Our day began at 6am with an early morning boat ride for bird watching. Bird watching is not really my thing - people watching is more like it, but I didn't want to miss any part of this trip! Our tour guide, Raul, grew up in a village close by and was amazing! He was able to spot and identify a bird in seconds and got very excited every time we found one. There were also some cool iguanas and sloths too! It was awesome to see the sunrise on the boat over the Amazon River - we're doing this most mornings and I'm not afraid to admit I'm looking forward to it tomorrow! #merderthebirder
After birding, we had a morning of lesson planning and some hikes mixed in. The hikes taught us to take notice of what's in nature and observe the small details. It was a great way to teach us about the Amazon and teach us how to teach. It made me want to take my own students on hikes in the valley (south mountain, a mountain, other field trips...) so they can learn this way too - instead of in a video or from my lecture. At one point in the morning lesson, we heard spider monkeys in the tree outside. The instructor stopped and we all ran outside to take pics. It was beyond cool to live and learn biology this way!
In the afternoon, we attended a workshop on logging in the rainforest. We went on a couple hikes to measure trees and calculate their stored carbon. Another guide, Lucile, spoke on the previous and current system of the rainforest. He said some of the land has been purchased by local tribes and is now maintained and protected from loggers. As he was speaking, it was evident how proud he is of his home area and how much he wants to see it preserved. It was so great to see someone take so much pride in his land - so much that he speaks of it daily.
We finished with a nighttime boat tour on the Amazon River. We saw birds, snakes, sloths and frogs. The views were amazing! Our tour guide and a couple professors started doing bird calls - and the birds actually answered! I felt like we were in the Hunger Games and any minute Rue would jump out of a tree...or an anaconda out of the water. 😳
Now, I'm sitting in my mosquito netting, listening to the rain and jungle noises before bed. Tomorrow, we have more birding, hiking and a visit to the botanical gardens to discuss natural Amazonian plant medicinal remedies - which I'm fairly certain I saw an herbal remedy growing in the woods today, even though the guide was adamant it wasn't...next stop - #merderthebirder 2.0🐦
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