This last week I had the privilege to visit the Amazon and spend a few days going up and down the river. This is the largest river in the world. I flew from Lima, Peru to Iquitos, Peru. This is a city that is only accessible by plane or boat. The population is close to 500,000. There were few cars but the took tooks were everywhere on the roads. A took took is a motorbike with two wheels on the back and a small cover over the top. It seats two people in the back and one driver in the front.

A small bus picked us up and took us to the harbor. There we boarded a 15-passenger speed boat that took our 9-person group 50 miles downriver to Heliconia Lodge where we stayed, in the middle of the jungle.

It was not long before we realized this river was everything to the people that lived along the banks. The river looks like chocolate milk and seems to be at least a half-mile across. The river is the main mode of transportation. Our guide lived up river and said that he only had a small paddleboat. There was everything from a one-man canoe to a hundred-passenger boat and cargo boats going up and down the river. Most interesting to me was the water taxi which looked like it could hold about 100 people, but I am sure was packed with over two hundred passengers as this is the main way they go up and down the river.

Our first visit was to a family of four. They lived in a house that was built on stilts. It was there that we learned that the level of the river varies as much as 45 feet from winter to summer. During the winter the water is at it highest which makes it more difficult for the people to catch fish and grow crops. When the level of the water goes down they catch more fish and plant crops that consist of rice, tropical fruit trees and sugar cane. The kitchen had an open fire stove that was built on a base of clay. Cut logs were stored under the clay base. There was a grate where they would put the pans or grill the fish that they caught along the river. On the back porch were large containers to catch the rainwater as it rains often, and this is their source for fresh water. In the three days that we were there, it rained one-third of the time. Carlos, our guide, told us that in the summer they dig latrines but in the winter the bathroom is out on a limb of a tree over the river.

There is no electricity along the river. The only contact they have to the outside world is a battery-operated radio. Everyone that we met seemed very happy with the simple life they were living. I am not sure they know there is anything else.

We visited an Indian tribe, which looked like they came out of the pages of National Geographic. It looked to me like life on the river was much the same as it was one hundred years ago.

Dian Thomas’s Library: You will never run out of ideas when you have this wonderful set of books. Check out Dian Thomas’ Creative Books Library Special: She now had a special offer to save 60% on 5 books and 2 DVD. Get Dian’s creative library for only $49.99. Save $70 dollar and have over 25 years of her creative and amazing ideas. This package will be great for gifts, for fun, and for kids and grandchildren.. Take advantage of this limited offer at www.DianThomas.com.

Dian’s Book Tipping the Scales in Your Favor shares her weight loss journey. For years Dian’s tried and tried to lose weight but it was not until Jackie Keller said to her in California, “I can help you lose weight” that she caught the vision and lost over 115 pounds and most important she has been able to keep it off. Get Dian’s book today and begin the journey to healthy living. Go to www.DianThomas.com to learn more.

Want to travel with Dian?  Join one of her trips to China or Vietnam this fall where you will enjoy a cultural feast and fun adventure.  Email Dian at Contact@DianThomas.com or call 801-277-4332 for more information.