Our team here in the Amazon were delighted to receive a letter from our former guests, describing their experience of staying with us at the Manu Learning Centre (MLC) last month.
We love hosting tourists here at the MLC reserve, as it gives us the opportunity to share the beauty of the rainforest, while showcasing the research and community work that we carry out.
This week, we received a letter from Caroline Lane who stayed with us in April after entering a competition we launched with Journey Latin America and Lima Floral.
Our aim is to create a meaningful experience for ecotourists who want a fun trip to the jungle, while also learning and contributing to the conservation of the Amazon’s diversity and richness.
Read about Caroline’s trip to the Peruvian Amazon:
Dear Crees,
I was the very lucky winner of the 11 day holiday in Peru offered by yourselves, Journey Latin America and Lima Floral and wanted to write to thank you for giving us such a fantastic opportunity to see the work you are doing and enclose a small donation to help with the research going forwards.
I went with my son Jack aged 20 and in need of a holiday after studying Physics at Edinburgh University and my 15 year old daughter Minna who is keen on all things to do with Biology and has always wanted to visit the rainforests of South America. Sadly my husband stayed at home to supervise our 18 year old who has his A Levels.
We had a marvellous trip to Peru, loved the food, the people, and Cusco and Machu Picchu was better than any photo. But I’m here to thank you for your part, and with the exception of the 5am start because of the road closer, we had such a great time at the MLC.
Thick clouds sadly obscured our first view of the Manu cloud forest but on the way back we got to see it in all its glory. The journey down was spectacular and we loved the boat trip. My daughter and I could have got used to that as a commute. It was the feeling of being completely cut off from the world and the beautiful sunrises and sunsets that we loved.
There were three other couples staying when we were there and though I was the oldest by quite some margin everyone got on so well and we had a lot of laughs. There were two guides, Juan and Ricardo, who kept us informed and entertained with stories about the flora, fauna, birds and non-contact tribes.
We enjoyed the clay lick experience and though the birds did not alight it was wonderful seeing them socialize and fly past. We had a great forest walk, visit to the bio garden and heard all about the roll out of the project to the neighbouring villages. Our camera trap photos only revealed Homo sapiens but was fun to do.
We had a hilarious trip out on a pontoon in a lake to see the Hoatzin or stink bird. Our craft got marooned on an island much to the consternation of the 15 strong Chinese party waiting on the banks to go before it got dark! Back on shore we made friends with the cutest, rescued Capybara ever, still a quarter of its eventual size, which would make it the size of a small Shetland pony.
We had a fascinating evening with Lawrence showing us slides of the work Crees does and explaining about the biodiversity of the area. The outreach programmes to the local community impressed us.
I think offering the internships is a wonderful opportunity for budding researchers to study the environment in amazing surroundings. They all seemed to have such fun. We will spread the word amongst our friends.
My daughter, Minna, is very interested in the role that governments and local authorities play in the preservation of the rainforests, how easy it is to stop illegal logging and hunting etc. and also the recording of the pollution levels and carbon footprint of the area, should you ever be researching these areas.
So long as you’re not squeamish about a few cockroaches in your bedroom and having to walk to your shower block, the jungle experience offered by MLC is wonderful. We thought the food was wonderful and really enjoyed the communal table.
Just getting back was an adventure with the road blocked by a fresh landslide that we helped clear. The lady at the entrance to the cloud forest weaves some of the most beautiful runners I saw anywhere. I am now a proud owner of one.
Thank you again for giving us the opportunity of such a fantastic trip, we all loved our time there and have many happy memories. We are also so pleased we took it in April, the weather was great and not too hot and the crowds in Cusco and especially Machu Picchu were really very unobtrusive.
With kind regards, from myself, Jack and Minna.