This special place is bordered by two major rivers, the Marañon and the Ucayali, putting it literally on the edge of civilization. Our ship “anchored” as we do on the river (you tie up to a sturdy tree), and just across from us we could see an oil drilling site. The Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve is a stronghold for the wildlife of the upper Amazon. We had exceptional views of that wildlife, from jabiru wood storks to three-toed sloths and an anaconda that had just eaten another resident, a spectacled caiman. How fortunate that someone had the foresight to set aside this wild place so that others could enjoy the sights, sounds, and smells of an intact tropical rainforest.