Friday, August 8, 2025
The first day of our long-awaited adventure — flying to Lima — was relatively uneventful. We woke at 5 a.m., groggy and sleep-deprived, and methodically worked through our pre-departure checklist. By 6:45, we had called an Uber and were on our way. We arrived at RDU around 7:30 a.m., well ahead of our 10:00 a.m. flight. Security was quick and painless, and before long we were sipping lattes, waiting to board.
After a short flight to Atlanta, we made our way to the distant and sparsely crowded Terminal F, home to the international gates. Jane had packed tomato sandwiches and sides, so we just grabbed a bag of chips and enjoyed a homemade lunch at a workstation counter. With plenty of time to kill before our 3:35 p.m. flight (which was eventually delayed a bit), Jane took the opportunity to call her sister — and ended up chatting for nearly an hour.
Luxury Dining at ATL
Eventually, we boarded. Jane managed to watch half a movie before the plane even took off and squeezed in three full films during the six-hour flight. We were served a meager meal — sandwiches with a few extras — which wasn’t much, but it kept us going.
Six Hours South
We landed in Lima slightly behind schedule, around 9:45 p.m. In passport control queue, which was long but fast-moving, we spotted one of our fellow WolfTrekkers. After collecting our luggage and stepping into the arrivals hall, we quickly found our tour helper, José. We waited for the third member of our group, John — the one we’d seen in line earlier. Five people had signed up for the Amazon pre-tour, but José informed us that one couple had been delayed and might only be joining us for the final day.
José led us out of the airport and across an open plaza to our accommodations at the Wyndham Grand Costa del Sol. The hotel had only opened a few weeks earlier, and it showed — everything felt fresh, modern, and impeccably clean. Our room overlooked the airport entrance, offering a clear view of the terminal and was equipped with a motorized black-out curtain. Though we were running on fumes, we took time to unpack and repack our smaller bags in preparation for tomorrow’s journey to Iquitos. We finally got to bed around midnight — 1 a.m. by our internal clocks, with Peru being an hour behind home. We were more than ready for a solid night’s sleep before heading into the heart of the Amazon tomorrow.
Wyndham Grand Costa del Sol Hotel
Our Spacious Room at Costa del Sol
Jorge Chávez International Airport from our RoomWindow