in any of the nine countries that are home to this mighty waterway? The Amazon River is 4,300 miles long with over 1000 tributaries forming the entirety of the Amazon basin. That is certainly a lot of miles to cover and the best way to do it is on one of the cruises in Peru that will give you a strong feel for what the Amazon has to offer.

 

The Jungle Experiences option aboard the Zafiro, (means sapphire in Spanish), is one of three of the company’s small ships that will take you into the Amazon wild. There are several options for a Zafiro cruise, the one I recommend is the seven-night exploration leaving and returning from Iquitos, Peru. A good time to visit the Amazon is in the wet season, I was there in April.

 

Before boarding in Iquitos one of naturalists from Zafiro toured us around the city. A highlight is the Iron House designed by Gustav Eiffel in 1887. It was designed in Paris and shipped to Iquitos as a building for the wealthy rubber traders living there to mingle. In Iquitos you will embark from the Itaya River that quickly joins the main Amazon River where the adventure begins.

 

 

On the Amazon River
From the Zafiro every morning we took boat excursions, which is the norm during the rainy season. However, on one day there was a four-hour hike that involved a suspension bridge and an inner look into the jungle.

 

For me, navigating the waterway from the skiff was much more Amazon River appropriate. On the first morning we saw at least five three toed sloths hanging in the treetops. It is true these little animals have got to be the chilliest creatures on earth. I was admiring one sloth for about five minutes as he was slowly moving through a tree in no hurry like a drunk sailor making small and careful movements so as not to fall over. The naturalist did confirm that sloths do stay high most of the time since their main meal consists of mangrove leaves, which is a narcotic.

 

 

Informative Naturalist Guides
The naturalists onboard the Zafiro, there were two, were brimming with information regarding the flora and fauna to be seen also identifying the multiply variety of birds. We saw everything from parakeets to macaws, to hawks to an array of local feathered inhabitants all enjoying the peace that is the Amazon experience. There was also a variety of species of monkeys that came to watch the humans from red howler monkeys to squirrel monkeys to capuchin monkeys.

 

On our second day we left in our little skiff just around sunrise. The skiff navigated us into the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve. We had breakfast on the river spotting the infamous pink dolphin, who also came to join the group and get a look at the humans. Pink dolphins represent good luck, but it was later explained the locals do not like them because they believe these dolphins attempt to harm young pregnant females.

 

We stopped at a local village to buy handicrafts and learn about the turtle release program. Later the passengers had the chance to adopt a baby turtle, name it and release it into the water to go forward and multiple.

 

There are many small villages along the waterfront and during the rainy season the naturalist told us many of these communities flood. I saw flooding in several of the communities, however, we stopped at one village with homes and buildings on stilts to accommodate the rising water each year. It was there we visited the primary school and planted tiny Aguaje trees that we were told would bear fruit in five years.

 

By the end of the second day, I was amazed at how much we had done, most of it before lunch.
After lunch there was a visit to a local female shaman named Carola. We took the skiff to the shaman temple, a simple round open air hut where she shared her stories. While you won’t be doing ayahuasca on this trip, the shaman explained it was determined shamanism would be her path by her grandfather after she took the plant at the age of 14. From there she spent eight years in the jungle eating fish and bananas and drinking water while she made friends with the Amazonian plants and learned the art of shamanic healing. We learned about the medicine she uses on the local people. Her highlights included patchouli root and rum for balding and graying hair and dragon root, which can be used as a natural band aid.

 

Before we left Carola did a purifying ceremony for us and told us to remember our dreams that night as it would mean something. I remembered mine; it was about fire and the colors of the flames held a remarkably blue and red crispness. It was later confirmed that fire represents change and purification, which was right in line with the trajectory of my life.

 

 

Cruise Options
I opted for the seven night cruise on the Zafiro, but for those with less time you can do a four-night cruise. After four nights we had gone 220 miles. The passengers disembarked in the town of Nauta where there is a market and a Manatee Rescue Center. For the latter part of the voyage nine people disembarked and another 18 boarded.

 

Zafiro is a luxury Amazon cruiser with three stories and 20 staterooms that allow for 40 passengers. Some rooms have balconies. Even if your room does not have a balcony all the rooms offer panoramic windows so there is never a moment while in your cabin you are not able to see and feel the river and nature at your fingertips.

 

There is also Wi-Fi on board, a daily menu; breakfast, lunch and dinner offering authentic Peruvian food. You will also never be without a Peruvian pisco drink if that is your passion.

 

For an Amazon trek, Jungle Experiences is most certainly a journey you will remember for a lifetime.

For more information visit junglexperiences.com or www.peru.travel/en