I woke up to the purring of the ferry boat engine, pushing itself towards another shoreline community on the Amazon River. I stretched my legs out in my hammock and peered through the blue metal tin window that displayed the rawness of the Amazon. The sky was pink, and the morning had a refreshing coolness. I hugged my sarong blanket closer to me before slowly rolling out of my hammock, touching my feet to the curved floor of the boat.

Coming from the kitchen-side, a small Peruvian man dressed in women’s jeans, a tight pink shirt, and hair pulled up in a short ponytail, carried around a tray of cups filled with hot oatmeal milk. This was our morning breakfast, along with a dry, cracker-like bread. I munched on it while perched on the window-side bench, taking in the quiet morning, as others slowly began to stir in their hammocks. It was another day living on the Amazon River.

So how did I get here?

If you want to see the real Amazon, here’s how you can hop on a ferry boat:

This once of a lifetime experience can be taken in two ways: riding the ferry boat from Peru to Colombia, or from Colombia to Peru. I was coming from the Colombian side, and decided to take a more exciting route to cross into Peru. First, I flew from Bogota to Leticia. (If you’re coming by plane don’t forget to get your passport stamped before leaving the airport!!! You need your exit stamp so you can cross into Peru.) Leticia is the Colombian side of the Amazon and it’s at the very tip of the country. Literally, the water is shared between both Colombia and Peru (and Brazil as well if you go east on the river). You can choose to stay a day or two in Leticia, but my friend Brooke and I just sat down for a yummy lunch of fish, and then headed straight to the docks. Have a taxi from the airport take you to the main part of town near the docks. The airport isn’t far so don’t pay more than 10 soles total. If you’d like, take a detour for the market (we found one on the main road a few blocks before the docks). Buy three days worth of water, toilet paper, and some snacks for your journey. Plenty of food will be available during the ride, but you don’t know when or what will be available. So if you think you’ll get hungry or if you’re a picky eater, be prepared.

Down at the docks, you will find men waiting in little boats who will charge you a small price to take you where you need to go. I believe we only paid 4 soles each. First, you need to go Santa Rosa. The boat driver will know where this is, don’t worry. You will go to the Immigration Office, close to where you’re dropped off. You can always ask someone where to find it and they will direct you. If you’re worried about your Spanish skills, I have some phrases to help you here. The office closes around 5pm so make sure to get there before then! Here, you’ll get your passport stamped to enter Peru – you’re on the Peruvian side now! There’s a market near the office as well (smaller from the one we found on the Colombian side), in case you are in need of last-minute supplies.

Go back to the shore and hop on another boat. This time, ask the driver to take you to where the boat picks you up – say, “la lancha.” They will know what you’re talking about. You’ll end up on this tiny piece of land where you wait for the boat to arrive at 7pm. When I was here, locals were in the process of building little wooden huts for what I assumed were restaurants. A woman had a grill and was cooking up some fish and plantains, so you could have a little dinner before the ride if you wanted. It was a perfect spot to be during the sunset. You could see the Colombian border in the distance, and locals were driving up and down the river on boats. There were cranes waltzing through reeds and everything seemed quieter.

When the boat arrives, find a spot upstairs to set up your hammock. You can bring your hammock or ask the main guy at the boat entrance for a hammock, and he’ll find one for you to rent. My hammock comes with a mosquito net, which was great considering you’ll encounter several mosquitos on the Amazon. If this is up your alley, my hammock is called Moskito Kakoon Hammock. You can find this on Amazon (this time I’m talking about the website, ha!), as well as individual mosquito nets if you already have a beloved hammock. The top floor is the best spot in my opinion. It’s breezier, and you’ll feel a little less cramped. When we first got on, we had all the space we needed, but as the boat moves along the river, more and more people will hop on and set up their hammocks. The boat leaves around 8pm so try to plan your travels with this in mind (and don’t forget the immigration office closes at 5pm!) And don’t worry, the boat leaves every day.

At around 2am or 3am in the morning, someone will come around and collect money for your ticket. It’s a weird time to be paying for tickets, but that’s the way it goes. Before going, I read that the trip costs around 80 soles. I actually ended up paying only 60. This means you’re paying $20 for transportation, a place to sleep, and three meals a day (which are small and not gourmet by any means but still edible). Not a bad deal! I noticed at night it got a little chilly, so put on a sweatshirt and pants before going to sleep. I travel with a sarong to act as a towel, blanket, and cover up, so this will be a good time to snuggle up with it. Also, be sure to watch your stuff. I slept with my wallet, camera, and phone in my hammock every night.

There is a shower available, which is shared in the same room as toilet. There is only one toilet on each floor, and it’s not the nicest, but they do clean it daily. Don’t expect to find power outlets. Being on the boat is the perfect opportunity to take a much needed rest from your go-go-go mindset of traveling. Read a good book, bring a mandala coloring book, have some lazy hammock naps, journal about your crazy experiences while on the move, do some yoga (I actually managed to roll my mat out between the layers of hammocks), or simply gaze outside the blue tin window and watch the Amazonian communities pass by.

At almost every community the boat parked at, children excitedly chased after the boat. It didn’t matter if the boat came everyday. You’ll watch men push tuk-tuk bikes onto the boat, and haul huge coolers of fish. Women and children will filter onto the boat selling fish, churros, local dishes, and exotic fruits. My favorite was guaba, which was like a mix between a giant-sized green bean and a cactus arm. Brooke and I watched how the locals ate it, which was cutting it lengthwise, pulling it apart and chewing the sweet white fruit off the seed. On the boat, you might meet other travelers (there were five of us, including a chipper film student from England and our two Frenchie friends). There’ll be countless local families sleeping on the boat and, more likely than not, curious Peruvian children will want to talk to you and find out where you’re from, or if you’re married. At night, priceless sunsets will blow up the sky and color the river. You may even see dolphins dancing along the boat. Then, as the sun disappears, the sky will light up with more stars than you thought were possible. I didn’t want to leave la lancha.

We landed in Iquitos early morning on our third day. Taxi drivers (which will actually be more like tuk tuk taxis) will enter the boat, offering you deals to take you into town. From what I remember, it was about 5 soles total for the ride. There are plenty of hostels in Iquitos, so don’t worry about making a prior reservation. Just be sure to write down your accommodation options and their addresses ahead of time, so you know where to have your taxi take you. Iquitos has its charms as well, with good ceviche, pretty riverside boardwalks, plenty of tours for the Amazon Reserve, and a crazy local market that sells anything from larvae, monkey meat, and seasonings, to just triple A batteries. Be sure to try aguaje ice cream, which will cost you about 1 sol (you might recognize this local fruit from the boat ride!)

I can’t stress enough how incredible this experience was. If you plan to visit South America, be sure to add this on your itinerary. This is real travel.

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