The Jungle in Peru

On May 26th we left Cusco and flew to Puerto Maldonado, which is located in Peru’s southern jungle. The jungle was hot and had about 75% humidity, which was a huge contrast from the cold, mountainous regions we had spent the last few weeks in. We got off the plane, and took a 45 minute bus ride, and then a 45 minute boat ride to reach our Rainforest Lodge, right in the heart of the rainforest and jungle of Peru.

We had to re-pack our luggages into a smaller duffel bag as our big suitcases would not be coming with us to the lodge. While re-packing we had our first taste of the jungle, as we were greeted with a very large spider!

The boat ride to the lodge was a pretty cool experience, as we were able to spot some wildlife along the shores of the river. We rode in a long and narrow traditional boat, similar to ones I had seen while in Asia.

We saw a number of butterflies all seated along the side of the river, and our guide explained to us that they were eating the salt from the rocks.

We also saw a capybara, which is one of the largest rodents in the world, and it kind of looked like an enlarged guinea pig.

And no trip down the jungle river would be complete without seeing a small alligator (I think this one may have been a caiman).

We ate lunch on the boat, and our lunch was a Peruvian dish of rice wrapped in leaves:

The rainforest lodge was an experience all on it’s own! The lobby was located in the heart of the rainforest, had no walls, and had a number of hammocks out front.

We were told that the rooms were “open”, but didn’t know exactly what that meant until we saw them. Each room had no doors, only a small curtain (which meant that anyone, or anything could waltz right into our room at any time). Once inside the bedroom there were only 3 walls, such that where the 4th wall should have been was actually completely open to the jungle. Over each bed we had mosquito nets, so we could sleep within the mosquito-safe enclosure of our bed. On the far side of the room, right next to the open jungle was a hammock.

Even the bathroom had no door (just a small curtain), and was also open to the jungle (but it had a few bamboo sticks blocking the entrance to the jungle, so at least a monkey or other animal couldn’t jump into the bathroom while we were showering!). It was kind of strange taking a shower while looking out at the jungle and wondering what animals were out there! It was also kind of strange because there weren’t really separators between the rooms, except for a thin bamboo wall and a curtain, so we could hear everything from all the other rooms, which was especially awkward while using the toilet.

Walking through the jungle was awesome, the forest was really thick, and it was pretty dark down along the path because of all the layers of vegetation. It was also really cool to look up because the trees were so tall.

I also really enjoyed the cool vegetation.

In order to get a better view of the jungle we climbed up the canopy tower, a 120 foot tower with views above the trees. From the top you can see the rainforest in every direction, and it spans as far as the eye can see!

Later that evening we went caiman spotting in the boat. We saw a few of them along the shores of the river, but unfortunately I could not get a clear photo of any of them. We did however have a great view of the moon while on the boat:

Spending the night in the jungle lodge was a new experience for me. In addition to only having 3 walls, our rooms had no electricity, so once night-time came we only had our flashlights and candles to light up our room! This fact made the night in the jungle that much more scary! Not only were we unprotected from the wildlife of the jungle, we also could not even see the dangers around us. Even using the toilet was a challenge while holding the flashlight (we didn’t even attempt to shower in the dark!). Once inside my mosquito net I felt quite safe. Although I could hear the sounds of the jungle, for some reason the thin mosquito net made me feel protected from them! I slept very soundly that night!

We awoke at 4am the following morning to go piranha fishing on the Tres Chimadas lake! I was a bit weary of this experience as I kept thinking about piranhas I had seen in movies where the fish eat a whole human within minutes! I was assured by our guides that piranhas are actually quite small, and are “usually” vegetarians, so we had nothing to worry about. The water was really peaceful so early in the morning.

Seeing piranhas up close was really cool. Check out how sharp their teeth are!

While fishing for piranhas we also saw some beautiful birds:

The rest of our time in the jungle was spent relaxing. Although our time in the jungle was short, I really enjoyed it. Sleeping in an open room under a mosquito net was a completely new experience, and having no electricity added a little twist to the experience. I would definitely visit the jungle again!