 |
| In Serere Park with Madidi Travel |
First things first - an enormous congratulations goes out to our friends Kimi and Pierrick for their new addition. Zachary is not only a great name (my brother´s too) but a gorgeous baby too, especially after all mommy had to go through to get him out! I really wish we´d been there (I know I couldn´t have done much but at least there would have been cookies for after the ordeal) and we can´t wait to meet him.
Here we are in Cusco, Peru and it has, as always, been an intensely busy few weeks - though quite bittersweet. So I´d first just like to say to anyone who has emailed, I´m sorry if we haven´t gotten back to you but we definitely read what you send and always appreciate the kind words or just miscellaneous contact (this means you Ajay). And if you haven´t sent anything, don´t worry, we know the rest of the world is busy too and we love you anyway.
Here´s the recap (it's gonna be a long one folks):
- A taxi ride almost gone bad and the early trip to Sucre
- A weekend of birthdays in Sucre
- Chris´ pre-birthday nightmare and the worst hike either of us will ever take
- AKA The Incan Trail gone terribly wrong
- Maragua crater for a 30 year old
- Potolo EKG Campaign - a semi-success?
- Goodbye dinner with Andrew
- Goodbye to our Sucre family
- Long bus to Rurrenabaque
- Madidi Travel excursion in Serere and a boy´s dream come true
- Long bus part two
- Resting and farewells in Cochabamba
When we left Friday night (the 22nd I believe), we were going to take a bus to Sucre with Ubaldina (and her cousin though we didn´t know it yet) while Jaime and Andrew were taking a flight the next day. Before heading out the door, we spent a few rushed minutes advising Andrew on white wine sauces and the best ways to cook asparagus for a dinner he was making for a big group of friends for Jaime´s birthday. Her birthday wasn´t for another week and a half but Andrew would be leaving for residency interviews in the states at the end of the Potolo campaign. I still found it a little weird that it was only a couple days til Chris´ birthday and that they waited until we were leaving so we couldn´t celebrate with them. But oh well. Sometimes you need a break from people you are living and working with.
We packed our big backpacks for the trip to Potolo since it would be a nearly week long excursion. This meant that none of the trufi´s wanted to stop to pick us up (even though mostly were near empty since it was quite late). We were running late after taking a minute to help Andrew so we settled on a real cab for not too much. After hopping in the car, he sped off in a different direction than we were used to (the way to the bus terminal is straight down from our apartment less than ten minutes). Of course I asked and he explained that the main avenue was really congested because it was a Friday night. Okay, I could accept that. Then, we kept moving what felt farther away. I was sitting in the back seat and Chris was in the front. I could see him start to squirm a little bit too. Neither of us were comfortable with the part of town we were in. Then came the fun part. We pulled up to a stop and I´m sure we both instinctively recognized the hill in front of us even though neither of us had been there before. This was the hill behind the terminal that we´d been warned over and over was were tourists were taken to be robbed (and if young women were involved, often worse).
We went straight forward and headed up the hill fast. I´m sure my eyes bugged out of my head as I tapped hard on the shoulder and said this was wrong. He shifted in his seat just as I did, telling me we were both going for our knives, as he demanded of the driver to know where we were going. He told us not to worry, we were almost there. It was a very long forty seconds as Chris and I both looked out the windows for where his buddies were waiting. I´m not a violent person but I was planning very carefully where I would put my knife on his throat to make sure he didn´t stop. Then, we rounded the corner and saw the lights of the cars on a street we both recognized. We both sighed so loud that the driver started laughing at us. Just a shortcut. All the drama for naught, huh? I apologized to him and explained to him what we´d heard. He understood though said it was just a dangerous place for walking (not actually true). He started making small talk but my brain wasn´t functioning well enough to tell him my favorite food in Cochabamba. I was a little shaky for a while. Chris gave me a big hug and told me he never would have let the car stop. Nothing like a little rush of adrenaline before getting on an overnight bus.
Ubaldina and her cousin showed up just before the bus was leaving. I can tell you exactly how long they were awake and talking because they were sitting right behind us and her cousin was alternating which knee he pushed into my back the entire time they were awake. Ubaldina hadn´t bothered to introduce us so I didn´t feel comfortable turning around and demanding that he knock it off. Oh well.
The most amusing bus moment had to have been when the police got on the bus and loudly asked if everything was all right. This wasn't too abnormal, kind of nice actually, but the abnormality was the response from a man in the front row who said The driver says he's not going to stop (referring to for dinner or restrooms). After looking bewildered for a split second, the policeman responded, Well he has too. There was a lot of chuckling.
Our bus was ridiculously fast, which means we arrived at the Sucre terminal in the dark around 4:30. Chris and I sat in the terminal and took turns going to the bathroom to get ready for the day while everyone else stared at us. Ubaldina and her cousin left early for her aunt´s house.
Getting ready in the morning in a terminal bathroom was one of my favorite things about Bolivia. Most everyone gets off a bus looking like shit (though Gringos more so because I think we´re just not used to the seats which means more tossing and turning and more fun hairstyles by morning) and the native women all converge on the bathroom mirror to fix their hair. While I´m brushing my teeth, they are all unwinding their braids and wetting their hair - always long, shiny and black - before rebraiding both sides. They stare at me the entire time. I´m so used to it that I´ve taken to doing absolutely whatever I need without shame or fear. I see people picking their noses mid-conversation so if my brushing my teeth is strange enough, I´ll pop a zit or adjust whatever bit of clothing I need to. I look just as alien to them no matter what I´m doing. It´s such a strange thing to see them all doing the same thing, which is so normal to them, while brushing my teeth is so bizzare. I can´t decide if I feel like a zebra among horses or a horse among zebras. Or just maybe sometimes more like a zebra among lions?
 |
| Api and Tojori at the Sucre market for breakfast |
When the sun finally came out, we walked the several(?) kilometers with our bags to the market for Chris´ favorite breakfast. It was a nice walk with a few early morning strollers out and a few late night leftovers. No one harassed us though, which is always a plus. We got Chris his much craved food - tojori (a chunky corn drink), coffee, and pastel (fried dough with a little cheese inside). I opted for api, also a corn drink but made from purple corn and well blended (no gross chunks). We waited around a while and Chris kept falling asleep sitting up. We stayed long enough to see a group of very white Mennonites in dark denim overalls come in for breakfast too. After we felt it was late enough, we left the market in hopes that our favorite hostel would be kind enough to let us in early to take a nap. Coming in and out of the market means dodging leftover scraps of meat dropped on the ground (or more frighteningly, men carrying racks of ribs, etc on their backs), poorly thought out piles of dog shit, and women sweeping the dust and dirt away from their fruit stalls in whatever direction is easiest (including into you). It´s such an interesting place, especially in the early morning just before things get moving.
The hostel was, thank goodness, nice enough to let us in and we immediately collapsed for a morning nap. We were woken when Andrew called to tell us they´d made it in and were going to Domigna´s to stay. The invite was extended to us but would have been much more useful the night before since we were not going to walk around Sucre with our bags exhausted for hours waiting for the news. Oh well, at least we got a nap.
We went out for lunch at a veggie restaurant called El Germen (we'd been there before, I love it) while Jaime and Andrew got errands and house stuff done (and stuff is the appropriate word there). The restaurant was full for it's pension (set lunch) and we sat at a table with two tourists, who weren't together but were talking. After the woman got up, the guy started talking to us in English. He was mid-western boy but a Harvard lawyer. He looked just as scruffy as any other hippie tourist but he's a human rights lawyer working in Sucre to sue the Bolivian ex-president. Wow! Talk about ballsy. We talked a good long time over lunch. He is currently interviewing victims of a government organized massacre (house to house, including children) to sue this ex-president where he is being harbored - in the US of course. It was really inspirational talking to him. He says it's really hard to find human rights work in any sponsored way and that he's had numerous projects fall through. We told him about our project woes and our serious doubts about future medical work in South America and he was really helpful and encouraging in talking about working on multiple projects that fail before you can finally find one that works. It felt really good to hear someone else, who is now so successful in doing exactly what he wants, has experienced the same frustrations we have.
We also talked about politics at home. A rare (but not non-existent) topic out here. It was interesting to hear the rumors he'd heard at Harvard Law about Obama being a very non-commital, moderate guy. After having heard my opinions on how things have gone vs how they could/should have and now this enlightened mind's insights as well, I think Chris walked away feeling a little pissed off at Obama for not pushing harder. Sometimes it's a blessing to be here so far away from all the upsetting news, but sometimes I'm honestly afraid of what we'll be coming home to.
This same guy also talked to us about going to a tea party rally in his home state (Kansas?) with a friend who's a radio DJ to do interviews. He said he expected it to be upsetting and funny but he thought it was really just sad that this was a group of good people at the bottom of the barrel who'd be taken advantage of and broken and that they just needed help and a voice to listen to. But no one on the liberal side was talking and they didn't have anyone else to listen to...
