Down the Amazon
This was a day for adventure! We'd be on the Amazon itself! Our guides were Explorama Tours. Explorama was operated by two American expatriates. (Checking the web, I see Explorama is still in business in Iquitos.) As souveniers, the had for sale piranhas mounted on stands. I asked if the piranhas were real. They replied yes, of course they were real, plastic replicas had not reached Iquitos. Nevertheless, I did not buy one.
Explorama took us by mortorboat to a lodge they had established in the rainforest. From there, we went on a hike through jungle, admiring the jungle flora all the while. The trail led over a single log and vine bridge to a Yaguas tribal settlement. The Yaguas living here were Westernized, but they showed us their village, canoe building, and many customs, including firing their blowguns. Now that was cool!
