Ron-NY
Well-Known Member
After an ordealing 15 drive over the Andes we arrived in the selva alta(high jungle). We stayed in the town of Oxapampa. It is a remote valley surrounded by cloud forest mountains. It lies at 1800 meters = 6,000 feet elevation. You can see the town in the distance.
The town was originally settled by Germans in the late 1890's. I came across a few blue-eyed, blond haired residents during my stay. As in most towns the center is the Plaza de Armas with it's church. Here is the wooden church IGLESIA SANTA ROSA
We stayed at a hotel at the edge of town, across from the airport. As you can see it is a strip surrounded by a weedy area. I didn't see a single plane the whole time there.
I felt very comfortable walking around town by myself and loved visiting the market with it's outdoor flower vendors and
indoor fruit, meat ,and vegetable stalls . Here is another picture of Oxapampa. Many houses were atypical of Peru and looked more German in structure.
All of the valley has been cleared for the town and farms as well as the local hillsides. Areas are still being slashed and burned for farms. Our days were spent hiking and our evenings were spent in the local community center sharing a beer with the locals and playing Sapo . In this game "gold" coins are tossed about 20 feet onto the Sapo table and different holes are worth different amount of points.
Later in the week I will post pics from the jungle hikes.
The town was originally settled by Germans in the late 1890's. I came across a few blue-eyed, blond haired residents during my stay. As in most towns the center is the Plaza de Armas with it's church. Here is the wooden church IGLESIA SANTA ROSA
We stayed at a hotel at the edge of town, across from the airport. As you can see it is a strip surrounded by a weedy area. I didn't see a single plane the whole time there.
I felt very comfortable walking around town by myself and loved visiting the market with it's outdoor flower vendors and
indoor fruit, meat ,and vegetable stalls . Here is another picture of Oxapampa. Many houses were atypical of Peru and looked more German in structure.
All of the valley has been cleared for the town and farms as well as the local hillsides. Areas are still being slashed and burned for farms. Our days were spent hiking and our evenings were spent in the local community center sharing a beer with the locals and playing Sapo . In this game "gold" coins are tossed about 20 feet onto the Sapo table and different holes are worth different amount of points.
Later in the week I will post pics from the jungle hikes.