The rest of the day was spent finding birthday presents mostly. Gadiel (Pedro's son and Chris' bud) as well as Andrew's two twin god-children in Potolo all have the same birthday as Chris (and apparently Ubaldina's big brother too but we didn't know that til later). What are the chances? The twins are fraternal, boy and girl, and in spanish fraternal twins are mellizos and identical are gemelos.
 |
| Uncle Chris and Sebastian |
We found a set of twenty toys cars for Gadiel, knowing that he'd need to share with his brothers and would lose or break anything he could outside. For the twins, Chris found the boy a soccer ball (he said every kid/boy needs a soccer ball and he would love to give a kid a soccer ball on his [Chris'] birthday) and I got the girl a cute little tea set (I'd never met her - it was hard). We also found plastic, multi-colored whistling animals (you know, like a dog toy, they squeeze and whistle) for Sebastian, Dominga's eight/nine month old since we were going over for dinner and she'd always been so hospitable. I'm sure we also stopped in at Para Ti for some chocolate and espresso at some point during all that but I don't remember.
At Dominga's house that night, she made us all a very nice chicken stew for dinner and to celebrate her sister's birthday. We bought a good bit of beer for the occasion (though it ended up being a little awkward that the culture is to drink to get drunk, as Andrew explains it, so the couple guys were hesitant to start). We gave Sebastian his toys, which may drive his mother made, but were a great choice as it turns out he's teething. After seeing the toys, Dominga's sister wanted to take me down to her apartment to show me her daughter Soledad's toys from when she was younger. It was a somewhat strange feeling to sit in the middle of the floor with a more than ten gallon bag of toys while her husband and a teenage girl (step-daughter?) watched Final Destination in Spanish. I understood that it was somehow important to her but I couldn't entirely understand why. These were probably some of the best/most valuable possessions she had and it was nice for her to want to share them with me. It was only awkward when I started to run out of original comments/compliments for the little plastic figurines or minature cooking wares.
 |
| Immediate chew toys for teething babies |
Lipa was there of course - that's the dog that bit Chris - but only one of the puppies. I think the other one was sold. It was a little big for her to have eaten that one too. We took off in a neighbor's cab to go back to the hostel. He was offering to take us sight-seeing around the town but we were all a little too tired. So Chris and I just went home. He tried to make it free but we insisted on paying.
So before we get to Sunday and the rest of that rather enormous week, we'd better recap. Potolo is the small town that Andrew was based in for the Peace Corps for two years and it is Ubaldina's hometown. They had held a Chagas screening campaign that had a relatively poor turn out because it was the same day as a community fair, but they did have a nearly 90% positive rate (nearly one hundred people). So Andrew, Chris, and I had gone out a week or two before for a less than 24 hour trip to have a meeting with the clinic staff and the dirigentes (town leadership) to arrange a campaign to do EKGs for these positive people and hopefully also have another screening campaign at the same time. The EKGs are required before starting treatment because if cardiac pathology is too far advanced, the current dogma is that treatment won't help. Potolo is an amazing beautiful place with wonderful people who are incredibly poor so they really needed help with the EKGs. So we would offer the EKG for 5 bolivianos (less than a dollar - versus 300 in town) to pay for the EKG stickers and add an amount of financial accountability (if it were free the whole town would come and demand it - but we'll get to that). And the twins are Andrew's god-children from the house he stayed in while he lived there.
 |
| Birthday boys and pancakes |
The plan for the week was to do the EKG campaign Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Monday was Chris' birthday and he decided he really wanted to see the Maragua Crater, which is a natural, erosion- based formation (not volcanic) - we still have no idea how that worked but it's beautiful (it's pretty interesting to look at on Google earth too). So we planned to leave Sunday to take the Inca Stair/Trail in the area to hike into the valley and into the crater. There was a lot of pre-planning in which Chris and I emphasized over and over again that we could go on our own if need be and that we were absolutely going to be there for sunrise in the crater on Chris' birthday. Andrew insisted he would guide us and eventually insisted on hiring a cab to leave midday Sunday instead of leaving on the local bus in the morning. Then we would hike from the crater to Potolo on Monday stopping by some dinosaur footprints that were supposed to be easily accessible from the path. Okay, there's your little intro - the plan as it was supposed to be.
 |
| Family kitty picture for my friend Pauline |
Sunday morning was meant to be Gadiel's birthday celebration for us because Andrew wouldn't have time before leaving for his flight to the states out of Santa Cruz when we got back from Potolo. So he proposed making pancakes and brunch for the family. Chris and I slept in before making the steep walk up. We brought all of our things and bought fruit at the market, so it was a heavy climb as well. When we got there, Andrew was behind schedule on his cooking. This was no surprise - good man, always on a Bolivian schedule though. Jaime made some nice eggs and Andrew made what was the first pancakes most of the family had ever had. Dominga came with Sebastian too to partake (I actually held him for a while too, and he didn't cry! - that's a big accomplishment for me). The pancakes were damned good too. Unfortunately, we missed Pedro who was not back from a catechism class out of the city yet.
Knowing that we were leaving soon, we'd found a couple little gifts for the girls too. Chris got Ruth a pair of knitting needles since she'd lost hers and we got her a few spools of yarn to start with. And I got Maritza a copy of A Hundred Years of Solitude - one of my most favorite books. I forget to inscribe it and had to sneak it back to do so. She told me she'd always wanted someone to give her a book as a gift and this was the first time anyone every had.
The only downside of the morning was poor Darwin (the boys are Gadiel, Darwin, and Manuel) had hooked his side on something sharp a couple days before and had a nasty gash. Chris did a good job bandaging him up.
 |
| Birthday pancake |
Gadiel got presents and carried his cars around with him for the rest of the day.
In the midst of this, Andrew got the call from the friend he'd hired to taxi us out that he was cancelling. Bad news, again not really a surprise. He went through one or two more people and cancellations (one was a man whose wife had just miscarried that morning or the night before but was willing to do it anyway - that one was upsetting to me) before finally landing on the friend of Dominga's who'd taken Chris and I back to the hostel the night before.
Andrew had Jaime go back to Dominga's to pick up something they'd forgotten. Then Andrew had to leave to meet his commadre - the twins' mom, Faviola - to arrange meals and things since she'd been waiting at the market for him for over an hour. So Chris and I were left sitting with the little boys on the roof of one of the family's structure (hard to explain) burning and waiting for the cab. When it came, we packed up, went to the market to wait for Andrew. He found us and brought the family too (mom and three of the kids). We all piled in - talked with the little boy in the back a lot, who is freakin adorable - and went to the Potolo school teacher's house to drop off bags Andrew and Jaime were sending on the bus. Then we went to pick up poor Ubaldina who'd been waiting for us for a couple hours in a little plaza (but with an awesome cowboy hat!). After that we went to pick up Jaime who'd been sitting at the rotunda near Dominga's, also waiting. Ubaldina and Jaime sat in the front with the three of us bigger people in back (it's just the truth, their both short and small) and we finally left Sucre. It was after 2:30. We were supposed to leave by 11 or 12 and the bus we should have been on left at 9.
 |
| View from the first breakdown |
 |
| Walking in front of Sucre in the hills |
We made it outside of the city and up to the first hilly section making it over the mountain when the taxi broke down for the first time. It overheated and we had to stop and the guys went searching for water to refill the engine since they don't use coolant. It was a terribly nice view though. This scene repeated itself multiple times. The next time, the radiator cap blew off from the pressure. I was lucky/smart enough to set up for the picture below. I'm quite pleased with it. Chris really didn't want to go giving car advice but he figured out quickly that there was a leak in the engine and that it was letting in air that was overheating too quickly (his explanation made more sense I'm sure) - the water that exploded out each time wasn't even that hot. So each time we started it was only a matter of time before the engine overheated and we had to stop to refill with water again. This took nearly a couple extra hours on what should have been a quick trip. We got to the point that the start of the path was only a couple km away and we decided we couldn't torment his poor car anymore.
 |
| Exploding radiator and a jumpy Andrew |
Chris and I got a head start and a little bird of prey watching in as we headed up the relatively steep road. We got to what we knew was the start of the Incan Trail and enjoyed taking in the view. Everyone was already tired and a little grumpy. It was about 4:30pm.
