head up, I walk wordless in the presence of my Creator and soak in every moment.
I feared one pass through the canopy walk would not be enough and I would leave wanting more. The truth is, when I walk with my Creator in the cool of the day, He makes what I have, enough! What a soul filling, deeply satisfying crossing. The whole trip In a sentence!
Mesmerizing Mischief,
AmazoniAnne
Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Wednesday!
This hot, muggy morning, we are offered an open-air boat ride. I am reluctant until Susan suggests we bring our umbrellas! It is a brilliant suggestion and I am all in. We board our fishing boat and go in search of piranhas! I go with my brother’s pet, Fred, in mind. He was golden yellow and at least a foot long,
There is a fishing pole for everyone but I opt to sit with my umbrella and cheer on the others. Jean quickly becomes the Queen of the waterway with a whopping 20 catches! The others mostly feed the fish but a few catch a few.
The water is dark and dank. It is hard to see anything unless they swarm but even then they are the color of shadows and impossibly fast. When one is caught, they are transformed into shimmering, bright silver and gold beauties, small but mighty. Their famed teeth are sharp and jagged. Those we catch, that are big enough, are presented for lunch.
Our afternoon is spent on Monkey Island, a monkey rescue haven. They work with the police to rescue monkeys from trafficking. They rescue, heal, rehabilitate and release to the wild when possible.
These monkeys come when William, our 24 year old guide, calls. He knows everyone by name. They hang and swing on him and the trees and eagerly seek the pecans he offers.
Sabrina is a small, white darling with a fierce streak. She chases everyone else with her quick, ominous snarling. William has to call her name multiple times to get her to cease and desist. She shoots him a look with every calling of her name. William says she’s jealous of those who get pecans.
As I stand listening and watching, I realize I have a wooley monkey sitting behind me using me for shade. He and a friend become enamored with my red gauze pants, grabbing them and playing peekaboo. I try to capture the scene between my legs with my camera.
Magnetic Mischief,
AmazoniAnne
Wednesday, October 2, 2025
Thursday, Going home day
To start our day, we take a short walk into the forest with Willie. It is wet but not muddy. As we round a corner, the trees break and a giant tree appears before us in the clearing. It takes my breath away.
It is a Ceiba tree, 165 feet high, 45 feet wide and 300 years old. It has 50 feet long, above ground roots that slither like anacondas into the forest.
Willie tells us these trees are hunted for plywood and so few are seen near the river. It would take a 3 day walk into the forest to find another one.
The original locals would worship at the base of this tree calling it their earth to heaven connection. They believed there was positive energy here and so they would come to hug the tree when they were feeling low or ill. With time, they always left feeling better. do not have time so it’s lovely that the trees of the canopy did the job.
As I consider whether there is energy here, Romans 1:20 answers my query. Of course, there is energy here! Your energy is here. You are where beauty lives. This makes me smile all the more as I hug the tree.
“For Your invisible attributes, namely, Your eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.” (Romans 1:20, ESV)
The rest of the day will be a series of boat, bus and plane rides. We begin with a boat back to Iquitos. AmazoniAnne is going home.
Philip loved South America so I decide it is time to release him into the wild. With Susan beside me, the Amazon rushing by, wind borne Philip joins the river.
Susan was not at Philip’s memorial because of Covid so this is deeply moving for both of us. Maralee sits with us. She is well acquainted with grief and is so very brave and beautiful to share our tears as we honor him. It is bittersweet but somehow so very affirmingly fitting.
This trip has been more marvelous than I could have imagined. I had no idea that my heart would respond with such joy.
Marvelous Mischief with gratitude, accomplished!
AmazoniAnne
Thursday, October 3, 2025
Tripping with God: Stories of Faith and Inspiration 