Freedom to Roam: Belen Market, Iquitos Peru

The largest and most exotic market we have visited, located just outside of Iquitos along a tributary river of the Amazon. First of all, we couldn´t believe just how big this market was. Pictures could never show the extent and amount of goods in this place. The smells were very powerful and we both decided to breath out of our mouths for the time spent here, I seriously tried to hold out but just couldn´t. I think it was a combination of the chicken gizzards, fish and other exotic meat such as wild boar that caused the stench. Some exotic goods that we came across were, crocodile, turtle (to eat), tiny monkeys for sale, monkey skulls, armadillo meat, medicinal herbs and tinctures, BBQ grub worms, and many more. Perhaps we just couldn´t identify the other types of animal parts, fresh, cut up, and ready for consumption.

We had heard that Belen was a floating market but were told otherwise. It turns out that there are two sections of the market. The larger one, further away from the river is more permanent and is not effected by seasonal changes in the river water level. The lower market, which we saw only because we hired a guide to take us on a canoe tour had a much different feel; sketchy and dirty. It turns out that the entire lower part of the market is under water for about three months out of the year. The residents (about 7,000) have adapted their minimal living quarters to work with the rise in the river level (about 15-20ft). The structures further away from the water are on stilts while the ones on the river have logs underneath that allow them to rise with the water to float.

We met our guide, Marlon randomly in the market. He was 23 years old and trying to make some money. He described all of the different goods as we walked through the market down to the water to get on a canoe and see more of the town on the water. Marlon was an nice guy who has been guiding tours for three years earning practically no money. He was missing teeth and had some large chips that we didn´t ask about. He showed us his living quarters on stilts about 10 feet off the ground and it really gave me a feeling of just how good we have it at home.