In the Selva, the Mighty Selva
Trip Start
Jun 07, 2008
1
8
20
Trip End
Aug 04, 2008
Sivia, Peru
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
If you couldnīt tell by my title, I spent my weekend in the lower part of the Amazonian Jungle, and only one word can describe my three days - insanity. Let me explain.
The drive to the jungle is an unpaved 8 hour journey winding through the mountains, and we happened to have a ridiculously insane driver who loved to go fast. Needless to say, we ended up with a flat tire about 2 hours into the drive- luckily not on the edge of a cliff. After changing the tire, we stopped in a small town for breakfast, which was a yummy fried egg on rice. Having some food in my stomach (and dramamine, of course) I felt better and didnīt end up getting sick on the ride, yay!
On our ride we came across something that I had no idea existed - tollways. Now these arenīt the traditional tollways we are used to, where 75 cents into a machine will get you through the gate. These were manmade tollways - giant rocks that kids rolled into the middle of the road in order to stop the car, and didnīt remove the rocks until we gave them money or food. Iīd say we ran into about 4 or 5 of these on the way there.
After about 7 hours or so we stopped in San Francisco for a snack (its about an hour from where we are staying) and my goodness was it an interesting experience. Tons of men were walking around with 2 or 3 rifles each, and there was a big truck that was handing them out to all of the men in the group. Apparently this town had no police (nor did the town we stayed in) and instead these vigilantes ran the justice system. A little scary, to say the least - we were definitely in the cocaine producing region. Actually, according to Sariīs guide book - the town we stayed in, Sevilla, was a place that no tourist would dare go because it is the 2nd leading producer of cocaine in Peru. More about that later...
After our snack, we stopped after about another hour of driving and Pancho - our fearless leader - told us that we were going to go hiking to look at waterfalls. The hike was intense - we had been sitting in a car for 8 hours and then just hopped out and hiked for an hour in the heat and humidity. But the waterfalls were beautiful, and we had a chance to swim or soak our feet in the cool pool beneath one of the waterfalls, so that was nice.
We then got back into the car and were off to Sevilla - our home for the next two days. We arrived across the river from Sevilla, so we took a motorized canoe across and walked through town to get to our hostel. Walking through it was clear that these people never see any gringos, because it was like we were in our own little parade with all the looks we were getting. Our hostel was very basic (to put it in a nice way...) and after showering we were out the door to dinner by 6 pm. There was only one safe restaurant for us to eat at in the town, and we were one of the first ones in the restaurant that night. We show up and after a bit we get our drinks, and we notice that the place is starting to fill up. Our orders havenīt been taken, but we notice that some people are already getting their food. We finally get our orders in, and we notice that people who showed up 30 minutes after us have already eaten and are paying for the check. After about two hours of waiting, our food finally arrives and we scarf it down in hunger, having only eaten breakfast and a snack all day. Being gringos, they tried to overcharge us, but Pancho caught it and made them fix it. We could tell that we werenīt welcome.
A little about why we werenīt welcome: the American marines have been in the jungle for the past few months, in a mission called Red Horse. This mission is trying to stop or at least slow the cocaine production (which all happens in the jungle) and the people of the jungle are not happy campers because this is how they make their money. So needless to say, dirty looks were very common this weekend.
After dinner I was so incredibly exhausted, even the ridiculously loud music coming from the town square couldnīt keep me awake (though it kept Anne up until the band stopped playing at 5:30 in the morning).
The next morning we woke up and ate breakfast and were off on a really neat motorized canoe ride through the river. The scenery was beautiful, and the wind in our faces felt fabulous. We arrived after an hour on the boat to our destination, and we began our 3 hour hike through the jungle. It was really hot and humid and part of the trail was difficult, but I felt very proud of myself that I made it through. The plants are just beautiful, and it is so nice to see green everywhere you look. We hiked back to the boat, and this is when the drama began. Anne was walking down the steep rocks to our boat and she fell - breaking her arm in the process. Nicole is an athletic trainer, so she was able to fasten a splint out of bamboo and a belt, but poor Anne was going to have to wait until we got back to Ayacucho to have it looked at, because there wasnīt a hospital anywhere near where we were. So we kept going on with our plan, Anne having to tough it out for another day and a half.
We got back onto the boat, and we stopped for a little swim in the river (the current was really strong!). This river is a tributary off of the Amazon, so I had to get in! After our swim, Pancho tells us we were going to go see some natives, so we got dressed and back in the boat we went. Our fourty-five minute hike to the natives was pretty miserable. Half of the trail was under swampy water, we accidentally walked through a fire ant nest, and the mosquitos were out for the kill. So when we arrived and saw cars and a speaker system, we were pretty pissed. Luckily there were actually natives there, there just happened to be a soccer game going on on their land. So we met this 78 year old man who has 8 wives and 48 children and took some pictures. I found the whole situation creepy and disgusting, considering his 8th wife was 12 when she had her first kid. So I didnīt really think the hike was worth that, but it was an experience nontheless. We hiked back to the boat and then ate dinner, then crashed at about 7 at night.
The next day we woke up and hiked to a natural preserve, and took pictures of a bunch of different animals. This wasnīt really a ĻpreserveĻ in my opinion, because the animals were in these tiny cages. The giant otter didnīt even have any water in itīs cage to swim in. So I found it more sad than anything, but I got nice pictures nonetheless.
Our drive back was pretty uneventful - other than the horse race that we had to stop for - but it felt nice to get back to Ayacucho safe and sound (though not all of us whole, poor Anne!).
So needless to say my weekend was very interesting - and definitely once in a lifetime.
Comments
Wow!
You couldn't make this stuff up if you tried! Thank goodness you are telling your parents AFTER you got back.I'm reading your entry with my mouth open - until I get to 'this is where the drama begins . .. ' I hope your poor friend, Anne, is doing well. Bless her heart. At least cocaine is a pain killer (just joking). I was a little disappointed - what? no alligators in the Amazon? Be careful and stay safe. My prayers tonight are for your parents!
Nancy Raine