So far, we've been to Lima/Cusco and hiked through the Inca Trail to get to Machu Picchu.
After we hiked all the way down back from Machu Picchu, Holly, Amanda, and I decided to go explore through the Amazon Jungle.
July 2007
Amazon Jungle, Peru
Holly, Amanda, and I were on a boat on the Amazon River. We looked all around us and observed the beautiful jungle.
After we got off of the boat, we were dropped off at our lodge. After we rested, our tour guide, Cliver, said that he had to go show us this medicine man named Luis.
We explored the jungles and traveled over suspension bridges. Cliver led us through the jungle and toward the home of Luis, the medicine man. Luis was going to explain to us what kinds of plants would cure specific diseases.
When we met Luis, Cliver translated all that he said into English. Luis explained how specific tropical plants could cure even the deadliest of diseases. I thought of how horrible it would be to cut down jungles like this one, because the jungle provided so many cures for so many diseases.
After I drank this strange drink that was supposed to make you feel 'sexy', we all returned to the lodge to rest. The only thing I felt from drinking that drink was the urge to take a cold shower.
Cliver took us to go visit a group of natives called the Yagua Indians.
These natives specialized in blowgun hunting and they were going to teach us.
When we arrived at their village, I saw that their society was so different than ours. They had no technology at all and lived in a society that didn't seem to exist in the United States at all. The men wore cloths to cover the bottom half of them, and the women wore grass skirts and necklaces that only covered a part of the upper half of their bodies.
We were all led into a hut and the natives showed us their dancing and singing. It was amazing to see another culture doing the same things that we did. It just showed that we were all the same even though we lived in different parts of the world.
Cliver told us that they were singing and dancing to their rain god. The natives pulled us up from the ground and we danced along as well. We felt as if we were a part of their culture for that one moment.
After a while, we stopped dancing and singing. The chief pointed to a group of guys who were demonstrating their blowgun skills. The men inserted darts into their blowguns and blew in their blowguns. The darts flew and hit the small target perfectly. We all gaped at their amazing accuracy.
The natives helped us with our blowguns until we mastered it and finally hit the small targets. We were so happy to learn something that was a part of their culture.
Holly had asked Reuben if it was really okay for us to barge into their village and make them teach us how to use their blowguns. Reuben said that the only way for the Yagua Indians to protect their society and their home was to let tourists come in and see their civilization. That way, the country didn't see their existence as useless or unnecessary.
The next day we decided to take a break. We wanted to take a break from all the activities. Besides, we wanted Reuben to take a break as well. That day, we (including Reuben) traveled to a village called Indiana.
Holly went for a jog by herself while Amanda and I decided to explore the village. Unlike the tropical jungle surrounding it, the village contained animals like cows.
When we met up with Holly and Reuben again, they were talking with guys on motorcycles. They were Reuben's friends and offered to give us a tour of the whole village for only $3 in total. It was amazing to tour the village full of culture and different sights.
The next day was our last day in the Amazon. We went to Monkey Island where the island lets you pet and feed monkeys with the correct food. It was said to be safe, but we could only know for sure if we actually went.
We arrived at the island and at the place where we were allowed to play with the monkeys. We ran towards them, but they weren't afraid. They acted quite the opposite. They slowly came towards us and wanted food. We held the monkeys and took pictures with them, but the funniest thing then happened.
A huge monkey jumped on Holly's head!
She was freaking out and tried to get it off her head. We laughed and guessed that the monkey thought her head was food. When we helped her get the monkey off her head, the monkey decided that my head was food too! It jumped onto my head and I started freaking out.
Instead of helping me get the monkey off of me, Amanda decided to get all of this on camera. Karma must have gotten her, because a few seconds later, a bigger monkey jumped on her back. Now, she was the one freaking out. After the monkey had left my head, Amanda was screaming for help. We all laughed at her and finally got the monkey off of her.
We definitely enjoyed our trip in the Amazon Jungle. (I especially enjoyed the part where the monkey jumped on Amanda.)
No comments:
Post a Comment