Ray | December 30, 2008
Granada is a city I could visualize myself living in, though I would find it difficult to be so far away from the beach. Central Granada has the usual combination of old and new buildings. Gran Via de Colon and Calle Reyes Catolicos are main streets that have restaurants and other businesses lined along them. [...]
Ray | December 27, 2008
With the political turmoil settling down in Bangkok, there are sure to be some good deals available. The week long shut down of the two main airports is estimated to have cost over 3 billion dollars, and it is estimated about 2 million tourists may cancel their flights to the country. The anti-government demonstrations are said to have had a worse economic [...]
Ray | December 26, 2008
We were at the Explorama Lodge in May, so we avoided the crowds that can arrive during June, July and August. It was just three of us, and our guide Segundo, so we didn’t have to wait for anybody else. Our days included going on hikes through the jungle and jumping on a small boat to cruise around the Amazon River. Everywhere we went we saw some amazing, diverse vegetation, animals and insects.
The mosquitoes were not as bad as I thought they would be. Wearing a long sleeve shirt, long pants and a hat are a good idea, and using clothing made of quick-dry type of materials is an advantage. Our hikes around the jungle were hot and humid; however the sights out-weighed any of those discomforts. A good camera
Ray | December 26, 2008
We entered the Amazon through Iquitos, Peru. The city is a gateway to many Amazonian lodges and riverboat trips. I discovered the Explorama Lodge through recommendations on the web and their own web site. I was impressed with their prompt responses to my emails and their informative web site. There were a few other lodges that caught my eye, but Explorama had the options I was looking for and date flexibility I needed.
Our Explorama guide picked us up in the morning at our hostel in Iquitos. Being our first time heading to the Amazon, we were a bit apprehensive to give the guide our return plane tickets and passports. Having learned earlier that Explorama was considered to be one of the best jungle lodges and
