So Aubrey and I decided that there was no better way to celebrate her birthday than a trip to the jungle. We were hoping some other volunteers would join us, but because of the terrible flooding in the southern part of the country and on the coast, they couldn't make the trip. Aubrey and I had no road troubles though and left at 3:30am on Friday morning, took a 6 hour-long bus ride, and arrived to the town of Tena around 9:30am. Tena is Ecuador's most famous gateway into the jungle, and it's especially popular among white-water rafters. We grabbed some brunch and then headed to the jungle lodge at which we had made reservations. We paid one price for a package that included 2 nights, 7 meals, and 2 1/2 days full of activities. I think Aubrey and I both agree we got our money's worth!
The lodge we stayed at, called Shangrila, had the most amazing views (see below). You could see the river, the jungle, the mountains and volcanoes in the distance, and not another building could be seen. It also had a hammock outside every room, not to mention a loft overlooking the river w
ith fourteen more hammocks next to one another! So once we settled in, we met up with our guide Darwin, and headed into the virgin primary forest. He taught us all about the various uses for the plants and trees that we came across, medicinal and otherwise. One plant had a spiral end that he took off and put on us both like earrings. We trudged a few hours through a creek and I couldn't have been more thankful that we were provided with rubber boots for the weekend. We saw a hummingbird nest, tons of bats in caves, and we even ate lemon ants! Mmmm, extra protein. Then there came a point in the walk where we had to scale canyons- two rock walls on either side of the creek. As I quickly learned, the key was not to look down. After our first jungle experience, we were exhausted and ready for dinner. The food we received over the weekend was incredible, and this first meal at the lodge started it off right. Then we capped off the night in the hammock loft, reading to the sounds of the jungle.On Saturday morning we met up with two new guides- Ramon and his 17-year-old cousin, Jesus. They took us on another hike, this time through the secondary forest, so the scenery definitely had a different feel. We saw some beautiful waterfalls, and actually scaled up some of them with cables! And though we weren't lucky enough to see any monkeys, we did get to hear one screeching through the trees. Then we ate lunch at Amarangachi, another lodge owned by the same company, though this lodge had much more basic facilities- no electricity or hot water. This lodge was run by a couple and their eleven children, who were all running around us as we ate our fresh fish and rice. We also met an interesting man from Oklahoma who had been hiking alone and had just wandered into the encampment, and then a group from Germany as well.
After lunch we went to a lagoon formed by a creek that flowed into the river. The water was freezing- ah cha chay as they say in Quechwa. But it didn't even matter because then it started raining, and we headed toward the river with our tubes to get back to Amarangachi. We formed a big cluster of tubes and all floated down the river together, catching some rapids as well! After the rain and the freezing river, I was very happy to change into dry clothes. Then we went back to Shangrila for another relaxing evening.
After breakfast on Sunday, we got into a canoe carved out of a tree trunk, and went across the river with Darwin. Then we took another long walk, and along the way we ate fresh cocoa fruit off a tree, saw coffee beans and yucca plants, gathered plants and mushrooms to cook later, ate a palm leaf, and Aubrey got a birthday crown made of palms as well. We arrived to the tiny indigenous village of Santa Monica awhile later, and made ourselves at home in the house of Monica and Delfín. As it turns out, this couple founded the town, and their many children and spouses from other villages populated it, now consisting of 90 people! Talk about a dynasty. Monica walked around the home barefoot, looking about 120 years old, yet still carrying a baby in a sling on her back. She made us the traditional drink of chicha de yucca, which is a drink that ferments over the course of a week or so. In some villages they chew up the yucca first in their mouths before they make the drink, but we were assured that Monica instead had mashed the yucca up in a big bowl. Let's hope so! It surely didn't taste very good. We also cooked the mushrooms and plants we had picked up in the jungle, and they were delicious! Aubrey and I each bought some jewelry made out of seeds from the jungle, and we were happy to learn the profits help the the town's children commute to high schools in Tena once they have outgrown the elementary school there (which we saw- a one room schoolhouse with each grade sitting in a different row of desks). Finally on the walk back to Shangrila, Darwin painted our faces with natural face paint from a funny purple looking plant. Men from some other jungle communities wear this red paint in their hair every day, making a red shell on top of their heads.
Our Sunday afternoon could not have ended on a better note. The sun finally came out in full force and we took a leisurely ride down a different, and thankfully warmer, river. This time, not a rapid was in sight, and we just got to sit back and enjoy the jungle as it floated by us. We rode back to Shangrila in the back of a pickup, had dinner, packed our bags, and headed back to Tena. We found some great chocolate cake and ice cream to celebrate Aubrey's last night of being 22, and then we read some more on our patio as a thunderstorm raged on in the background. Quite a lovely weekend if you ask me!
This coming weekend proves to be exciting as well. On Friday night the new group of WT volunteers will arrive. I can't believe it was half a year ago that I was in their shoes. I am going with some other volunteers to welcome them at the airport in Quito, and then we are putting on skits for them about life in Ecuador on Saturday night. Then on Sunday the UVa ASB group that I have been helping to plan for will arrive! In addition to all their hard work in the school, they have a week jammed with fun activities, so there will be much to report next time. My students are even joining in on the effort, meeting the group for some of the activities in order to give them a true Ecuadorian welcome.
Well, I hope you have a wonderful last week of February and make sure to make the most of the extra day. Also, I want to make a shout out to Kate Meehan who is beginning her WT adventure in Bangladesh for their pilot program. There is really no one better to pave the way. Good luck Kate...and best wishes to all the rest of you as well. xoxo
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