That place is called Iquitos, the gateway to the jungle lodges and tribal villages of the northern Amazon. From there it is possible to go to explore the deep and mysterious Amazon rainforest. Once you take a look at the map and try to find Iquitos, you’ll realize that it is so separated from everything, and surrounded by seemingly endless thick forests and rivers!
So, why should you go there?
There is zero light pollution!
You must have seen plenty of pictures of the Milky Way, yet in reality, these pictures are taken with high-quality cameras and it could be, that it wasn’t even so visible to the naked eye after all. But once you see the Amazonian night sky, the pictures will become a reality! There is no “light pollution” coming from the cities, so you can see the colorful and shiny Milky Way with a bare eye!
It is home to rare & interesting animal species
Amazon is home for over 2,000 species of animals and some of them you cannot find anywhere else in the world! Have you heard of pink dolphins? They are very famous for living only in the Amazon river. Once you see the pink flashes soaring through the water, it feels like you have ended up in a fairyland! Besides this, you can find jaguars, boars, sloths, monkeys, frogs and 205 of the world’s bird species, most colorful birds you’ll ever see!
There are plants that you have never heard about
Besides being the lungs of our planet, you can find a lot of natural remedies in the Amazonian rainforest. For example, 70% of these plants have anticancer properties and exist only in the Amazon!
Sodo plants can cure addiction and Cordoncillo plant acts as a painkiller! 90 percent of the plants there haven’t even been studied by modern science, imagine what would be the outcome if they were!
See the way the indigenous people live
The little villages that you find along the river or in the jungle are mostly untouched by more modern predilections and the people there keep to traditional ways of living and doing things. In these villages, you’ll find medicine men, healers, shaman, and witch doctors. The stories some of them tell are truly amusing.
The food
There are approximately 3,000 types of edible fruit that grow in the rainforest, and most of them you’ve never seen before. They all taste incredibly delicious and unique. Besides this, have you ever even thought about the idea of eating a piranha for dinner? Very doable, and actually one of the best-tasting fish you could ever eat!
There are plenty more reasons for you to visit the Amazon rainforest at least once in your life, but once you go there, be sure to be respectful towards its nature and inhabitants. Take only memories, leave only footprints!
