This past weekend we were kicked out of our host home. A large group of Americans were coming for the weekend and so we were placed somewhere else. First we thought we were going to Sumaco which is this giant volcano. Then plans changed and we thought we were going to Loreto which is the closest town. Then the morning we were to leave, plans were changed yet again. We were going to a community about 20 minutes (in a bus) down the road called 10 de Agosto (10th of August).
We arrive with welcome smiles and greetings. We are shown as to where we will be staying for the two days. Sharing beds, open air ceilings and no bug nets, and on a part of the freeway where trucks and buses are going probably 75 miles per hour.
Saturday afternoon we don’t really know what to do, so we take a soccer ball and cross the street to the high school where the soccer field is. And soon enough, here come the kids. And next thing we know we have made plans to go to the river the next day and are headed to this botanical garden right then! The kids here were very touchy, with hand holding and standing right next to us. So we take this hike through the jungle pretty much through this botanical garden. They were explaining what we were seeing, but it pretty much looked like a jungle to me.
We finally return for dinner. And then hang out during the evening. The first night sleeping was okay. The trucks were pretty loud and made the tree house shake every time. The next morning, breakfast was delayed due to a bus full of 17 men coming through and stopping at the restaurant owned by the family we were staying with. Eventually we were fed and then just hung out some more. After lunch we got to go to the river. And of course, as with anything in the culture, it doesn’t come easy. The walk to the river was probably more than a mile in the scorching heat. But swimming in the cold river was definitely worth it.
We head back to the house and decide to go to the soccer field again to see what kids come, this time it was different, there were older kids playing soccer and no one even cared for the gringos, and so we went back defeated to simply hang out some more at the house. This night sleeping was not as good. Until about 1am, I could not sleep well. I kept feeling bugs crawling all over me. Whether there really were bugs or not, I don’t think I will ever know but it was an uncomfortable feeling.
Monday was our last day there; we wake up with really nothing to do. But wait around until it was our time to leave. After lunch we waited for a bus to take us to our home in Huaticocha. It was a good weekend, to see more of the culture. It was also a weekend to chill even though I was ready to go and be active. But there is more to the jungle rather than just Huaticocha.
Mi hermanita, Karen and me.
