January is time for travel, and this year, my sister and I treated ourselves to an unforgettable adventure in the Amazon as part of our annual birthday celebration. We organized this trip through Gate 1 Travel, and it turned out to be a fast-paced, with a lot of experiences packed into a short timeframe. 

The first day, we arrived in Quito, Ecuador, and had time to explore independently. This wasn’t our first visit to Quito, as we had previously traveled here on a trip to the Galapagos Islands. 

On Day 2, we met the rest of our fellow travelers and began our guided tour with our incredible guide, Daniel. Our first stop was the iconic "Middle of the World" monument, located at the Equator. While the monument itself is slightly off the true equatorial line, our guide took us to the exact location, just a short distance away. 

Following our visit to the monument, we began our journey to the Amazon basin. We drove through the scenic Andes Mountains to Tena, where we boarded a motorized canoe for the final leg of our journey to a solar powered eco lodge, where we would spend the next few days. 

During our time in the Amazon, we had the opportunity to visit a clay lick frequented by parrots, embark on a nature hike through the jungle, float down the Arajuno River in tubes, take a night walk through the rainforest, and engage with a local Quechua community to gain insights into their way of life in the heart of the Amazon. 

Our adventure concluded with a visit to the Papallacta Hot Springs, nestled in the high Andes Mountains, offering a tranquil and rejuvenating experience amidst stunning natural surroundings.