Day 5 in the Amazon - Doing the Hokey Pokey & Eating Grubs!
I take a few pictures around the lodge this morning of the landscaping,
and also our view from the lodge balcony.
We have watched monkeys down below and also large rodents called black agouti.
When we arrive at the boat dock, some flying furry natives, bats, were having a good snooze in the rafters,
and it was a good time to make sure we remember our memories!
Another trip on the river to a local village of about 30 residents, Flor del Pantano, which is inhabited by the indigenous Kichwa people.
We spend part of the first hour in the jungle looking for new discoveries…
finger bananas,
and hey, I have one of these in my kitchen!
Abel discovers a prize! There is a sloth sleeping in a tree! He is camouflaged and looks like a dark blop in the canopy. I wasn’t sure it really was a sloth until I confirmed it myself with the spotting scope and saw his shaggy fur. Sloths are difficult to find so this was a big plus for our group.
Our native hostess greets us with a basket she made which is traditionally carried on the forehead.
She is also gently waving a piece of smoking termite mound to repel insects. I suspect that works better than all the pesticides our group is wearing!
She does not speak English so Juan interprets as we visit her garden and sample different herbs used for cooking, and healing along with a banana and papaya tree filled with fruit.
There are flowers along the paths around her home.
She is very handy with a machete which must be unbelievably sharp as she cuts small tree branches, palm leaves for lunch, yuca roots which we help peel, and heart of a real palm which will become a salad for lunch.
Other plants are used for dyes, and she paints traditional Ecuadorian symbols on our hands.
The one room community schoolhouse has about 16 students ages 5-14 with a single teacher. They introduce themselves in English and tell us in Spanish what they hope to be one day….a scientist, football player, actor, military officer, policeman, fireman, doctor. We ask questions, “What is your favorite subject?” The students are so cute and just like children everywhere….adorable!
They sing for us,
and then I suggest we sing the Hokey Pokey which the students also know. As we form a large circle, a retired teacher in our group leads everyone, and we have great fun together. It was suggested we bring gifts for the classroom. I found pencils with flags of multiple countries on them and funny face erasers. The students individually thank me as I hand them around the room and give the teacher the leftovers.
We prepare to leave and several of the children give fist bump goodbyes, and then they start to hug me. It was so sweet, and once I had a child on either side of me as I hugged them both simultaneously. My hug tank was definitely being refilled!
We head to our hostess’s house to help with lunch preparations. The kitchen and gathering room is a separate structure built of bamboo and with a thatched roof.
We help our hostess with various kitchen tasks preparing lunch for her family and our group of eleven. I help chop the heart of palm for the salad and another person salts the freshly caught fish and wrap it in palm fronds to steam over an open flame. This is just like a Boy Scout foil meal…but all natural!
We skewer large white beans, sprinkle with salt, and roast over the metal grate on the open flame. The final side dish is a BIG surprise for everyone.
A large palm frond is unfolded and inside are fat, white, squirming grubs about 2-3” long with small brown heads. There are more in a wooden bowl filled with water, and they look like pale thumbs!
These are the larvae of the palm weevil which is the largest weevil in the world. Considered delicious in the jungle, these are filled with juicy yellow fat. I was almost brave enough to bite the head off of one, but decided to help kill them by crushing their heads and skewering them for roasting. There is no gutting these suckers; we will be eating them whole!
A local shaman arrives to perform a healing ceremony on anyone interested. Of course I was! He stroked my arms and blew away evil energy before brushing me with a wand made of dried leaves.
Lunch was served individually in nut bowls and we sit to eat with our fingers. You know what I saved for last, and it DID NOT taste like Smithfield’s finest. Don’t worry little pigs; this is no competition for you!
We say our thanks, leave our hostess gifts, and Abel is waiting for us in the yard for a blow gun demonstration. Again, how many people can say they have actually used a blow gun!
It is about 8’ long, made out of wood with a small opening at both ends for the dart. We are trying to nail a papaya sitting about 10-15 yds away. We take turns bracing our feet and supporting the gun with one hand and the other near the mouthpiece. A quick puff of air sends the dart through the air and….almost! I hit the papaya but the dart didn’t stick! Drats!
Robyn gives it a try and misses too.
However, three people in our group of eleven were successful as we each repeated our efforts about three times. I only got worse!
Back at the lodge, we shell roasted cocoa beans for the nibs which we then ground into a thick bittersweet paste. I think this will reappear at dinner. Hopefully, not on top of palm weevil larvae!
I forgot to mention bullet ants earlier which we saw in the jungle. The bite of these ants is so painful it feels like you have been shot with a bullet! You do not want to lean against a tree or grab one for support in the Amazon!
Our final night at the lodge, and our last opportunity for a night walk. We grab boots, sticks, and flashlights, and we head out to discover the jungle secrets covered in darkness.
Spiders….
frogs…
scorpions…
butterflies…
and insects galore!
I have had an amazing time in the Amazon rain forest! Tomorrow I trade the heat and humidity for the coolness and high altitude back in Quito. At least I will wash my hair which is like a helmet on my head at this point!
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