Roaming South America

Moyobamba, Perú

August 18, 2023

Moyobamba, Perú, is a city in the northcentral part of Perú. It is between the larger Eastern Range and the smaller Sub-Andean Belt where it sits at the base of the mountains. East of that is the Amazon Basin.

This was my second visit to Moyobamba. My first visit was a week at the end of January and the first couple of days in February. About my previous visit, I wrote that I liked this town and would put it at the top of my top 10 list, and it is still there.

The climate here is, in my opinion, excellent - afternoon highs are generally 28 - 30° C (87 - 91° F), with night low temps of 18 - 20° C (64 - 67° F) (According to weatherspark.com data). I used to live in Roldanillo, Colombia and really liked it there. If I choose to live in Colombia again, it will only be in Roldanillo. In comparing the two towns, the temps are almost identical except for Sept. through Dec. - the average afternoon highs are 1 - 3° cooler in Roldanillo. Surprisingly, Roldanillo gets more rain all year round, and is more humid, according to the statistics. The two towns are also very similar in elevation - Roldanillo sits at about 940 meters (around 3100 feet) while Moyobamba sits at about 860 meters (2820 feet). Both towns sit in valleys in the Andes Mountains. Roldanillo is located in the north of the Valle del Cauca. Across the mountains to the east is the Magdalena River Valley, and a bit further east, high in the Eastern Range of the Andes, is Bogotá (too cold for me). Moyobamba sits in the Moyobamba Valley. Across the mountains to the east, one drops into the Amazon Basin.

Having now visited 13 towns here in the Selva region of Perú, I have decided that Moyobamba will be my choice for a new hometown IF I choose to live in Perú In visiting these towns, I have spoken with many people and mentioned that I like Moyobamba, and the reaction from every person I have spoken with has been the same, "Oh, I like Moyobamba, it's so pretty there and the climate is excellent". And I agree with their opinions. Much of this part of the world is very hot, well, hot is relative, right? It's the humidity that makes it feel hot when in reality the actual air temp is only in the mid-80s to mid-90s F (30° - 35° C). But, now I'm having second thoughts about living in Perú, or Ecuador, or Colombia. Why? Because of the warming temps worldwide, these places will just continue to warm up even more. Maybe the better option is to live further south where the current temps are a bit cooler and global warming will eventually bring them up to where these countries are now. I have two cities on my list below, that I like very much. But that is a decision for another day.

My goal is to find a new place to live. So to reach that goal, I am traveling most of South America, visiting the countries of Ecuador, Perú, Chile, Argentina, and Paraguay, passing through a bit of Brazil, and finally visiting Uruguay. I have a list of towns, about 70 that meet these qualifications: Cities with average day temperatures of 22-28° C (72-83° F) and night temps of 14° C (57° F) and higher; and a population between 28,000-300,000. I analyzed climate and population data of around 700 towns in the countries mentioned above and then pulled out the ones that meet the previously mentioned criteria, which leaves about 70. My preference leans towards towns of less than 100,000 people.  And, now that I have visited more than 130 towns/cities (not including more than 70 in Colombia), I've decided I will want an inland town. I love the beach and walking in the warm water, but getting sunburned is just too easy, even on a cloudy day. At least here in Ecuador. I've also decided that any town with more than 100,000 population will be too big. I've decided that any small town/city (less than around 80,000 population) that meets the temp specifications and has a supermarket and ATM is one worth considering to live in.

My goal is to visit the towns and discover which one calls out to me - "Chip, Chip, make your new home here, this is your new home town". That hasn't happened yet, but the towns listed below are very close to giving me that feeling. At any rate, I have visited very few tourist attractions and archeological sites, etc., those will have to wait for another trip through South America.

My Top 10 list has these towns on it:

• Moyobamba, Perú
• Puyo, Ecuador
• Catamayo, Ecuador
• Encarnación, Paraguay
• Formosa, Argentina

During my travels in Ecuador I visited 33 towns/cities. In Perú, I visited 35; in Chile, only five; and in Argentina, I visited 16. In Uruguay, I visited five, and in Brazil, three. And in Paraguay, I have visited 26. That's 123 towns/cities outside of 77 I visited in Colombia while living there for 9 1/2 years.

Next up: Jaén, Perú.