ADVENTURE CRUISING
After a short drive, we arrived at Nauta
where the MV Aria was docked. This elegant, 16-suite vessel is less a boat, more a floating boutique hotel. On the top deck there were loungers for sun worshippers and a Jacuzzi, ideal for stargazing at night. An elegant, light-filled lounge and bar area ran the whole length of the ship, its polished wood surroundings the perfect refuge from the heat and humidity of the day. The thoroughly modern design is cour-
tesy of Peruvian architect Jordi Puig, who looked to the rainforest for his inspiration. My spacious cabin – complete with en suite sitting area – was decorated with Amazonian hardwoods such as cabreuva and caoba, and grey slate from Brazil while the king-sized
bed was clad in fine cotton bedding from Peru. There was no TV but the river-facing floor-to-ceiling windows provided an ever-changing panorama, so you could watch the ebb and flow of life on the Amazon from air-conditioned comfort.
explore the Pacaya Samiria Reserve, a remote and pristine stretch of rainforest that few are privileged to see. One of the world’s last great unexplored regions, it is five million acres of flooded forest populated with countless species of exotic birds and animals. The Aria’s size allows her to negotiate currents and floating debris with ease and her narrow frame means she can slip down smaller rivers. The day ran like a well-oiled machine, much like an African safari. Each morning and late in the afternoon we would embark on small skiffs, an eight-seat boat that allowed us to travel deeper into the forest, with naturalist guides to explore the hidden tributaries, creeks and lakes. The chocolate-coloured water was flanked by
W
towering trees, a seemingly impenetrable mass of shifting greens. Palm-thatched, wooden stilt houses dotted the bank and we would occasionally spot a lone fisherman skilfully paddling his canoe against the current. What we didn’t see was another tourist, save for our fellow passengers. It was a birder’s paradise. Amazon Kingfishers
nose-dived for breakfast; prehistoric hoatzin – known as the stink bird – perched in the trees like strange fruit; and we heard the strident Horned
60 WORLD OF CRUISING I Autumn 2013
e sailed west to the headwaters of the Amazon basin, where the Marañon and Ucayali rivers meet. We were there to
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