Let me tell you about Iquitos (-Andrew)

Iquitos is not a peaceful jungle town, where the Amazon drifts quietly by as we a sit under palm trees and sip on fruit drinks in the shade. It is a large, dirty, bustling city, with over a half million people running all over the place. The predominant form of transportation is the mototaxi (a motorcycle with its back wheel exchanged for a little covered cart, big enough for two people to ride in). These are very loud and don’t seem to obey many traffic laws. As a result, there is a constant, ominous rumble at all times, and crossing the street is an adventure. Not to mention, that every time you go out, a dozen drivers approach to offer a ride. Fortunately, our little hostel, La Pascana, is tucked at the bottom of a dead-end street pointed toward the Amazon, so it is relatively peaceful.
At the center of La Pascana is a long rectangular courtyard with fruit trees and other plants (none of which I recognize). Along the sides are 20 small rooms with bathrooms. You can’t drink the water though- we get it from a big bottle in the lobby- and eating without going to a restaurant is a little problematic. But, so far we have successfully overcome these minor difficulties and used cuarto numero dos as our base from which to explore the city. Our current projects include looking for furnished apartments (of which there is a shortage), cell phones (of which there is an abundance), and figuring out exactly what it is we are going to do here.