Andrew, Jaime, and Ubaldina got up to us and informed us, after having hailed down a micro, that there was another bus a few minutes away we could take since it was already getting late and we wouldn't get in until dark because of the late start. Chris and I informed them that we were prepped and we were doing this. The hike was only supposed to take 4-5 hours but we said they were of course welcome to take the bus and we'd meet them there. They elected to come with.
 |
| The beginning of the Incan stair |
The view starting out was magnificent. And it was a much more real Incan trail - stone path that wouldn't break your knees. I'm still unsure on my feet no matter what so I had to watch my footing a lot, but every time I looked up it was amazing. Damn these feet of mine. Chris was on cloud nine - out hiking with his big bag on, on an Incan trail, heading to this beautiful crater (you could see it - the green spirals - all the way out) for his birthday. It was really lovely.
 |
| Packs on, on the trail |
Then we got to a crossroads. Andrew, having spent so much time in the area, was our designated guide to start (though I'm not sure why since it was Ubaldina's home town). He said there were too ways to go, one a little more rocky but quicker to a bridge over the river a ways down and the other over a more main road that would take longer but be pretty flat. He assured us both were safe. Chris and Andrew both preferred to shave an hour off the trip. I think Jaime and I were both hesitant but didn't say too much more than if you're sure... The only big misstep in the beginning was Ubaldina's choice of footwear. She always wears very pretty, girly shoes and that day was no different. She did remarkably well in them, though that first half an hour on the new path was incredibly rocky.
Then the path turned along a steep incline, but was still flat. Here the trail had been washed out in multiple places and we had to carefully hop across. Didn't have any problems. Chris, who always packs to spend a night in the wilderness (god, I love that man for his preparedness), had tied his sleeping bag on the back of his sack. I turned and saw the tail-end of its descent down the side of the hill after the rest of the group cried out. The trail looked like it wound down and we'd come down again below where the bag had fallen. Chris and I immediately assumed we'd just go down and climb up. Andrew thought otherwise. He said it was only a third of the way down but two thirds up. It would be easier to just go down. So he tried to start down. Chris and I said no, that was stupid, he wasn't going to go after our bag. So Chris headed down on diagonally to grab the bag and intersect us on the lower path. We'd planned on watching the sunset over the valley. The sun was already getting low and I was getting nervous as I watched him start down. Nothing broken, nothing hurt, just keep chanting it...
The other four of us set out to finish the trail and immediately found something to occupy my mind instead of worrying about Chris. The trail was fully washed out into a long deep crevice that we wouldn't be able to cross. We had to head down too through very unsure footing. Few slips, no real falls, we made it down just after the sun actually set so there was still a little light. It was precarious and I couldn't really tell you how long it took but Andrew kept going down toward edges where Jaime and I would have to say let's figure out if we have to turn back before we get too far down. After we got to the path, we met Chris coming back to find us. He'd grabbed the bag and had a long patch of the slick red sand he had to slide down. All our butts and bags were red. We kept on.
It got dark and we'd veered off the path in what Ubaldina and Andrew thought was the correct turn. It was dark. They found a water station to try to ask directions but no one was home. It had been almost all downhill til then but now they decided we needed to backtrack, uphill. I wasn't happy. Andrew kept pointing to a light in the distance saying that was where we were going and that it wasn't too much further. It looked quite far. The trail took us along the edge of the mountains, winding around. We pulled out headlights.
We walked for hours. Until Ubaldina and Andrew finally stopped to put their heads together and they decided we must have gone the wrong way somewhere. I think this was five or six hours in. It was dark and we were getting tired. I'd worn my capris with the assumption we'd be arriving only a little after dark or before. We all sat down and tried to figure out what we were going to do. Up til then our path had been a road a car could fit on (though narrowly). We were offered to walk the entire way back, past where we'd started to try to seek out a possibly non-existent bed/hostel in a neighboring town (further back that where we'd turned off onto the "quicker" path) or let Ubaldina take us down a cattle trail that should take us to the town in front of the river with a nearby bridge where we could cross and start up the crater. Either way it would be at least a few more hours. We could see car headlights in the valley where Ubaldina was proposing to take us. But none of us felt too good about the prospect of trekking through the foliage in the night.
Then, Ubaldina started moving down the path to prove to us that it would work and saw people with flashlights in the distance (though we never encountered them). But this was enough to get us moving. So we started down. We made it to the little town with Ubaldina's guidance though it was a very steep downhill with big packs on. She asked an old woman in Quechua for the directions, though like all directions in Bolivia, they were vague. So we set off winding between fields to make it down to the river. Dogs were barking and coming very, very close. These were vicious barks and I was very uneasy. Chris stayed behind me and I walked with rocks (it would take nearly an hour before I would be comfortable dropping them). He later told me the dogs came much closer than I would like to know.
We finally made it down near the river and set off on the path to look for the town center. We were on this path for well over an hour. When we finally stopped for a break, we all collapsed. I'm certain it was the lowest my blood sugar has ever been. I was so weak and horribly nauseous. I had to force myself to eat some of the cookies we brought because I knew somewhere in the back of my head that it was the right thing to do despite being fully aware of the fact that I was not thinking straight. This was maybe one of the scarier moments I've had and if we hadn't encountered so many nasty dogs and a big bug (scorpion) or two, I probably would have just laid down there til morning.
No bridge had been spotted. No town had been seen. We stopped again to review our options. We'd said from the beginning that we at least had enough layers to offer everyone else if we were stuck overnight since no one but Chris came prepared. Jaime suggested we throw up a tarp and stay the night. To which we said, who brought a tarp? So we let Andrew and Ubaldina lead us forward and we eventually found the town. By this time, it had been hours during which Chris was suffering. Something had snapped in the backboard of his pack and it would not stay straight. It was swinging to the side and tearing at his shoulders. Ubaldina and Andrew crossed an unsteady beam a short distance to climb up to the town. Less than thrilled with the situation, the rest of us finished the trail to come around to the town.
We threw ourselves down in the center of this very tiny pueblo on the side of the church and rested while Andrew went to find the bridge or the school master to possibly let us into the school to sleep. It was cold. It was late. Nearly midnight. Nearly Chris' birthday. I couldn't help looking at the sky and thinking how beautiful it would be if I wasn't so damned exhausted. Chris was miserable, inconsolable and I just wanted so bad to make things better.
Andrew returned with the school master and a drunk. The drunk lived by the bridge and insisted he and his wife would put us up at their house. The school master offered us, at a fee, straw beds in the school with a known mice problem. None of this sat well. The drunk man's wife had told Andrew she could do the hike in two hours and the school master said one. I waited to hear what Chris wanted to do. As far as I was concerned, this whole thing was for Chris and so it was his choice. The drunk hassled me while we waited for someone to say something - Ubaldina tried in Quechua to keep him away. Chris finally decided we should just finish the hike, get into the crater and to Maragua where at least we could find someone to open up the guesthouses Andrew had help build. I agreed.
We headed off to the bridge and the bag holding the soccer ball broke. It bounced away and I grabbed it. Chris refused to let me put it in my bag. Refused to let anyone else carry it. He was going to get it to a little boy for his birthday.
We crossed the very rickety wooden bridge one or two at a time and began the entirely uphill climb. We only stopped occasionally. There were many places were I was grateful for the dark because I knew we were dangerously close to a steep drop - the dizzy feeling of sleeplessness and low blood sugar did not help this much. We continued on - one hour, more scary dogs - two hours, still going. Chris pointed out that it was after midnight. I said I did not want this to be his 30th birthday and we wouldn't acknowledge it until the next morning when everything was better - Jaime said happy birthday anyway. We kept going. Ubaldina kept telling us a little further, ya llegamos, we're almost there. She and Andrew would set off on different trails. We always followed Ubaldina. Jaime was obviously pissed that Andrew wasn't sticking with the rest of us, which had been one of her conditions from the beginning. Chris and I were not hiding our distain of the situation. Chris continued to have to double over to take the weight off his shoulders.
We finally crossed over the top of the mountain. I'm still so grateful that no one fell, that nothing worse befell us than what had already happened. We reached the road. I have never been so relieved. It was after 2:30am. That last half an hour on the road was the worst. We all offered to change bags, to take a turn with the broken pack, but of course Chris wouldn't let us. He was in so much pain it made me cry to watch him - I was also so deliriously tired, dehydrated (we did well in that regard generally), and done that almost anything would have made me tear up. I never want to have to see him in that much pain again. My state of mind and wellness was absolutely broken and I was out of my mind in thinking I'd almost lost him multiple times along what was really a very treacherous trail. It was a miserable night.
The four of us sat down on the broken, disarrayed church stairs when we reached the main plaza. Andrew went to look for the encargada of the guest houses. We waited for more than a half an hour. It was freezing. Chris finally took his pack off and then wandered around. I pulled out the sleeping bag to cover my bare legs and Jaime fell asleep on the steps. Andrew came back without luck. We headed to where he showed us the houses would be as he went to look for more people to wake up. Again I had to pick up rocks as the nearby dogs in the fields came howling at us. We sat down and waited. He eventually came back with a key and we all piled into a big house with a couple rooms. I left my rock outside the door.
