Ari’s Burger: Vignettes of Iquitos (Part 2)

A narrator living in Colombia, who regularly drinks yajé (ayahuasca) with indigenous shamans, travels to Iquitos, Peru, to research rituals for a book. The account, the second of three parts, is a travelogue of vignettes: the river journey from Leticia to Iquitos, impressions of a city dominated by eco-tourism, and meeting his host Zappa, an American expatriate who exports shamanic plants and leads ayahuasca ceremonies.

Study at a glance

Abstract

This is the second of a three-part account of a visit to Iquitos at the time of the New Millennium by the narrator, who lives in Colombia and has been drinking yajé (ayahuasca) with its indigenous shamans. For a book he is writing about the subject, decides to investigate the rituals in Peru. It is in the form of a travelogue divided into vignettes: his voyage upriver from Leticia to Iquitos, his impressions of a city which revolves around eco-tourism and his encounter with his host, Zappa, an American expatriate who exports shamanic plants and runs ayahuasca ceremonies.