My First Time in Chazuta: The Home I Did'nt Know I Needed

by Marie-Hélène Couette (Canada)

I didn't expect to find Peru

2017 is the year I left everything behind. I got an opportunity to volunteer in a Peruvian city called Tarapoto and went for it without looking back. Aurevoir to my job, my apartment and my boyfriend. Moving to the Peruvian Amazon when you don't speak Spanish is quite challenging. Making friends is hard if you can't communicate, especially if you need to adapt to a new culture, weather and general environment. The first month was as amazing as tiring to be quite honest. On the 30th day of my contract, I've been asked to assist another volunteer. We had to go to a village called Chazuta, at the very end of the road. I knew nothing about this place and wouldn't find any information online, so I grabbed everything I thought I might need and jumped in the car to get there. Till this day, the drive to Chazuta is one of my most precious travel memory. Getting out of Tarapoto area takes about 30 minutes on a straight and never-ending highway. You've been looking at the same landscape of villages, garages and palm trees for a while, but then you take the first big curve. That's when the magic happens. In less than a second, you find yourself on a steep escarpment. On your left, the Cordillera Escalera National Park, with mountains and vegetation as you have never seen it before. You can see that the cliff has been cut to build the road since huge rocks have fallen a couple of hours ago in the middle of the street. You feel lucky you weren't there when it occurred! On your right side, it feels like you could fall any time if your driver gets distracted. Many meters under you, you can see the Amazon river, called the Huallaga in the region. It's current is so strong that you can imagine how fast you would drown in such waters. Yet, it looks so refreshing that you'd risk it just to get rid of the damp hotness from the air in the car. On the other bank of the river, you can see beaches, with kids playing and fishing while their mothers are washing clothes. This life seems so calm yet surreal to you, used to living life at a marathon pace. Above this scenery, more mountains. You can see the Cordillera Azul, splendid and tall, stretching to the horizon. For another 30 minutes’ drive, you get to lay back, relax, and enjoy this breathtaking view with Peruvian cumbia playing on the radio. Chazuta itself is one of my favourite places on Earth. Even if I've travelled to many countries, this village just has a little je-ne-sais-quoi that I can't stop dreaming about. It's everything you would imagine the jungle life to be like: birds singing, fresh fruits, hammocks everywhere, Latin music and the warm breeze from the mountains. If entering the village was emotionally overwhelming, staying there and exploring the surroundings was a true blessing. Boat tours on the Amazon, hikes to waterfalls, motorcycle rides to go swim in the river, visits of cacao plantations, chats with Ayahuasca shamans, meals and stories with locals... Every moment I ever spent in Chazuta had me feeling like this is the place I was meant to be. Although I had the chance to go back many times, reality always ending knocking at your door. Unfortunately, I had to leave Peru and thus say goodbye to this little piece of paradise. Ever since I've left the Amazon, I've kept dreaming about its landscapes, its people, its nature and its food. Falling in love always happens when it's the least expected, and that is what makes it so special. Chazuta, my dear Chazuta. If "home is where the heart is", then I know I'll come back to you.