I welcomed a real toilet. The bedsheet was covered in dead bugs but I (almost) didn't care. We set everything down and lay down on the less than comfortable beds without setting an alarm for the sunrise. It was after 4am.
None of us slept as long as we should have. We tossed and turned from how sore and tired our bodies were. I only saw the damage to my feet the next morning from not having taped my feet in advance. Chris would help Ubaldina and I bandage and duct tape our blisters before setting out again. Thank you birthday boy.
The encargada had had tea and bread waiting for us the night before. She had been ready for us. We learned from her the next morning - or rather Andrew did and Chris heard - that the winding mountain path we turned off of would have led us into the valley, to the other city Irupampa, after only one or two more turns. I was almost too tired to be angry. Both of the boys of course said they're gut was telling them to keep going but neither of them said it aloud - Chris wouldn't have known anyway. The other bad news - the dinosaur footprints were far off the path and hard to find without a guide. We wouldn't be going there.
Chris and I had packed in our own food since we assumed I would have problems eating in Potolo. So we pulled out our yogurt and granola and had a nice little birthday breakfast along with their tea and the greasy bunelos (not La Paz style, more just fried dough). Then Chris and I set off into the valley to look at the landscape and hike the couple Ks up to the cemetery which was on the highest hill and gave an amazing view. I refused to put my boots on again until I had to though. It was amazing the view we had. We were both tired but Chris was happy to be in the crater for his birthday even if we hadn't gotten up for the sunrise.
Chris said it over and over through the night and the next day though that it would go down in history as by far the worst hiking trip either of us will ever have. I just can't imagine topping it. Now it's an epic but during... oh, during... excruciating is probably the best word. And Chris is a true outdoorsman so for him to call it miserable means a lot more than my word. Little painful to relive for you here but at least it's over now. We talked about it a lot and decided we'd really like to come back and do it again with friends someday. To do it the right way. Unfortunately, it's one of the very few memories we really wouldn't mind erasing.
In the end, I can't hold the misery against Andrew, that's just not right. But it took me a while to forgive him for ruining Chris' birthday wish since things would have been much different in daylight if we'd just left on time or followed my gut instinct and just taken the microbus. And he really wanted to see those damned dinosaur footprints to take a picture for his little cousin Steven, who is dino-crazed.
The encargada also brought us a quinoa soup for lunch (though she brought it at 10 so it was less warm when we were ready to eat). We prepped and were ready to go a little after noon. There was more talking of course and we didn't get going until about 2:30 though we were quite a sight for the school kids around, many of whom were asking for the soccer ball Chris was still carrying.
 |
| View of the crater as we left - the spiral green formations |
We made the steep climb out of the crater. Quite steep though not as bad as the previous. We stopped to take a bunch of goofy pictures of the five of us with the crater in the background. Not my favorites with my hiking wear on but good memories.
 |
| Leaving the crater |
We only had one more steep uphill section on the way and then almost entirely downhill - but very rocky and difficult for blistered feet and already dead ankles. It took longer than we were told and we ended up arriving after dark again. Neither of us were totally pleased. We ran into Ubaldina's father and brother who were bringing back hay (some kind of food?) for the cattle. Andrew and he exchanged bags and they hiked quicker, leaving us with Ubaldina. By the time we were nearing Potolo, Chris' shoulders were killing him again, his pack still broken though slightly rearranged, and he was again doubling over in pain. This was no one's fault but it made me more mad than anything else.
 |
| Andrew the work house |
We arrived and immediately collapsed onto a bench in the center park - a very pretty but sparse center for a small town. We were offered to go to dinner or straight to the rooms. Chris opted for dinner and despite my dead feet, I followed because I vowed to do whatever Chris wanted for his birthday. We went to the house were Andrew had lived and were immediately welcomed and, quite nicely, given chairs. Chris pulled out the beers he'd bought at one of the break down stops the taxi had made. He offered one to the host, the twins' father Walter. Walter would quickly become one of our favorite people. I couldn't even put it into words but he was an absolute riot and loved quizzing us. After we told him of our grand ordeal, he mercilessly made fun of Andrew for messing up and not knowing the way for the rest of the night. Quite honestly, it was fun.
Chris was kind enough to let me sling my wounded feet over his legs and covered them with an extra shirt as it was getting cold and yet again I'd worn my capris with the expectation that we'd be arriving in daylight. You'd think I would have learned my lesson. People would ask me how my feet were doing for the rest of the week. I felt like a wuss.
 |
| Happy Birthday Chris!! |
We hung out and had a beer, nice dinner, and cake for the twins. Chris wanted to keep his birthday status quiet but Andrew announced it. The best part of the night for me was that I thought the original plan had changed for dinner. The family had planned on slaughtering a sheep for the birthdays. Then, they decided that since two of their other children (six total) had birthdays the next day that that wouldn't be sufficient and a pig would be better. When we got there, everyone was eating chicken, which made me very happy. Until the next night when everyone was eating huge slabs of pork, but at least they did it during the day so I didn't have to see it.
The kids were adorable. Very sweet and fun. Andrew and Jaime gave them a bunch of clothes and Chris' soccerball was of course the favorite of the night - but more by the little girl than her brother for whom the gift was intended. Chris played a little soccer with the kids on the cobblestone street the next day and screwed up his knees for the rest of the week.
Early in the night, Jaime had a meeting in the family's courtyard while we were waiting for dinner with the clinic doctors. It became obvious that not having both sets of people at the first meeting (Jaime hadn't been there either) was a mistake and neither side was properly informed or communicating with their counterparts. This misinformation made the rest of the week hard.
We slept in the church housing again - though not in the priest's room this time. The next morning we woke and went to the clinic to get started. We had a long meeting in the morning when people were piling up and things not going well to re-hash what we were doing and how and who. I was obviously pissed at the lack of planning as I'd asked multiple times in the past week if there was anything we needed to do or anything I could do to help prepare. This was a meeting that should have been had in advance and now people were leaving as we were making them wait. I found this unacceptable and I made it known. I think Chris even took some pictures while I was making my point. Sometimes there's just way too much talking in medicine when people just need help. We finished up and got started.
The town is predominantly a Quechua speaking population, which made Ubaldina's presence absolutely crucial. Andrew did some helping too. Most of the time Jaime did the EKGs and sometimes Ubaldina and I would come into help. I handled patient registration with help translating or Ubaldina would just do it and I would relieve Jaime. Chris helped with databasing patient info and doing EKGs for male patients. Andrew handled the miscellaneous.
Right now, the government isn't providing free screening and treatment in Potolo like it is in Cochabamba; so one of our biggest jobs was to collect info on patients who needed screening still to petition the government. Hopefully something good will come of it. We saw a lot of interesting EKG results - unfortunately, interesting for us usually means not good for the patient. We only got about a 30% turn out rate despite a supposed town meeting because the clinic was unable/did not contact patients in advance like we'd asked. We also heard that a large group had accidentally come a week early. They never came back. Ubaldina and Jaime made some signs with very artistic vinchucas but they were immediately torn down. Andrew'd had the same experience when he made signs offering English classes.
We worked long days Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday all our meals were made for use my Faviola - including another little party for the next set of birthdays. Wednesday Ubaldina's mother invited us over for lunch (quinoa lawa = thick soup) and Andrew's friend Martin (whom he'd been god-father for his wedding in July) and his wife Fanny had us over in shifts for dinner (an amazing quinoa dish - probably the best we'd had). There was a little lamb at Ubaldina's house who'd walked in fire a month earlier and was crawling around on its knees because it couldn't walk properly. It was really sad and it had to be carried inside when it started raining. There was also a puppy I tried playing with until he started to get bitey.
Potolo is famous for its Jal'qa weavings. This is way Andrew was there - to help build tourist infrastructure. Chris loves the style. I do as well but I also find it a little frightening as it is meant to reflect the underworld and the world of the devil with nightmarish animals in red on a black background. All the women there weave. And all of them want to sell. This made things hard sometimes. Sometimes it felt like you were being attacked. There was a little old woman who continually accosted us. She would come into the complex and sit and block the gate out. One time she actually followed me back when I had come to the room to grab something and started banging on the door. I had to very firmly tell her that this was not okay and that it was not a good way to sell. I really didn't like feeling like I was yelling at a grandma though.
 |
| Ubaldina and her parents and Chris' beautiful new weaving |
 |
| Ubaldina's mother demonstrating spinning her own yarn |
We looked around a lot since Chris really did want to find a weaving and he was very happy to find one he liked to buy from Ubaldina's mother, to be able to support their family (especially after Ubaldina was our hike savior). But then they asked him, you're not going to buy the rest? They're not the cheapest but well worth it. I bought a bag from a woman we EKGed who offered for us to come look. It's beautiful.
 |
| Working the fields in Potolo |
Chris and I got to take a break to take a nice long walk Wednesday afternoon out into the fields where everyone was working. It looked intense and they didn't seem to love us being around but we stayed on the road. The surrounding hills have the most amazing color. The scenery is unlike anything we've seen elsewhere in South America.
