Peru: A land of onomatopoeias

"Can you hear me now?" Strangely, he had a better signal in the middle of the Ucayali River than we get in Memphis!!


Onomatopoeia:
The formation of a word from the sound associated with the object.
For example: sizzle, cuckoo, splat, oink, peki-peki.
Umm… peki-what??

The city of Pucallpa, Peru sits on the banks of the Ucayali River, serving as a major port. The Ucayali drains a lot of water from the Andes and then meanders northward, becoming one of the major tributaries of the Amazon River. Visually, it’s very reminiscent of the Mighty Mississippi: brown, fast-flowing, seemingly lifeless. But beneath the surface, you’ll find an array of aquatic life that tastes far superior than what its habitat might lead you to believe. (Ask me – I can tell you from experience how good the fish is!!) Above the surface, the river is a life source to the area… from moving timber to bringing bananas to market, and all sorts of things in between.

The Amazon jungle as a whole is dotted with villages of varying sizes; homes to generations of Indian families and the traditions that have been passed down from their ancestors. Isolated from the world, the rivers and streams that connect them to the Ucayali are their lifeline, giving them access to civilization and commerce.

Which brings us back to the peki-peki (pronounced pecky-pecky). A lot of the Indians travel for days on the winding river to get to Pucallpa, simply to sell their homegrown or handmade wares to whoever will buy them. Most of these trips are made in shallow wooden boats with a longshaft motor on the back. There’s an official name for these boats (which I can’t remember at all!!), but everyone refers to them as a peki-peki… because that’s the sound the motors make as they move around on the water. (Personally, I struggled to hear the peki-peki motor sound like it was saying “peki-peki”. Maybe I need to go back and have another listen?!!)

During a free afternoon, a couple of our Peruvian hosts, Miguel and William, took us all down to the river and negotiated a good price on a couple of peki-peki taxis… and we spent an hour or so being peki-peki’d (is that a word??) up and down the Ucayali, taking in the sights and sounds of river life. Here are a bunch of photographs to give you an idea of what we saw…


Peruvian minivan!!
Peruvian minivan!!
Locals.
Locals.

SSS_1863SSS_1867SSS_1868

Patrick.
Patrick.
The other half of our team, with William and one of the local pastors at the helm.
The other half of our team, with William and one of the local pastors at the helm.

SSS_1874SSS_1875

An excited Bev... and Olivia.
An excited Bev… and Olivia.
"Can you hear me now?" Strangely, he had a better signal in the middle of the Ucayali River than we get in Memphis!!
“Can you hear me now?”
Strangely, he had a better signal in the middle of the Ucayali River than we get in Memphis!!
Logging is a huge industry in Pucallpa... both legally and, unfortunately, illegally.
Logging is a huge industry in Pucallpa… both legally and, unfortunately, illegally.

SSS_1880SSS_1881SSS_1885SSS_1886SSS_1888

Scattered along the shoreline are shacks that house cafes, gas stations, homes, and who-knows-what-else.
Scattered along the shoreline are shacks that house cafes, gas stations, homes, and who-knows-what-else.

SSS_1884SSS_1892

I was obsessed with the colors and the peeling paintwork... on boats and shacks.
I was obsessed with the colors and the peeling paintwork… on boats and shacks.

SSS_1883SSS_1890SSS_1891SSS_1895SSS_1904SSS_1908SSS_1935SSS_1899

Our team... again.
Our team… again.

SSS_1918SSS_1916

Someone's anticipating some tummy trouble...
Someone’s anticipating some tummy trouble…
Riverfront housing in Pucallpa.
Riverfront housing in Pucallpa.
Every day is market day.
Every day is market day.
Anyone know where I can buy a banana?
Anyone know where I can buy a banana?

SSS_1927

Did you know there are almost 1000 different varieties of banana in the world?
Did you know there are almost 1000 different varieties of banana in the world?

SSS_1934SSS_1932SSS_1936SSS_1943SSS_1947SSS_1942

Now, that's a good day at the office.
Now, that’s a good day at the office.
Feel free to share...

  4 comments for “Peru: A land of onomatopoeias

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *