Tarantulas, shaman, anaconda, monkeys… the Jamu Lodge in the Amazon rainforest provided a fantastic adventure for Craig and me to celebrate his birthday.
But complex issues surround the rainforest and its people. The people were given land here before Cuyabeno became a wildlife preserve: the result is that the indigenous communities have become one of the protected species of Cuyabano, in a way.
Jamu Lodge
To reach Jamu Lodge, we had to fly, then go by bus, then get into canoes.
Getting to the lodge involved several modes of transport 
A local guide 
The boardwalk to get to our lodge 
The common area of Jamu Lodge 
Individual rooms 
Our room! 
No glass in the windows – come on in, wildlife!
Exploring the Rainforest
We explored the rainforest both by boat and by hiking.
Beautiful snake 
Pretty exciting spider 
Bat hawk, eating a bat! 
Detail of the local guide’s costume 
Hiking in the mud 
Leaving our canoe behind for a hike 
A sunset swim in water that only stands during the rainy season.
Visiting Local People
We traveled by canoe to meet Tomas, a local shaman. Tomas studied from the age of 8 until the age of 40 before he graduated. His brain holds the collective knowledge of many generations of shaman Thirty two years of knowledge about the medicinal plants of the rainforest, including cures for many diseases the West doesn’t know about yet. Pharmaceutical companies have learned a lot from men like Tomas. He is one of the few shamans left with this much knowledge. If his way of life is wiped out, the cures for countless human ailments could remain hidden in the forest forever.
We also visited a traditional village and learned about making bread from the cassava root. There are no other ingredients – once the flour is made, it’s patted into a pan and cooked. Voila! bread.
Meeing a shaman 
A local home on stilts 
Grating cassava root 
Squeezing out moisture 
The resulting flour 
Patting the flour into bread 
Casasva bread