That night a pregnant woman came in in labor. Chris was giddy to maybe get to help or at least get to see a baby. She ended up deciding to leave, that she didn't want to stay at the clinic. Chris was really disappointed.
 |
| Chris teaching Ubaldina cat's cradle |
Otherwise, we had a lot of downtime during the day. People mostly came in the afternoon and evening. Chris loved practicing a little Quechua with Ubaldina and the ladies. I finished up the instructions for Chagas screening I'd been writing out (it's long- like everything I write - but so much more clear than anything we were given). I also got to finally start the info pamphlets I'd been planning on making about treatment for patients and for docs (it's amazing the misinformation that's out there and the people who would start treatment and who would finish despite a little reaction if both sides knew a little more) - hopefully I'll finish them in the coming weeks. Jaime and Chris taught Ubaldina cat's cradle with a piece of yarn. And I finally gave in and let Chris teach me how to knit. I've been a knitting fiend ever since. It's quite nice for downtime.
We also met a fellow traveller there. I went looking for Chris (I think he had the room key or something) and found him talking to a French backpacker. He was older, a little scruffy, and incredibly tan. A very nice guy. We spent a little time with him and tried to advise him on the way to the crater. Unfortunately, he came into the clinic our last morning rather unwell after trying the hike. I went to see him to take a look and a listen while most of the rest of the group was having a meeting. His heart had started to race really fast and he had to lay down in the middle of the path. He tried to rest and feel better but apparently this was hard to do with little kids throwing rocks at him. He came back to get checked out. Nothing too abnormal and he said he´d had this problem before at sea level too. I asked him to please consider a microbus when he said he wanted to try it again later. He was a very nice guy travelling all by himself. We left before he did. I really hope he took the bus.
Our time in Potolo wasn't quite what we expected but it was useful, we hope, in the end, it was an adventure, and we met a lot of wonderful people. We left with the intention and expectation that they would hold another screening campaign in November (this has now of course been put on hold) and that Jaime and Andrew would come back with results and to EKG the new patients in December. We'll see what happens. I hope things work out well because this was a community that really needs help. It would be very gratifying to know that we'd helped in starting something good and beneficial for such wonderful people.
 |
| Leaving Potolo at the lookout point, a little greasy but none the worse for wear |
We left Thursday morning, running late of course, in Andrew's friend's cab (Ubaldina stayed in town to get some things done). He drove in from Sucre and we paid him a rather enormous amount but it was a lot better than riding the chicken truck. Also, it was great for him because he and Andrew got to talk business the whole way (he does leather work) and they ended up making a business contract. His car was too low for the awful roads though and we were on a strict timetable. The road was under construction and only open between Potolo and Sucre for an hour at lunch. We cut it very close and when a dump truck blocked the road in front of us, we thought we were stuck for six hours. Luckily, it was just a momentary scare and they let us through immediately.
We stopped and dropped off our things at Dominga for us to all spend the night. Chris and I wandered about a bit and made it to Para Ti. I bought him a piece of chocolate cake and chocolate espresso as late birthday cake. And we had a fruit kabab absolutely smothered in chocolate sauce to dip the cake in. It was heavenly. Eventually went up to Pedro and Hilda's to say hi. The girls were in school but everyone else was there and they insisted we stay for tea and Hilda's homemade bread. It was my first time getting to try it so I was happy. It was good but I just don't understand why everyone here likes flat bread - they use almost no leavening agents and maybe no yeast. We got to talk to Hilda and Pedro a while. They are such lovely people. We thanked them over and over for their hospitality and told them how much we loved their family. Pedro, certainly a man of god, told us that we would always be family and always be welcome with them. He told us that he felt every person in his life was a gift from God that he would cherish forever. To some people I can understand how that could sound cheesy but he said it with more sincerity than I know how to explain and it almost made me cry.
 |
| Scruffy 30 year old with some Para Ti chocolate birthday cake |
We went down to the plaza at the recoleta above the Mirador Cafe and hung out for a while. The sky was beautiful and the kids poured out of school as it got later. They get out at six. I think I've said it before but I just can't fathom how they can do that. We met a contact of Andrew's for some business but I can't tell you much about that.
Later, we went and met Andrew and Jaime as they were buying fixtures and cabinetry for the house. We were going to have a farewell dinner at Andrew's friend's italian (real italian) restaurant - the same one we'd all been to before and Chris had been with Andrew when they came alone. We called in our orders the day before in Potolo to get the good premade stuff. We ended up leaving the two of them in a furniture shop because they weren't finished and Dominga was supposed to meet us for dinner (Andrew's cell died and he couldn't call her). We sat and waited for and eventually they showed up. Dominga never did. We saw her back at home and she'd forgetten where it was.
We had an amazing dinner with a lovely wine. We all needed to sit down and just rest a little. Andrew got a little cheesy in thank you's but it was sweet (though Jaime had a good time making fun of him for it). He made a point of saying that despite how things may have gone that our help was really important and that they couldn´t have come so far without us. I don´t really know how much of that was true but I hope in the end something can come of our contributions - at the very least that the people we found at Villa Isreal will get the treatment they need.
Andrew and I had gnocchi - mine was with white walnut sauce, and it was heavenly. Jaime and Chris got spinach/cheese raviolis. We shared a little tiramisu for dessert and of course so homemade limoncello. It was all amazing. We relaxed and played a little word game at Jaime's suggestion, which she and I both took to quite well as word people. Andrew treated us all and it was a very nice meal.
We went back to Dominga's and maybe had a little beer - what does that say if I can't remember? And eventually all tuckered out. I woke up just in time the next morning to say goodbye to Andrew before he left for his flight to Santa Cruz and then back to Denver for a month (tropical medicine course, research presentation, and residency interviews - not much of a break for the poor guy).
Chris and I went over early to Pedro and Hilda's to get to say goodbye to everyone. Chris had finished knitted a lovely pair of gloves for Ruth while we were in Potolo (the first pair was for me, the third for Jaime for her birthday). With the knitting needles Chris had gotten her, Ruth had already started a little project. It was a lovely little yellow sweater for a baby. She said it would be for our baby, because we'd have a kid when we came back in a year, right? We thought this was adorable and hilarious. Chris would tell me later, See, now you have to have my kids. That's like a binding contract.
 |
| Ruth, me, and Maritza at their house overlooking Sucre - such wonderful girls |
 |
| Hilda's bedroom batch of bread |
I went back in the house and Hilda was working on her bread. She had dough in a huge bucket and was tearing off pieces and making perfect balls. I offered to help and she let me. She had clean(?) white sheets set up on the girls beds to put the dough on to rise. She'd break off a piece and toss it up. It was perfect, fluid - when she did it. I was awful. Just couldn't do it, but I tried really hard. I made fun of myself but she said why would she make fun of someone trying to help? It was a unique experience and she was kind enough to let me take a few pictures.
Then, a friend of Pedro - a group actually - showed up in need of EKGs for what we'd been told was bad Chagas. Two of them supposedly needed an EKG but the new EKG machine hadn't been tested and wasn't working so Jaime had to run back to Dominga's to get the old one. Two of the men were sick with Chagas. The one we'd been told was in terrible health was very pleasant, healthy seeming, and had actually just finished treatment. While Chris and Jaime were inside taking his history and doing the EKG, I was outside with Hilda and the boys. The very smooth-talking head of the group came up to me to start asking some questions. He said the other man was his father who was mute because of his Chagas (?!) and wanted us to treat him. I tried to very politely explain that Jaime, the only real doctor, couldn't do that in another country. He said maybe we could do that anyway. He had to leave without the other two men but asking me for my email and said something about coming to the US. It was all very strange and interrupted the game of chasing monster I'd been playing with the boys.
 |
| Boys at play - that looks like Darwin upside down |
We said goodbye to the family (though the boys kind of hid) and exchanged information with Pedro. Chris and I went to get a snack before hopping on the overnight bus. We had been set up to meet with a couple weaving friends of Andrew's to try to buy something else since I was really interested in the Terrabucco style (much more colorful), but after they found out Andrew wasn't coming, we got stood up. We rushed back to Dominga's to grab our bags and say a quick goodbye. Pedro was supposed to make it to the terminal to meet us but our taxi was late and we barely made it so we missed him.
It was sad to be leaving Sucre. It's a city with such a wonderful atmosphere and we both love being there. Chris plans to come back for language classes - and of course to visit all our friends.
