The river water is often too dirty to drink. Some people still drink it, even though it has about 15 parasites in it. They drink papaya juice with seeds every few months to help get rid of the parasites. People also collect rainwater to wash their clothes because the river water is too muddy for that.
The river is also the main way people get around since there are no roads leading into this part of the Amazon. Everything comes by boat or plane. Most people who live here never leave the Amazon, and apparently some of them even think the entire world is a jungle. Tourists look to them like they might even be from another planet! Even if they travel hundreds of miles, they’re still in the Amazon! Many never even visit Lima, which is just over an hour's flight away.
