The Amazon Jungle.
A wilderness region with a reputation to boot.
One of the largest expanses of jungle in the world – however, it’s being depleted and destroyed by the day (But that’s a story for another day).
The Amazon was somewhere I was desperate to visit before it was too late, and so I was very excited that I go the opportunity to spend some time at a jungle lodge while I was in Peru.
Think: Open rooms, with just curtains to separate the humans and mosquito nets to separate the animals.
It was a form of heaven.
Yes, there were creepy crawlies – including a medium-sized spider that took up residence above my bed (and freaked out my poor roommate who – coming from the Isle of Mann, hadn’t dealt with spiders that big before) – but I loved every second.
It was so nice to be removed from the technological world and immerse in a laid-back, environmentally-driven world for a bit of time.
It was really nice to get to explore a part of the world I’d never seen before, yet have that familiar, comforting feeling of “getting back to nature”.
It was in the Amazon Jungle that I completed the most physical tough thing I’ve ever done – a tree climb.
Think: Suspended in mid air via ropes and a harness and using your own strength to pull yourself 30m upward to the top of the tree canopy.
Yeah, it was tough.
By the time I got to the top I was a quivering mess, covered in sweat and completely exhausted.
But I was also super proud.
I had been so afraid that I wouldn’t make it, that I would have to give up and let the guides pull me up.
Instead, I made it up triumphantly – in under 10 minutes too (One of the better times out of our group!).
It was safe to say I was ecstatic. And ready for a nice bath (Unfortunately there were none available at our jungle lodge…)
Tip: Take a rain jacket, no matter what time of the year you’re there. I was caught in two rain storms – which both happened to hit when I was at the top of a tree/platform on the tree canopy.