We spent Saturday mostly resting. Jaime's went to a party that night with the nutritionistas. We were pooped. So I took Chris to a restaurant down the street named Machu Picchu since I promised I would get him there for his 30th birthday. It was quite tasty but as Chris pointed out a little odd to be eating Peruvian (his favorite dish, aji de gallina) just before we'd be leaving for Peru again.
The next day was mostly about packing for our trip to the jungle since we'd be leaving for La Paz that night. But it would Elva's birthday as well and we were invited over to Elva and Marcello's for a birthday lunch. We got lost in the cab since he took a street up the hill that didn't connect. Jaime had to end up calling Elva to talk to him. They live up one of the largest hills in Cochabamba, which means it's an amazing view but also costs an arm and a leg.
The party was a pretty large event. Lots of friends and family showed up. But luckily Patty and Yerko showed up (the couple from the last time we had dinner with them). They are both incredibly kind and hilarious and it was very nice to know something else there. Chris and I were still tired and felt a little awkward around the family but it was a wonderful event. I of course got to play with Horacio (that's the less than a year old golden retriever) and enjoyed every minute he made me muddy. The barbequed which was really Chris' first and only churrasqueria experience. It was impressive. While everything was cooking, they'd take a piece (hunk of meat more like it - they had half a cow cooking at least) off and cut it up to pass around in a bowl. They were kind enough to get chicken just for me and it was delicious. Chris also enjoyed the little bar set up they had going - singani (kind of like vodka I guess) and coke mostly.
They had a huge store-bought cake for the birthday part and they sang in English which was strange. But thank goodness they had that because I didn't know it would be so big an event and had made my famous banana cake with brown sugar frosting (that was so thick it turned out more like brown sugar fudge). I felt very bad for Marcello's mother who couldn't use her right side after a stroke and tried to offer to help by holding her cake but she seemed to do just fine. The store-bought cake was uber-sweet. My triple birthday cake (Chris' having passed and Jaime's in two days) was called interesting a lot (especially by Yerko) but most people seemed to really like it. It's just that most things I make are always so different and new to people down here. I like introducing our friends to new things.
Chris of course helped do the dishes, putting all the other men to shame. I helped with some of the prep work. When we were saying goodbye, the family hadn't realized we'd be leaving again for good. Elva said with all seriousness, when you are here, this is your home, and we really know that she meant it. We exchanged info of course and said goodbye.
We packed up and headed off to La Paz on a bus that night (Jaime would bus the next night and then fly into the jungle). We arrived around 6am wasted some time in the terminal bathrooms as usual before heading off to try to find somewhere open for breakfast (didn't really happen and the salteñas in La Paz just aren't as good). We went to the tourist area where our travel company has their office where we needed to check in. It was too early and they weren't open. So we walked up to the only place in Bolivia we've been able to find real alpaca yarn for knitting. They weren't open either so we sat and waited a while. Eventually I found something for my next project and Chris decided he would wait til we came back through. Then we bought a few decorations/good luck charms in witch's alley before heading back to the tour agency. At first, I didn´t want to buy because honestly I wanted to buy from a booth with a crazy old lady who could explain everything to us and the only one open had a man sitting there. But as soon as we walked up, a woman came hurrying up to explain everything. She threw so many carved rocks into our hands I was afraid we would drop them. You think it´s bad luck to break a good luck charm? She wrapped the few things we bought in colorful yarn for more luck and gave each of us a very small trinket as a gift. Chris got one for good travels and mine is for love, but my yarn came off. Is that bad luck?
So here's the deal on our trip, we'd found this place the first time we came through La Paz both in the book and on someone's recommendation. It's called Madidi Travel. We're talking about the Bolivian rainforest/amazon. This company is run by the people who founded the Madidi reserve and are now running ecotourism in Serere as they try to establish reserve status for the area. You get there through Rurrenabaque (yeah, it's hard to say so everyone there says Rurre) by an 18-20 hour bus ride or a very expensive flight that's supposed to be beautiful. We bought a four day trip (not cheap but to a very, very worth cause - and a boyhood dream of Chris') and decided to take the bus and maybe consider flying back if the bus was too awful.
We went that morning to the agency office to pay and pick up our bus tickets. They hadn't told us about an extra charge for credit cards and I hadn't brought my debit card so couldn't pay in cash. Then, and I should have thought of this before, they couldn´t take AMEX. So poor Chris had to pay for me too. I´ll owe him when we get back home. Then, for the bus, it was on the other side of town and since we´d been expecting to leave at the same terminal, we´d left our bags there. This meant we had to hurry to get the bags and make it to the other location for the bus before it left. All the office guy could say was, Ohh..... Our time in Serere was stupendous but the all the preliminary points and the lack of information from the La Paz office was a little disappointing.
After grabbing our bags at the terminal, we made it up to the other bus area in what we thought was perfect time. But that would only be true if things ran on time in Bolivia. We waited almost an hour before the bus came. We got on and thought we´d gotten lucky that it was relatively empty. Only problem was we´d been promised the semi-cama (somewhat more comfy) and gotten a definite normal. These seats would not be fun for such a long trip. The bus took off turned a corner and stopped. This is where my nightmare begins. More than twenty high school students got on the bus with us and filled up the rest of the space including the seats behind us. But they owned the bus. They owned the space. They owned the sound. They owned my sanity. We sat there for an eternity, not moving. Chris eventually got up to check on the bags and found that his had been placed in a puddle of gasoline - which may sound bad but is a lot better than the meat juice from the crates in the back.
The two kids behind us where the ringleaders. You could tell. They were the noisiest and seemed to have some hemiballistic type problems from all the shoving that was going on too. I started to feel myself boiling over. There was a mercury thermometer in me that was heating and rising (that´s right, I´m making the analogy and you´re going to deal with it) until eventually it cracked and the molten silvery liquid flowed free. I had boiled over. I turned around the top of my seat and in angry shaky Spanish I told the kids, Look, we´re going to be together for a long time and so you are going to stop pushing, pulling, and kicking our seats. Do you understand me? The guy looked like he wanted to make fun of me but I think he saw the look on my face and thought better of it. There were less kicks from then on, but not none.
Chris and I were both exhausted and overwhelmed by the prospect of the next 18-20 hours. I felt in despair, which I know sounds more than a little dramatic but it was just too much at once. Eventually we both passed out, having gotten sick of how many false starts we made. It took nearly three hours to make it out of La Paz. Then we start to head down, down the path known as the World´s Most Dangerous Road. It was narrow, it was windy, and it was steep. There was one portion during which I was sure I would be leaning my head out the window over Chris. Didn´t happen. I´d had thoughts of reading or knitting but it had been so long since a day bus ride that I´d forgotten how poorly I fare on them. The road was scary, but not bad in a bus. In Serere, we would meet an American couple who´d taken a private car and seen the aftermath of another car going over the side with people using flashlights to search for them. And people come to mountain bike this path where two cars can´t even fit side by side. That´s the stupidest thing I´ve ever heard! We would have to squeeze past trucks sometimes and come a little too close to the edge in the dark but in a bus we were slow, not dangerous on turns, and I don´t think ever in any real danger.
On our first stop we picked up two French travellers. We never figured out how they got there - maybe started biking and thought better of it. Either way, one of the drivers (three of them rotate) kicked the kids behind us out of their seats for the newcomers. Nice for us but sad for them since they were much more sedate sitting in the front so far away from the other kids - who eventually quieted down a bit. This first stop (of maybe 3 minutes) was also a very unique bathroom experience for me. I´ve used pit toilets before but these were tiny stalls without curtains or doors and if someone was across from you, you were looking right at them doing there business. I kept my head down and hoped no one was looking at me.
Late at night we made another bathroom stop in the biggest town we would pass and all the students got out. It was glorious. We reclined and tried to sleep but then we made a dinner stop around ten. No one had anything I could eat, but as always we came prepared and brought snacks. Now it was late and dark. We´d be going straight there. The only distraction was the young couple in front of us doing really everything but the whole deal. Chris didn´t notice and I tried very hard not too. I felt bad for them though thinking that maybe because of their age/religion/family, this was the only place they could get some semi-private time. I say go for it kids.
We arrived in Rurre around 7am - 20 hours roundtrip. I slept through most of the night I think. We started walking to check out hostels. This was a more tropical climate, as of course one would expect from the entrance to the jungle. Everyone was in tank tops. The air was wet and the sun was already beating down. The streets we small but everyone was on motorbikes. We went the wrong way at first but then turned around. We had a hard time finding the hostels we were looking for. We eventually settled on one that was a little more expensive than we wanted but gave us a triple for the two of us - we pushed the beds together and used the third for luggage. We immediately collapsed to sleep for a bit - or maybe that was later, I don´t remember. Strange how travelling wears you out even when you aren´t doing anything but sitting.
