Wednesday, December 03, 2003

Why is it as soon as I don´t write anything for a few days people think I must be in some sort of danger...not like I was bitten by some flea eared mutt and then disappeared or anything.

So, we´re back from the jungle, and apart from the fact I´ve had Guns ´n´ Roses going round my head for the last 4 days (Welcome to the jungle We've got fun 'n' games We got everything you want Honey, we know the names - ad infinitum arghhhhhhhhhhhh!) On the whole it´s been great fun

On the evening before we left we picked up my rabies jabs and some sort of cooling container (that is supposed to keep everything cool for about 12 hours - it only manages about 6/7...), and then went for a great meal at Fallen Angel, kind of a bar cum restaurant cum club with some of the weirdest toilets (think broken mirrors and barb-wire) and tables (glass topped baths filled with water and fish...)...but the food was great.

So off to the Amazon, 30 minutes to Puerto Maldonado in an (Sc)Aero Continente plane from the dark ages. After arrival at PM we headed into the jungle by thatched bus (I kid you not) and boat. We made it to the lodge around 2pm. Each room at Pasada Amazonas has it´s own bathroom, cold shower et al, but no wall on one side so you can really feel at one with nature. At about 3am each morning we were woken up by the eerie sound of howler monkeys doing their thing (howling I guess). It was unique, I´ll give it that. Our guide, Tito - from Lima, was excellent and it was he who took care of us for our stay, waking us up at stupid o´clock (4am on 2 out of 3 mornings), and taking us on many excursions. On the first faternoon we headed to the observation tower, which is some 37m (120 ft) high and gives you a great panoramic view of the surrounding forest. We saw a couple of macaws and just generally took in the view before arriving back at the centre in time for tea. We had a bit of a saga with my medicine, the barman moving it from the fridge (his fridge) and leaving it on the side...we hope we got it back in before it got too cold...only time will tell I guess.

So to day 2, and up at 4...by 4.30 we were on aboat up river to a nearby Ox-bow lake. In this lake live a family of giant river otteers, and we were fortunate enough to get a glimpse albeit from a hundred metres away. Posada Amazonas has entered into a partnership with the local community aimed at preserving the natural area and has taken a commitment to view wildlife in such a way that it doesn´t interfere witht the animals themselves...unlike another lodge whose group came whizzing past, causing the otters to disperse and then blocking the rout eback to their nest, much to the fury of all on our boat. Eventually they retreated but the otters were not to be seen again.

Whilst on the boat a chap was filming for a program called ´World Report´ which airs in the US. We did our best point and look at the otters routine for him so I might be on 2 TV progs in a week or so!! On the way back to the river one of the guides managed to catch a yellow-bellied piranha and demonstrated how sharp it´s teeth were by putting something in it´s mouth...eeek, glad we didn´t fall in.

In the afternoon we visited a local shamen (no veras, or e´s for that matter) called Don Jose who took us round the tribe´s medicinal garden. We chewed on an anaesthetic plant, and rolled something or other around in our fingers until they turned purple but none of us sampled the Para Para plant. ´Para Para´means ´stand-up, stand up´...the plant being their version of viagara...

Just towards the end of the trip it started to rain ( - properly, think cats and dogs and then chuck in a few giraffes, hippos and elephants) and Richard was about 2 metres away from getting squashed by a falling branch...nonetheless, despite arriving back soggier than an incontinent babies nappy, we had had a good afternoon.

We also managed to go on a night walk where, apart from a few insects, one laying eggs, we saw bugger all....well it was dark I suppose...

So to the final full day and another early start to get to the macaw lick. We had watched a wildlife on 1 episode filmed at PA the previous evening (God it was so good to hear David Attenborough) and it had whetted our appetite. Now macaws eat alot of seeds and, due to the toxins in these seeds, they also eat clay, which apparently couteracts these toxins. I couldn´t help thinking wouldn´t it just be a whole lot easier if they just ate, say, Big Macs, but then remembered we were in the jungle, and Ronald was not to be seen for a few hundred miles...

Well we didn´t have the best of luck...the macaws didn´t show early in the morning, and when Tito organised an additional trip for us later on that morning (at 8.30!!) we could hear them but not see them, they stayed high in the trees as they obviously didn´t fancy clay for lunch (but then who would?)

Tito would not be defeated however, and he dragged us to a Parakeet lick just after lunch where we were treated to a cacophony of noise and clay-eating the likes you´ve never seen. For a full half hour 300+ cobalt parakeets dined on the finest clay, screeched and flew as if there was no tomorrow. The fun finished about as quickly as it started, and dead on the dot of 3 they all flew off, seemingly startled by something (bet it was those bloody monkeys again...).

We headed off to the Kapok tree, some 400 years old, and ´the grandfather of the forest´, it was, again, very humbling to see something of this beauty and age. On route we passed a group of termites that had built it´s nest way up in a tree´s canapy, complete with a tunnell (on the outside of the tree) they had made from ´saliva, faeces, and dirt´, or ´spit, shit and grit´ to you and me... Just a little bit of fun left for the afternoon as I provided much hilarity doing a Tarzan and swinging on a vine. It held though, proving just how bloody strong they are, and if it´s good enough for Jonny Weismuller it´s good enough for me....

Tito spent the evening explaining how the project between PA and the local community worked. Many guides used to be barmen, the barmen used to be porters etc...and also explained how it is hoped that the whole lodge will be handed to the community within 15 years (they have already made an undertaking to that effect), lock stock and barrell, when it is hoped they will be better versed in how to run an eco-lodge.

This morning we got up late (6.30) and have now safely arrived back in Lima. The trip was great, although we were a little disappointed not to see more wildlife. Some of the wildlife we definitely missed were all the bugs that bit us, we now sport between 30-50 bites betweeen us despite wearing long shirts/trousers (tucked into our socks, we looked like cyclists for 3 days) and insect repellent. We did see a guy today who must have had more than a hundred bites on each leg so I guess you could say we were lucky.

Tomorrow we´re flying to Quito, Ecuador, which is only about 1,500 miles as the corw flies from here...the only problem is that we have to connect in Santiago as there are no direct flights using our RTW tickets...this not only means an extra 9/10 hours in the air but the prospect of the same airplane food twice in one day...

When in Quito we´ve got a couple of days to hvae a look round and hopefully get up to the middle of the world (it´s basically the equator guys...) where you can stand with one foot in each hemisphere, and as you know we never miss a photo op like that...off to the Galapagos in 4 days, really can´t wait now!

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