Tarapoto

This last week Coco and I took a little trip to Tarapoto. We were so happy to be able to take one last vacation before our big move to the States. Tarapoto is in the high jungle area of Peru called San Martin. It´s famous for its waterfalls and amazing scenery. We were lucky enough to catch a flight with the Air Force. And Coco actually took over in the cockpit for a while. I wonder what the other passengers thought when a typical looking passenger in shorts and sandals moved up to the cockpit to fly the plane.

We checked into our hotel and it was off to find a place to eat. They are famous for their ¨refresco de uva¨ which is made from a grape grown only in that region. It is honestly soooo delicious, and I have to admit, it´s the best drink I`ve ever had in Peru.

Then we rented a motorcyle and drove up to a town on top of a mountain called Lamas. The view all the way up is incredible and there is a quiet little town at the end of the road. And randomly an Italian man decided to build a huge castle right in the middle of everything. The story behind, why, remains a mystery to me even though I asked several people about it. I asked, is it going to be a hotel? a restaurant? a wedding venue? Everyone said ¨he just wanted to build a castle.¨ And he actually lives on the top floors and charges an entrance fee to let visitors come and view the first 3 floors and the courtyards.

We stopped in the little town for some coffee.

Then we headed back down the hill to start celebrating Coco´s birthday. We went to have a simple margarita and ended up trying a regional drink made from the grapes grown in the area. Then Coco insisted that I eat the old grapes at the bottom of the glass and to taste a drink called ¨aliento del diablo¨....it was as horrible as it sounds.

Well that pretty much sums up Day 1 in Tarapoto. More to come.....