Day 60 08.09.15
I woke up, got my bags together, leaving some of my luggage at the reception to be able to travel lighter and got picked up and driven to the bus terminal where I was all of sudden going to meet another tour that was going to the jungle too, but would be leaving a day earlier than me. We waited, after we received our tickets, for the bus to head out.
I met the new group I was going to ride along with and they were all very lovely. A girl from the States, a girl and two men from London, a woman from New Zealand, and the guide was from Quito, Ecuador. I was happy to be travelling with them, because it always makes a difference, especially when looking out for luggage, it is always easier if a couple of people have their eyes on the price and it is not just you clinging on to bags for dear life.
We headed out and took forever to just get out of Quito, as the traffic was horrific and rush hour had just hit.
We passed many unfinished houses, which I guess is due to the fact that many don’t have the funds to be able to finish their housing.
It was a long 5 hours bus ride with no stops, but we all seemed to have managed well.
We arrived in Tena and were picked up by one of the locals working at Shiripuno and brought to their office where we tried on our rubber boots. Here we also received a map showing us the entire jungle area, including how the rivers were flowing and what sort of animals we could be expecting where.
We then headed out towards the river to board a motorised canoe.
It was a real change of scenery to the bustling life and many houses of Quito.
The ride itself was short but nice, as the fresh air was blowing into our faces, the sun was out and we could just smell nature.
The water level wasn’t very high, but high enough to get us and our entire luggage to Shiripuno.
We arrived “in time” for lunch, it had now turned 15:00, the traffic in Quito had thrown us off our schedule. Lunch was served in a wonderful lodge overlooking part of the plantation of the community.
As a starter we had some great broccoli soup, which was very delicious and I was celebrating the fact that I was able to have some different vegetables.
As a main we then had a wonderful Tilapia cooked in a leaf, with rice, yucca, tomato and onion salad accompanied by some lovely ice tea made up from a special indigenous herb.
We then had some time to settle in and explore the area, the views and the plantation. My favourite observation was the banana plantation. It finally settled the question why the banana is curved. It is curved because it grows towards the sun. As it is hanging upside down it ultimately bends to grow towards the sun.
The community is blessed with two pets that live there. The first very loud pet is Nina the parrot. The second is the quieter tarantula (without a name).
Nina was brought to the community after having been shot in the wing and no longer being able to fly. She now can only limp around and has gotten used to the people around her, so can no longer be reintroduced into the wild. Her being so tame meant that we could pet her, but obviously only on that part of her neck that was most in need of affection. It was funny to see that as soon as you stroked her, her neck feathers would turn up and that she would turn around in utter disbelief when you dared to stop petting her.
We were then escorted to another lodge where we learned about the customary dances of the Shiripuno tribe. We listened to the hand made instruments and diligently learned the female and male parts. We were going to have the opportunity to try them out later that evening at the bonfire. Soledad, our guide, also told us a bit about the community of Shiripuno. The project was started by the women of the town, wanting to be able to become more independent and to have other means of income to support their families. Before the project commenced, the women were just living their lives, looking after their children, cooking and looking after the household, and taking care of their husbands. The only problem was, that their men were either out hunting or working and when they came back they would drink and spend time with their friends, creating a very uneven relationship. The women weren’t sure whether they would be able to cope if they were to go to the cities and look for work and so they were made smaller and smaller. The project first of all gave them self esteem training in order for them to be able to stand up against their husbands, as many were against their women working together, thinking that they might be seeing other men. Some women even had to sleep outside of their houses with their children when they came back from the project, as their husbands would no longer let them sleep in their house.
The project took on however, and they started building structures for tourism, planning tours etc. and even their husbands grouped together as a company and now offer a canoeing transport service, where they can also supply the community project with more tourists and with that more income.
The income that is produced goes 50% straight to the community’s school, their children for uniforms etc. or new computers at the computer lab for example. They work hard selling handicrafts, offering lessons on their culture, as well as offering their hospitality. I think it is paying off.
It was great getting to know the backstory of this village or community and I really enjoyed it.
We headed over to the restaurant lodge again and had dinner – a chicken noodle soup on pasta pretty much. As a starter we had a green plantain soup with popcorn as a topping, which was just a fun combination!
At dinner the second pet of the community, the tarantula came back into play.
It was taken from its position on the porch rail and brought to us who were partially sitting on the floor. Whoever dared had the wild!!!! tarantula walk along his or her face.
One boy even had the tarantula walk over his tongue – that was a little too much excitement for me. We were then also able to hold it; it feels very soft and you hardly even notice it. The tarantula was a completely wild one that had just been found a couple of days ago. They truly are arachnids that only bite when they are stressed, but apart from that are very tranquil animals. Did you know that tarantulas are actually not spiders. They still belong to the over category of arachnids however, because they have their hairy legs, and a different way of using their fangs (horizontally instead of vertically – or the other way around).
After the tarantula fun, we were lead over to a large bonfire on the beach. I think I have never been close to such a large bonfire, and we were clearly sitting to close to it when it was lit. It was sooo hot!
We then had the opportunity to watch the women of the community perform their indigenous dance. This consists of a rhythmic movement from left to right, offering the local drink made from fermented yucca plant, and the rhythmic beats of the drums.
It is quite enchanting. We then were asked to join in and dance with the women.
It was great fun, even though dancing passed the bonfire was not that pleasant. We let the pumpkin bowl of fermented, alcohol beverage pass round and everyone tried a little.
Eventually the women left and some of the older visitors, and we were left with the bonfire smouldering in front of us, the absolutely impressive stars giving us a delightful roof and the river rushing away in the distance.
We talked and enjoyed the Milky Way, which was especially detailed and visible. We waited for satellites to appear, but unfortunately weren’t that lucky, as the clouds were coming in, covering up the stars.
We then headed back to our rooms and into bed guided by our torches.
