"Una copia está bien?", I ask knowing that my legal time limit in the country has long expired.

"No, original.", replies the guard with the 12 guage shotgun.

Unable to use the photocopied front page of my passport I return to the bus for the original. I expected this but had to try. Sometimes gringos can get away with bending the rules. Soon I am last in the line of four and see there won't be any problems. The officer at the checkpoint is just copying down some basic information into his logbook and not looking at the stamps.

Back on the bus a few minutes later Rhona and I find the least uncomfortable compromise position in our seats for the last 4½ hours before our stop. We hope to be able to sleep, but the air is hot and humid in the Amazon Basin and the bus jerks on the poor road. It will be difficult but not impossible.

More or less on time, and after some sleep, we arrive at the bridge over the Rio Cuyabeno. It is about 7 o'clock and we have time enough for a quick sandwich and drink before the 2 hour motorized canoe ride down the river to our final destination. Here not far from the Peruvian border, canoe is the only reasonable way to travel. I am excited about the trip, but the thought of sitting for an additional 2 hours on a wooden plank immediately after a 12 hour bus ride is not very appealing.

Fortunately the trip down river wasn't too uncomfortable. And we were occupied by wildlife watching. Of course there were all sorts of tropical birds flying and calling to each other but we also witnessed 3 troups of monkeys travelling through the canopy. The 2 hour ride included lots of stops to observe our surroundings. It was quite muggy but zipping down the river provided a breeze and the river water was cool.

Jamu Lodge is built traditionally although more posh than the standard native construction. There are 5 huts arranged in a semicircle around a two story communal area. It is all wood and thatch construction. No electricity or hot water. It is remote (as you may have surmissed by now) and beautiful. After sorting ourselves and our cabaña we had the opportunity for a 1 ½ hour canoe ride around the river system which we took. Sara and Dan who came down with us choose to sleep instead. The main attraction today would begin after lunch. There are a number of others already here: a German, two 70 year old Swiss ladies, and to other girls that I never placed - not native English speakers though.

About 40 minutes upriver by motor canoe is a good hiking spot. On the way we were treated to turtles, more birds, and a few more monkeys. The hike wasn't very long (2 hours) but quite informative. It was also quite a bit drier than I expected. There wasn't any mud at all until the return portion of the loop. To be honest is was a bit reminiscent of hiking in the American Midwest or East. It has been a long time since I crunched through a carpet of dead leaves. The guide, Edison, is very knowledgeble and is giving the tour in both English and French. I'm a bit surprised at how much of the French I can understand.

The land tour is only the first part of our excursion however. After learning about the climate and some of the plants and birds to be found here, we were back at the canoe for a trip out to an anaconda nest. Laguna Grande is a fairly large body of water and one partially submerged dead tree is home to an anaconda. It can be found deep inside the trunk all curled up. Really amazing. Our faces were no more than a meter from the snake.

Maximizing our time on the laguna, we then went for a quick swim, watched a pair of freshwater river dolphins at dusk, and then stayed around to watch the sunset. Then the bats started coming out. We arrived back at the lodge around 18.30 for showers and dinner. What a great first day in the jungle.