[As was pointed out, I used to post here under another username. I changed usernames to avoid unpleasant remarks by a couple of people. I'm relieved that the cat is out of the bag - I like this place and don't want to be run out town (so to speak) by a couple of people with questionable intentions. So, I'm back :)]
[For those unaware, I started a blog once I arrived in Medellin 4 months ago. It was started to share my experiences with family and friends. As for this forum, please consider the postings as impressions of a newbie to Colombia. Hopefully, they will stimulate discussion and be that much more helpful to me and perhaps other newbies. I've been in Medellin/Sabaneta only 4 months. There are references to photos which cannot be posted here. If anyone is interested, I have a whatsapp group set up for my postings along with photos. You can PM me to join - just send your whatsapp ID.]
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Thursday, August 29, 2019
I had little idea what to expect from a trip to one of the most primitive places on earth. Anticipation is perhaps one of the things that made the trip exciting. Will I be wrestling with a caiman or trying on an anaconda for a necktie. Or suddenly losing my terror of anything that crawls, which probably encompasses a good part of the world? Nope, not even close. Well, yes, dealing with the wildlife was a major part of the trip, but by no means did it represent the essence of it.
I’ve been struggling with how to write a blog entry. At one point, I gave up the idea thinking I simply don’t have the vocabulary to describe my experience and the wide range of emotions I felt. But I decided I need to write something so I can memorialize the trip in my own mind.
Visualizing the size of the Amazon is kind of like an abstract concept and gave me a headache… not many minds can think is such terms, including mine. It’s 5.5 million square km. Does that really mean anything to most people? I saw only a tiny fraction and was blown away. I hesitate to use a strong word like mystical or spiritual, but that’s the best way to describe the experience. As stated at the onset, the diverse and at times, dangerous, wildlife did not turn out to be the main attraction, at least for me. The enormity of the area is indescribable and gives one pause. More so than anything else, observing and learning of and about the ways of the various indigenous cultures proved to be the most fascinating aspect of the trip.
The tour was done by a small company, Coya. I was the only customer and it was completely personalized. I’m not sure about all the reasons for the lack of tourists for such a tour. But it was my gain. The heart of the tour was Joaquin, the guide plus Mikor the translator and Javier the boat driver. They were all professionals who had a special love for their work and culture. I ended up befriending each of them even though communication wasn’t easy except with Mikor, the translator. Then again, I struggled at times with Mikor. His primary language is Italian and secondary language is Spanish. On the periphery was Joaquin’s wife, Rosa. She was pleasant and helpful and a hard worker. Every day, I saw her go to the river to wash the dishes and do laundry. Not easy work, especially in the Amazon climate. I should also add Joaquin and Rosa’s 2-year old son and 1-month old puppy both provided great entertainment. Last and not least was the best fisherman on the trip: Javier’s 10-year old son. I swear, he caught fish bigger than any everyone else. They seemingly jumped on his line after 10 seconds. He was also quite the pro when it came to handling the fish and bait.
I’ll bring him up once more though I wish I could remember his name. He and his dad are very stoic. At first I thought they couldn’t care less about me. I broke the ice with dad after a short time but I couldn’t seem to get through to his son no matter how I tried. Then he started slapping black flies off my legs. The ice was broken!
Before going further, everything I write should be prefaced by saying that my impressions resulted from a mere 6-day trip and they’re simply first impressions. I’m doing my best to research most everything I say. My primary purpose in doing so is so that I can get a better understanding of my experience, not so much to be factually correct, though that will hopefully prove mostly the case. Not to worry though, this writing will not be an opus, just some impressions of a first-time tourist.
It should also be said there are different types of tours in the Amazon. Some tourists simply want to see the Amazon from afar, like from Leticia and Puerto Nariño. And there’s the tour I did which sets one up with a host family of indigenous persons where you can experience the Amazon as they experience it. And everything in between.
Communities of the different cultures dot this part of the Amazon. I still don’t completely understand what communities, but they seem to be legal entities comprised of different cultures/tribes (or different indigenous people); they are a political entity smaller than a village (Joaquin’s community, 7 de Agosto consists of 400 people) and the resources within the community are shared. Importantly, much of the money earned goes to helping the community ecologically and otherwise.
One reason for the existence of the communities is to preserve the river and river basin. As to be expected, greed is destroying the land. Trees are cut down and habitats are destroyed to make room for various capitalist enterprises. Governments stand by idly.There's been a fire going on in Bolivia for weeks (months?) for this reason. A goal of the communities is to make the public aware of this. I saw lands in Peru devastated by greed and it was heartbreaking. Trees were illegally cut down and brazenly transported on the river with government officials doing nothing.
I spent the first night in the only airport town in the Colombia Amazonas, Leticia. It is mostly used as a place to pass through to go do the various things one does in the jungle and Amazon Basin. The next three nights were spent 120 km down river from Leticia in an indigenous community with a host family. The fifth day and night were spent in Puerto Nariño, an interesting pueblo that used to be a community (communidad). The last night was spent in Letica.
Leticia is 1319 km. south of Medellin. However, the flight is actually longer distance-wise since there’s a stop in Bogota. Leticia is a small town of about 7,000. The airport has a total of one gate and no refreshment stand. The town is a bit dirty with little to do. That is, except for Santander Park where I took the initial photo posted a few days ago. It’s amazing that the parrots come from the jungle every day around 5:30pm or so to spend the night. It’s so incredible because there are hundreds of them, a sight to behold. The entire village seems to be at the park watching the phenomenon. I have photos but I wasn’t able to get a good shot since we kept our distance not wanting to get bird doo-doo all over us. Just outside the park is a fabulous museum. I got a private tour that lasted one hour.
A few more facts.
Avg high temperature for Aug = 87f
Avg low temperature for Aug = 70f
Avg Humidity Aug = 84%
The humidity is what makes Amazonas so uncomfortable. It probably hovers around 100% in the morning. It is the dry season now, although it rains most every day. In the rainy season, it teems rain for much of the day.
Photos include the museum in Leticia and Satander Park in Leticia where the parrots come out of the jungle to sleep every night.
The next day was spent traveling upstream to Caballococha, Peru to meet Joaquin and then on to the community, 7 de Agosto.
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