We're in Puyo now, at the edge of the Amazon, because Richard wanted a jungle experience. I was resistant at first, but then realized that I probably shouldn't pass up this opportunity.
First there was another big bus ride- but we're getting good at those. More movies (The Immortals and some other fantastical saga which looked like they put out a call for anyone with deadlocks, no acting experience necessary, bonus for piercings) and more spectacular views.
We went up and up, then down and down, to the Amazon. Within an hour, the temperature and humidity rose considerably.
Puyo is an incredibly ugly town. Our hotel is one of the prettier spots in town - a colonial building with lush gardens. Our room is very comfortable. I think there is only one other guest, and we haven't seen any other tourists anywhere.
Here's me in a hammock.
And with this guy:
I am at a loss as to how to describe this town. Definitely ugly. It's such a weird mishmash of everything. Here's s bit of what we saw while wandering about.
But we're also surrounded by the Amazon rainforest. Just a few kilometers out of town, we visited a sanctuary for orphaned monkeys and a few other animals. It was a great experience! The place was started by a French guy 15 years ago, and he keeps it going with the help of mostly French, mostly young volunteers. He has a few acres of rainforest by the river, and has created a great environment for the animals to heal and thrive, and eventually to be released back into the wild.
We were accompanied on our walk by a ..., a relative of the raccoon, and similarly dispositioned. This one, named Letitia, is special, because she was adopted as a tiny baby, and is very human friendly.
There was a sudden rain storm, but the forest cover was so dense that we hardly got wet.
Some more shots of monkeys and rainforest:
Tomorrow we're doing a jungle tour.
Those flowers!
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