Peru Amazon & Machu Picchu

I still cannot believe I have never shared these photos from my October 2021 journey through Peru. Travel was only beginning to return after the long COVID shutdown, and we were among the first visitors welcomed back into several villages along the Amazon. Everywhere we went, people thanked us for coming, but what stayed with me most were the stories they shared. Our guides were highly educated, experienced professionals who had suddenly found themselves without work when tourism stopped. To support their families, they took whatever work they could find, often doing difficult odd jobs far outside their profession. The same was true for many of the local families and artisans we met. Hearing how hard they had worked simply to feed their families gave us a much deeper understanding of what the return of travelers meant to them.

Their gratitude was overwhelming, but so was their resilience. They welcomed us with such warmth, pride, and generosity, even after everything they had endured. It reminded me that travel is never only about the places we see. It is also about the people whose knowledge, stories, and hospitality allow us to experience those places in a meaningful way.

The journey itself felt like traveling through several completely different worlds. In the Peruvian Amazon, we explored remote rivers by small skiff, surrounded by dense jungle, colorful birds flying above us, monkeys moving through the trees, and wildlife appearing along the riverbanks. We visited small villages, learned about daily life along the river, and experienced a part of Peru that felt far removed from everything familiar.

Our home on the river was a beautiful boat with a wonderful crew who made every day both comfortable and entertaining. Each morning and afternoon, our naturalist guides took us deeper into the Amazon by skiff, always watching and listening for wildlife. One morning, breakfast was delivered right to our skiff while we floated in a remote stretch of the river, surrounded by nothing but jungle and water. They are unforgettable moments.

The days were filled with experiences I never imagined I would have. I swam in waters where piranhas lived, saw enormous boa constrictors and caimans, and watched life along the river unfold around us. Early in the morning, we would see children traveling to school, and later in the day we watched them playing near their villages. These glimpses into everyday life made the Amazon feel less like a distant wilderness and more like a place filled with families, routines, laughter, and community. It was a surreal feeling to stop and realize just how far from home we were, deep in the Amazon with no cell service, no WiFi, and no phones at all.

This was a trip of many parts, follow along for our journey to Machu Picchu in my next post.