More information:
peru hotel,
peru hotels,
hotels peru,
hotels in peru,
peru tours,
hotels peru in,
hotel iquitos,
hoteles iquitos,
iquitos hotel,
peruvian hotel,
amazon rainforest,
rainforest hotels,
rainforest peru,
hotel amazonas,
hotel selva,
selva hotel,
hoteles en la selva,
hotel amazonas,
amazonas hotel,
hotel en la selva,
loreto hotel,
hotel loreto,
peru iquitos,
iquitos peru,
iquitos fotos
The jungle city of Iquitos is a popular destination for tourists visiting the Amazon in Peru. It is home to over 370,000 people, yet surprisingly Iquitos can only be reached by air or by boat. It is in fact the most populous city in the world which has no road access. Flights from Lima, the capital city of Peru, are quick and relatively cheap, but arriving by boat is a great way to be introduced to the Amazon, even if it is a rather long, hot journey. Boats to Iquitos can be boarded at Pucallpa and Yurimaguas.
The Amazon River is the longest river in the world. It is 4080 miles long and runs from the Peruvian Andes mountains through Brazil to the Atlantic Ocean. It empties into the Ocean at a rate of 55 million gallons per second and dilutes the Ocean’s saltiness for 100 miles. The Amazon is the widest river in the world, from 11km to 40km wide and a massive 325km wide in the wet season, when it reaches the Atlantic. It has 1100 tributaries, creating 14,000 miles of waterways which are navigated by boat and tree trunk canoe.
The Amazon River is home to massive 200lb catfish; piranhas, the most ferocious fish in the world and anacondas, the largest snake in the world. It has 2000 different species of fish. It is so deep that ocean liners can navigate inland for 2300 miles.
The Amazon Rainforest covers 1.2 billion acres in 9 different countries of South America. It is an essential part of the world, recycling carbon dioxide into oxygen to produce more than 20% of the world’s oxygen. It is justifiably called the ‘Lungs of our Planet’. More than half the world’s 10 million plant, animal and insect species live in this jungle. It is home to more than half the world’s floral species and one fifth of all the birds in the world. The tropical rainforest is the origin of more than 80% of our diet, including 3000 fruits, coconuts, squash, tomatoes, corn, potatoes, rice, spices, coffee and nuts.
More than 120 prescription drugs come from plants and so far less than 1% of the tropical trees and plants have been tested for their beneficial properties. 25% of the ingredients in anticancer drugs are found only in the rainforest, and more is being discovered each year.