We spent the morning on the upstairs patio knitting. We then had to check in with the Madidi Travel office and leave a note for Jaime about where we were staying. She´d be flying in soon and it was her birthday. We met a very nice Aussie named Amy who was volunteering at the office (previously a classical piano major) and recommended where we´d eat that night and the next morning. We walked around the little town and settled in the plaza for a while. The plants were beautiful and the birds were incredibly vocal. Everything was so lush and green. So different from the rest of the country.
Jaime showed up and decided to treat herself to a private room and private bathroom for her birthday. The shared bathroom we were using was like a pool locker room - wide open, plenty of spiders and bugs (later on we´d spot a gecko). Already we´d seen plenty of big bugs but also lots of little yellow butterflies in migration. We spent the afternoon in the hammocks relaxing, napping, and reading.
We went out for a really lovely dinner with fish from the river. We went to sleep earlyish in anticipation of starting out on our trip the next morning. Chris and I were pleased we´d chosen to bus in a day early to recuperate and acclimate before going on to Serere.
We went to the French bakery in town after a less than splendid hotel breakfast (bread, jam, tea - pretty typical). Then, we waited at the office until it was time to leave. We´d be going on a boat up river and the river was just behind the office. We were leaving later than we thought and would lose most of our first day, which we were a little upset about (but again that´s just information the main office should have given us). I missed meeting our guide the first time because I´d run into the bathroom (actually I´m quite proud of how slowly I walked) after seeing a spider crawl up my pants. His name was Cebero. He was great. We grabbed our things and headed to the boat.
Jaime got in the front row and Chris and I sat behind her. The seats were actually padded and the long thin boat was quite steady in the water. Cebero sat behind us and pointed things out along the river but didn´t try to overtalk either. It was something we´d been worried about (as you´ve seen in our previous guided experiences) and he seemed like he´d work out just fine. It was a two and a half hour ride to the entrance to Serere. The river was beautiful, the day was bright and sunny (we were sunblocked and in shade), and there were hundreds upon thousands of the little yellow butterflies crossing the river in front of us, behind us, and all around it. It was incredible to behold (and really hard to get a picture of).
Jaime´s seat mate was a memorable sight for all of us. I had seen her the day before in town and did a 360 because I wasn´t sure of what I´ve seen. People can be big in Bolivia but you don´t commonly (or really at all ) see the level of obesity that is common in the US. So when I saw her neck, I had to take a second look. Her body was too small (though not tiny) for fat to be the answer, but her neck hung so low and long - coming practically down to her chest. It looked something like a pelican gullet-looking beak full of water (none to be cruel but just to try to give a realistic picture). It was the largest goiter (enlarged thyroid gland) that any of us had ever and probably will ever see. None of us wanted to be rude but we were all itching to ask her about it I think. She got off the boat early - just a stop off on the way. Such a sad thing when all it takes is a little iodine in your salt to prevent that.
 |
| Something beautiful and sad |
On the way to Serere, we got see an area where the turtles were feeding in the river. They have a picture of this on their brochure (which is incredibly beautiful and you really should see the pictures - madidi-travel.com) but it´s not what you think. It´s a picture of a turtle with a beautiful butterfly landing on its nose. You see this and think, This is too cheesy, there´s no way that´s real. Well it is. It´s just not as pretty as you´d think. The turtles have a sweet chemical in their mouths to draw in the butterflies and then they eat them. Way to go mother-nature, turning the beautiful into the real and grotesque. Speaking of food, we got our first gourmet meal on the boat, though I had to pick the proscuitto off my calzone-pizza thing.
There was a woman on the boat with us with a spider monkey in her lap. I asked her if I could take a picture of it. She said I could go ahead but that we would be seeing much more when we got to Serere. Because of the other woman getting off, I thought she was just another passenger. I would not know she was Rosa Maria, the founder of the park and the woman responsible for the fight for Madidi and Serere until Chris introduced himself to her when we stepped on land. They were immediately kindred spirits.
When we disembarked, a couple guys came out with a big cart to carry our backpacks for us so we wouldn´t have to on the 20-30 minute hike in. Now this was luxury. Cebero led us in on the trail through the thick foliage and the innumerable mosquitoes (yay DEET!). Fortunately, there weren´t too too many sand flies since we´d read the photographer who did the National Geographic story on Madidi contracted Leischmaniasis and had to be hospitalized (Rosa Maria told us she´s had it twice and done perfectly well treating with the herbal remedies they use in the area). Not fun but you should still check out the National Geographic story if you can (or if you have the will to read after all of this). Here´s what I found of it - http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0003/hilights.html.
Immediately as we head out, Cebero would stop and listen intently. I believe that was the first time he told us he could smell the monkeys. Within about ten minutes walk, we had our first encounter. He led us off the path and to a group of monkeys (capuchins and squirrels). They were jumping amidst the trees and we tried to walk slowly through the foliage without making too much sound (nearly impossible - especially if anyone in your group isn´t picking up their feet). They didn´t seem to care too much about our presence and we spent several minutes watching and taking pictures. It was incredible. I never would have imagined we would see so much and so quickly.
 |
| What are you lookin at?! |
We got back on the path and kept walking. Cebero told us about groups who would have to wait days and still see very little. We were lucky. We made it to the crossroads where one way led to the tourist huts and one way to the ¨big house¨ where food was served and you could go to relax. They were separate to let you stay in the depth of the rainforest at night and also to maybe see animals on your 5 minute walk back at night - this would turn out to be a good thing later. We went to our room to quickly unpack. The room was gorgeous. We had our own bathroom and shower (it was the first and only time in Bolivia we would be told to put paper in the toilet - I would wait, painfully, because there was no basket and I thought we´d misheard). The beds were very nice with mosquito nets and the walls were entirely mesh to keep out big bugs but let you see and experience the jungle at night (which can be amazing or overwhelming, or both).
 |
| Silent watcher |
The only problem was a lack of queen bed for the two of us. I knew I would feel more comfortable under the same net since as much as I wanted to be there, I knew the sounds would rattle me at night. We tried to arrange two together but realized they had a crack between them. It would not be til the next day we would discover the bed frames that fit together well and join our beds. The first night, on my own, would be a long one.
 |
| Very tasty little bananas at the big house |
We walked over to the big house where the chef Freddy had fresh tamarind juice waiting for us. We got a quick tour of the two story house on the first lake (Lago Fernando) including the hanging bananas for grabbing whenever and the refill source for the two liter water bottles we´d been given to use the rest of the time.
Cebero had told us we could run the trip however we would like, that if we wanted to rest all day, we could. If we wanted to walk until 3am, we could. He offered us to go on a four hour hike then and we accepted. It was around 4pm and we´d be out as things woke up at night.
 |
| Nothing quite like an afternoon butt scratch |
We set off down a side path and immediately encountered another big group of capuchins. They were playful and loud. It was amazing to watch as they leapt from branch to branch in front of us. I think the three of us could have stayed for hours to watch and take pictures but Cebero kept us moving. We were walking just close enough to the lake to still be completely covered in mosquitos. There seemed to be hundreds or thousands at a time, though really there were other flying bugs mixed in. Cebero broke off frond branches for Jaime and I to use as fans. Whether he intended them for heat or to move away bugs, I´m not sure but they worked well for both purposes.
 |
| Cebero by the lake |
We walked all the way along the edge of the lake and then turned. We sat to rest for a moment but there were big ants on the log Jaime and I sat on and since he´d just gotten done showing us the largest (world´s largest? I´m not sure) ants in the region which have a poisoned bite that will hurt for 12 hours, I didn´t feel like sitting. Also, Cebero was smoking. I didn´t think this would be good for the animals around either. Here there were howler monkeys though. You can hear them from about 5km away so it´s hard to say where they were but the noise was enormous. The way they sound is like the wind is coming to knock you over and whatever building you´re in. I can't help but think that the first person to describe a banshee must have been hearing howler monkeys. They are also very big and elusive, living in groups of an alpha male and four to five females (insert joke here).
 |
| Chris with a flower petal on his nose |
Our walk took us around back to the big house in the dark. Jaime and Chris seemed to feel comfortable but I really wasn't entirely. Not only were my shoes still killing me (these boots are staying in the US for the rest of the trip) but I had the feeling we were a little lost, especially when we suddenly emerged from the brush onto a normal path. Swatting the huge insects away from your face in the dark wasn't fun either. We entered the path right next to Lago Gringo (Rosa Maria said the names were before her time). And spotted some caiman eyes and a HUGE frog. Otherwise, we'd seen a woodpecker, some bats, lots of bugs (including the scary ants), all the monkeys of course, and my favorites - the frog/toad that's so small it looks like a bug.
