Did you know?

The Amazon spans 9 countries, the majority of the forest is contained within Brazil, with 60% of the rainforest, followed by Peru with 13%, Colombia with 10%, and with minor amounts in Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname andFrench Guiana. The Amazon represents over half of the planet's remainingrainforests, and comprises the largest and most biodiverse tract of tropical rainforest in the world, with an estimated 390 billion individual trees divided into 16,000 species. 

There are more than 1million tribal people who call the jungle home, divided into 400 tribes. Some have land rights, and healthcare, and some remain "uncontacted".

Some interesting flowers found in Peru and Ecuador, Monkey Orchid

Panama hats were created in Ecuador, they were shipped first to the Isthmus of Panama before sailing for their destinations in Asia, the rest of the Americas and Europe, subsequently acquiring a name that reflected their point of international sale, "Panama hats", rather than their place of domestic origin. The term was being used by at least 1834.

The popularity of the hats was increased in the mid-nineteenth century by the miners of the California Gold Rush, who frequently traveled to California via the Isthmus of Panama. In 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt of the United States visited the construction site of the Panama Canal, and was photographed wearing a Panama hat, which further increased the hats' popularity. 

Good Panama hats are so pliable they can be rolled up, and will maintain their shape. 

Just some more fun facts, found the pictures on Pinterest, and researched with Wikipedia. Isn't the internet amazing! All this from my couch...this month, but 42 days and it'll be researching on the ground! Stay tuned, you never know what you might learn! Adios.