THE JUNGLE!
During one of my last weeks in Peru, I took a four day trip to Manu National Park, which is a region of the of the jungles in the lowlands near Cusco. I took an 8 hour bus ride from Cusco to the lodge in the jungle, and about 75% of the ride was on bumpy, winding dirt roads. The scenery was beautiful and we made several stops along the way so it was actually an enjoyable day.
One of the coolest things I got to do as a part of the jungle tour was visit a wild animal sanctuary of sorts. However, unlike the sanctuaries in the United States, this place had an emphasis on the wild aspect. It served as a home for just a few injured or abandoned animals such as a coati, a few pecari pigs, a sloth, several young monkies, a caiman, and various colorful tropical birds. The best part about the sanctuary was the fact that there were no fences or cages of any sort. All the animals were 100% free to leave to the wild or stay if they chose. They were provided with food and shelter if they wanted to stay but were not forced to live a life of confinement.
It was really fun because the animals were less skittish around people than animals in the wilderness would be and we got to interact with them too! I got to hold this awesome sloth...
and even a baby monkey that climbed onto my head!
We went deeper into the jungle and stopped at a small village before getting on a boat that carried us down the Alto Madre de Dios River to to location of our lodge.
We went on an evening/night hike to the top of a peak overlooking the river. I was fortunate enough to have a friend from Holland named Yelmer to experience the jungle with me. We ended up getting lost on our hike back to the lodge as the trail our guide wanted to take ended up being out of use and covered with large clumps of fallen trees. It was quite excited (and a little tiny bit scary) as we had to crawl over and under the bunches of trees through the pitch black jungle. We did have head lamps but without them we would have been perfectly blind.
We got up early one morning to visit a parrot clay lick. We saw multiple large flocks of green headed parrots and other species as they soared above us high in the sky. We also were blessed with the opportunity to witness the beauty of the sunrise on the river.
We went on multiple jungle walks as we searched for the allusive and breathtaking birds and animals of the jungle. We saw stunning birds along our journey and marveled at the simple beauty of the plants and trees in this warm, humid landscape.
While we unfortunately never did see an actual jaguar as I would have liked, we saw multiple paw prints left behind by these magnificent, mysterious large cats as proof that there are many in the area.
While we didn't see a jaguar, we did get to see the beautiful Scarlet Macaw! As a childhood Animal Planet fanatic, I was thrilled with the opportunity to see two of these amazing creatures in their authentic wild setting. I have seen these birds in captivity before, but the beauty of the large bird in the wild exceeded my expectations.
Although it is difficult to see, this is a picture of leaf cutter ants. The ants are rather small and don't show up well in the photo but they are carrying the large pieces of leaves that they cut out of the trees. They work non-stop, never taking a break 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The colony is in constant motion climbing one way or another along the path between the target tree and the nest. I don't like ants much at home, but in the jungle, they were amazing!
This is a pineapple in the early stages of growth! I had no idea that this was how they grew! So Pretty!
I also got to swim in the Alto Madre de Dios River! It would have been a little bit scarier if I had been thinking about all the creatures that were probably near me under the cloudy water, but those things didn't cross my mind at the time, so I really enjoyed the experience.
The lodge where we stayed was very secluded in the wilderness and was only accessible by boat. It did have running water but lacked electricity. I slept in my bed at night protected by a mosquito net and listened to the chorus of sounds in the jungle as I fell asleep. The frogs were especially loud, occasionally screaming like cats and making all sorts of noises. One night I even had a little froggy slumber party in my room as this little fellow joined me inside my room. I thought about shooing him out before I went to bed but decided that it would be better to have him there to eat the bugs than to have extra bugs. So that was that.
It was sad when our 4 day adventure finally drew to an end. For me it was the perfect trip: a combination of excitement, anticipation, beauty, nature, discovery, and relaxation. I finally got to see and to do things that I had seen on television, had read about in books, and had dreams about endlessly as a child.
Overall my time in Peru was without a doubt a truly unforgettable and life-changing experience.
I fulfilled many life-long dreams while new ones were sculpted in my heart.
For we are God's masterpiece.
He has created us anew in Christ Jesus,
so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
Ephesians 2:10
