Packing

I am leaving today, and have almost finished packing. Here are some items I am bringing:

 In the top left picture you can see my passport and immunization card.  I had immunizations (shots) to protect me from yellow fever and other diseases. I am bringing a journal and colored pencils so I can record my observations both with words and pictures. I also have a wildlife guide to the Amazon so I can figure out the names of the animals I am seeing.

In the top right picture you can see my first aid kit, my sunblock, insect repellant, and the biodegradable soap I have so I won't pollute the river when I take a shower. I also have a swiss army knife, and a mosquito net for my head in the small green pouch in case the bugs get really bad. In the rainforest, mosquitoes can carry several diseases, so I need to protect myself from being bitten.

In the bottom picture are my rubber boots to wear when walking on land in the rainforest to protect from snake bites. I am also bringing a pair of binoculars to see animals from far away, and a sunhat. The green machine you see is a bat detector which I will use at night to find bats. It turns their echolocation calls into a call our human ears can hear. I also have a flashlight with a red light to count caimans (a cousin to alligators) by seeing their eyes shining from the bank at night.