We continued our expedition in the Upper Amazon in Peru by visiting Yarapa River, a beautiful tributary of the Ucayali River. We saw many monkeys and birds from the skiffs. After this, we went to the confluence of the Ucayali and Marañon Rivers, the geographical place from which the Amazon River takes its name. We celebrated this event with a toast.
After a splendid lunch, we visited Amazonas community. We had a blast seeing firsthand how people live in the Amazon. Our visitors marveled at how the little things in life that we take for granted can mean so much for other people in a different environment. We had a brief but emotive encounter with a welcoming committee formed by Minga Peru. The latter is a nonprofit organization founded in 1998 with a mission to promote social justice and human dignity for women and families in the remote, rural areas of the Peruvian Amazon. The organization has been developing various projects in the area. They offer women and community members technical training in agroforestry, crop cultivation, and the construction and management of fishponds. This has proved invaluable in increasing the economic sustainability of many people.
