Day 17: Last day in the jungle...and back home!

Third and last day in the jungle. We survived the night with the spider attack...actually it was resting right at the exact same place it had been when we went to sleep.

Again, before breakfast, we took the canoe out. That was starting to be a bit annoying; I think my bottom was getting square in shape...We canoed a bit deeper into the jungle through a hidden, small canal and then walked for a few minutes to see strident and colourful parrots, although we had to use binoculars as they were further up on the trees. There were bunches of large, colorful macaws and smaller parrots, that were no less brilliant in their colors, resting on the tops of high tree stumps. The guide explained that the parrots preferred to feed off these stumps, blackened by forest fires, because they were rich in minerals and nutrients.

After breakfast we rowed again (F%#&k!) across the lake to get to the other side and try to see "killer monkeys", which didn't sound very warm and welcoming, but there were none. We did see a "spider monkey", which apparently scaped from some reserve and was the only one of its species owning and living in this part of the lake. He was infamous among the guides for his tendency to hang around and sometimes charge at tourists due to his association between humans and food from his time in captivity. The German guy in our group teased the monkey by showing him an orange (despite the fact that we were advised against showing monkeys any food), so the monkey followed us the whole way, jumping amusingly from one tree to another, to check what he could get from us and spy on us while we were encroaching on his territory.

 

 

We also saw other interesting things, such as "walking" trees (they grow new roots in search of more nutrients around while the old ones rot away, so they gradually change their position); trees eating other trees, literally (they wrap them with their branches until they dry and completely disappear inside); or colpas, which is a kind of clay containing loads of nutrients and minerals, mainly eaten by parrots and rodents.

tree eating tree

 

 

After lunch, our adventure in the jungle came to an end...and so soon would our time in Peru. Then it was time to get used to the idea that a long journey awaited us to get back to Lima, where we would fly out of the country.

We enjoyed the jungle, and we were delighted with the guides' expert knowledge on the jungle, but we couldn't wait for a nice refreshing shower at the hostel. Neither could we leave Puerto Maldonado without having one last time one of those heavenly homemade fruit juices we discovered at a restaurant (well, actually they were quite average, but they did our hot and sweaty bodies good) where we also had dinner.

 

On our way to the bus station, which was rather far away from the city, our legs were shaking knowing that we had to make another ten-hour night trip in a who-knows-what bus. But, much to our surprise, that bus company -Palomino- was really good. We had first-class large, reclining seats, with blankets, pillows and even dinner! (well, it was cold pasta, but that was the first time we saw such service on a bus, so we had dinner twice that evening). It was rather amusing that a piece of hard candy that accompanied the meal was actually a Halls cough drop. Although we didn't sleep much (no matter how comfy a bus is, it's just impossible), the trip seemed to fly by.

We were back again in our lovely cold and rainy Cusco, up in the mountains, as if we had been asleep and dreaming for the last three days. We just had time to do some shopping before taking our plane to Lima, and then, the saddest and hardest part....saying goodbye.

"...and each girl inevitably continued their own way to their homelands after great and unforgettable days of adventure together. Not only did Peru turn out to be one of the most marvellous places on Earth they had been and that had won their hearts, but also the place -their place- that would join them forever and be within living memory as the time passed by"

And that's the end of the story... ¡VIVA EL PERÚ!