Shopping in Iquitos

Shopping Info., Shopping

By Kris Dreessen

Visitors looking for indigenous crafts, expedition gear, books or a bargain can find it in Iquitos. The Anaconda craft market makes souvenir shopping a breeze, with some 30 vendors selling their wares under one roof. The market is on the Malecón Maldonado riverside, between Nauta and Napo. There's a large sign on the walkway; the market is down a flight of stairs and in a wooden pavilion. Everything from blow guns to hand-dyed shirts and handmade masks is sold here.

Shoppers can watch artists carving, painting or making jewelry, and go home with an original piece signed by its creator. Seeds are common canvases in the Amazon. Crafters use them as the base for smaller items like key chains and necklaces or to adorn carvings, belts and heftier pieces. A necklace on a simple black string with a blue bead and clay design costs less than 75 cents (2 nuevos soles), or a half-dollar-sized key chain with a small clay snake or monkey on top is the same price. Visits to isolated communities can be difficult to arrange, but crafts made by indigenous peoples are readily available in the market. A corn-husk doll made by members of the Muñeco community on the Río Momón costs $1.50 (5 nuevos soles). A painted mask made from natural materials is $3 (10 nuevos soles). One or two sellers may have blow guns and darts. The gun is about $30 (100 nuevos soles). The darts are stored in a wood cylinder, attached to a hollowed-out gourd, and slung over the shoulder with a fabric strap. Hunters dip darts into poison, stored in the gourd. Since taking deadly weaponry through customs isn't a good idea, travelers can buy the entire outfit, minus the poison, for about $14 (about 45 nuevos soles).

Most items are handmade crafts but there are also some wildlife sales, such as butterflies, spiders, piranhas and other jungle critters that were killed and sealed under glass. It's easy to find jewelry, Iquitos T-shirts and other preserved wildlife on the main streets, such as Malecón Maldonado and around the Plaza de Armas. Prices and quality vary. It's illegal to hunt jaguars and many other jungle animals, but it's not uncommon to be offered a necklace made form a jaguar claw. Mad Mick's Trading Post, (upstairs, Putamayo 184, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.), is a good place to find mosquito nets, expedition hats, long-sleeved shirts or flashlights for jungle expeditions, used and new. The stock is a bit sparse and varies, but what there is can be a lifesaver if you've forgotten something. Mad Mick will even buy back your gear when you're finished if it's in good condition. A new packable canvas hat with a wide brim to block out the intense sun, with a chin strap, costs about $9 (about 30 nuevo soles). The La Castellana librería (Arica 6), or bookstore, sells notebooks, pens and other writing supplies as well as some books.

Buy bread, yogurt and other staples at Supermercado Los Portales (at the corner of Próspero and Morona). There are several banks around Plaza de Armas: Banco Continental (on Lores, between Próspero and Malecón Maldonado), BCP (in Plaza de Armas at the corner of Próspero and Putamayo) and Banco Wiese (on Próspero, by Lores). Some have cash machines; lines for tellers can be long.