Leticia Market

Leticia's market sits where the town meets the river, and it changes with the water. Boats unload at the port below and the fish tables fill with pirarucu, gamitana, dorado and smaller river species, sold whole or in thick slabs. Around them are Amazonian fruits rarely seen further west, copoazu, araza, camu camu and cocona, mostly sold as frozen pulp, along with farina, the coarse toasted cassava meal eaten with almost everything here, smoked fish, chillies and cheap Brazilian and Peruvian goods that cross the border a few streets away. Cooked stalls serve fish soup and fish grilled in bijao leaves.

What you actually see

• The fish tables - pirarucu, gamitana and dorado carried up from the port.
• Amazon fruit - copoazu, araza, camu camu and cocona, mostly sold as pulp.
• Farina and cassava - the coarse toasted meal eaten with nearly every dish.
• The port steps - boats unloading below, the water level shifting metres by season.

When to go

Early morning, when the boats land and the fish is fresh; by midday the heat makes the fish tables hard going. It runs every day. The river level transforms the port between the high water of December to May and the low water of June to October, when the steps run far down to the channel. Pirarucu has a closed season and is not on sale year-round.

Honest expectations

It is small, hot and smells strongly of fish, and anyone expecting a large covered market will be through it in half an hour. The ground is wet and the flies are constant. Some stalls sell wild meat and turtle products that should not be bought or carried anywhere. Prices quoted to visitors run high, so watch what local buyers pay before opening your wallet.

Nearby

The port for boats to Puerto Narino and the three-border area is directly below the market.