We went back for our first and terribly delicious meal. The food will be always memorable for us with the fresh juice and fruits for dessert. Plus, Freddy was very kind to me and only made food I could eat (except the last lunch when Jaime and Chris had steak while I had an omelette). We met a German orthopedist and his son who were travelling together a short while while the son was volunteering in the country (apparently in Germany boys have to choose military or volunteerism before college, interesting), along with several other Europeans (including a German couple about to move to NYC). The food was amazing and the company was quite nice. We went back to the room to shower off and settle in - which meant getting to untuck pants from your socks and finally take your shoes off. That was the best part by far.
I found a huge fluorescent green looking bug in the bathroom (mom's disappointed I didn't take more bug pictures) that one of my companions ended up stepping on later. The beds were turned down and the mosquito nets set up. There was even a slightly melty chocolate on our pillows! Pretty impressive stuff.
 |
| Bird on the lake - please don't ask me to ID them, I just think they're pretty |
That night, as soon as we turned the lights off, it was pitch black. I read for a little while. Then, I listened to the sounds in the night. It was impressive. It was a little startling, especially the sound of big bugs flying into the mesh trying to get into our room. My eyes started playing tricks on me and I thought I was seeing light as I heard noises in the bushes. Not that any jaguars would be using a flashlight, so I don't know what I was nervous about. But when I turned on my headlamp to try to look, it just reflected back from the mosquito net. It was not the most restful night.
The next morning, we had a large hearty breakfast including juice, eggs, yogurt with cereal and fruit, a corn cake, and cheese empanadas. And Freddy was apologetic that he didn't have any bread that morning. He said we'd need the energy for the long day we were setting out on. It was massive and incredibly tasty.
 |
| In flight |
We started out in a boat on Lago Fernando and paddled down the edge looking at birds and wildlife. Cebero was in the back stearing and paddling and through the day we'd all take turns with the other oar. We saw plenty of birds and actually a lot of the Serere itself (hoatzin, in English) that the park is named after. They were like large peacocks with more spread out feathers. We also came upon more monkeys and I got some of my favorite pictures. Cebero would just glide the boat in closer so we could sit and watch. I have to say, I love my camera. The zoom was just such a godsend for this trip. Chris's camera couldn't contend with the distances so he took a lot of videos and has some really incredible ones that capture such great sounds and movements in the jungle. I'm so glad he took them.
 |
| The Serere of the reserve |
When we came to the end of the lake, we got off the boat next to a caiman and hiked out. It took nearly an hour down to Lago Pinky (past some tarantula holes - who Cebero was able to tease out with a stick for us, though we'd see them later on the way back). On the way down, Cebero cut a root (far from where it would hurt the rest of the plant) and hung it upside down so we could drink the water from Una de Gato that you could use if you ran out of what. It was amazing how much one section of root held.
 |
| Serere wings out |
We settled in at a little ramada that was set up and Cebero pulled out lunch which Jaime helped skewer and then cook over a little fire. The chicken was marinaded in such sweetened, honeyed juices that we were fighting off bees (non-stinging ones). It came with rice with fried platanos and similarly cooked veggies. We ate on giant green fronds Cebero had picked up along the way. It was delicious.
Then we headed out in another little canoe on Lago Pinky. The sun beat down on us the entire time. It was staggeringly hot. But we paddled the whole way and saw more birds. Then, Cebero suddenly said, based on tiny little shapes far off, that there was a whole group of capybara (the world's largest rodent, previously pronounced a fish by the pope so that people in Brazil wouldn't starve during lent) was crossing in the water ahead of us. So we paddled, like mad. And we out-raced the capybaras just in time to see the first of them getting out of the water and bursting into the foliage on the shore. The pictures weren't great but the experience was incredible, and so very rare.
 |
| Capybara butts getting out of the water |
We steered back and we were all baking. The idea had been to fish (Jaime was really the only one truly interested) but I begged that they at least let me get off at the shore before they go out to just sit in the sun. Everyone else agreed it was a little hot and we went back. The boat had to be dragged up and chained since apparently they've had problems with people stealing them in the past.
After walking back uneventfully, we hopped in the canoe on Lago Fernando and crossed to the other side to try to see a sloth. We didn't unfortunately. Unfortunately, this was also when I got the signal that my camera battery was moments from dying. Poor timing. I bought another which is probably in a box at the Upton residence but didn't do me much good then. So I had to turn it off and on very quickly for the rest of the trip and amazingly, it lasted for nearly everything I needed. I just had to be very picky about my picture taking.
 |
| Looking for sloths on the way back on Lago Fernando |
When we got there, Freddy was waiting with a basket of fresh made plantain chips, Chris' favorite. Rosa Maria came out and we four sat on the steps by the lake and talked as the sun went down. When the mosquitos started swarming (I told them I had sweet blood, which just made the guys working there laugh, but it's true - I'm eaten alive), we decided to go back inside the big house. Jaime went back to take a shower and Chris and I sat upstairs by candle light and talked with Rosa Maria while we all ate plaintain chips and the two of them had a beer. We talked about her time in the states (she went to school there it sounded like when there was a military coup in Bolivia - though I could be mistakened). We talked about American politics. She was very interested in my reactions to the goings on in my home state (of which I am ashamed). She also reminded us that it was election day. Jaime and Chris had forgotten (my shame at not voting wouldn't let me forget - but yay Hickenlooper!). It was great just getting to sit and talk with her for a while.
Dinner that night was excellent of course and as I mentioned, we got to move the beds together so I felt a little more comfy. However, we had the world's largest cockroach in our road. I was unnerved. It really put NYC roaches to shame. It ended up dead on the floor the next day and the staff appeared to have taken care of it for us. Only other big bug in the room was a huge spider Chris got rid of while insisting Jaime and I not look because of how big it was.
The only other big event was the finding of ticks throughout the day. Chris had found some on his arms while we were on the canoe and so that night we had my first ever tick check. Being from Arizona, this was very strange for me and really one of the most unromantic things Chris and I have ever done. He didn't care of course. I immediately found one on my leg and swiped it off easily with my nail. Chris then found another on my leg that was a little more stubborn coming off. As he struggled, I panicked. This was really equivalent to a parasite for me, and since these were my first ticks, I was struggling to keep calm. They were really tiny and harmless (generally) but I honestly had a little fit. Not like No, no, no or I want it, I want it but Get it off! Get it off! Get it off! It wasn't pleasant. Chris was quite understanding though. We each would end up having four or five a day - including the day after we left but not the ticks we continually spotted and flicked off our clothes throughout the day. I know there's no Lyme disease there (I think?) but I couldn't stop thinking about that bull's eye rash.
That night was also the first night I noticed a problem with one of my bug bites. I was covered in them. Despite spraying the hell out of myself with Deet and wearing long sleeves when you really, really don't want to, I can't help it - I really do have sweet blood (or just great pheromones for mosquitos). The very first big bite I got was on the inside of my right upper arm. Cebero noticed it swell immediately and said I was allergic to mosquitos and should be careful. Well, it was that bite that started to have that ugly spreading redness that in my mind was almost certainly a little superficial cellulitis. I showed Chris and he seemed nervous. We started talking antibiotics and what would work in our little loaded kit (ampicillin has poor skin penetration leaving bactrim as the best for strep). Jaime ended up giving me a little neosporin (the only thing we didn't have) and it resolved by the time we left. Chris pointed out later we should have marked the area but I had thought of it and decided I was aware enough to see the difference.
The next morning we had arranged to take a dawn hike because that's when the most activity is (Chris had woken up early the first morning and seen a lot of activity). We woke up a little after 4:30 I think.We went tothe big house to meet Cebero. We waited and he wasn't there. It was strange. He was usually so punctual. So we ended up watching sunrise on the lake (facing the wrong way vs Lago Gringo where we were supposed to go). Eventually, other people woke (chef Freddy first of course There's so much to do) and got Cebero for us.
He came out and seemed angry or just really tired and immediately led us into the jungle and took us right to a group of howler monkeys. He seems to have had a lot of clients who demanded the perfect shot and he would almost literally drag us to the shot to get the best picture. I appreciated the thought but we wanted to watch and see more than anything. We watched more monkeys not far from the house and then Chris spotted a form of rainforest deer (with that interesting downward slanting nose) in the brush.
We went back and had breakfast and Cebero admitted to Jaime that he had a fever all night and didn't sleep. Chris went back to the hut to get him some medicine. He also had a little cough but Jaime and Chris were continually talking malaria. I didn't want to jump the gun or be pushy. We'd planned on hiking to the two other lakes that day (Lago Negro and ____?). We felt fine getting to Lago Gringo on our own and said if he could just point us the way, we'd be fine and he should rest. He was stubborn.
He took us out past Lago Gringo and refused to turn back. He continued to pick fruit for us to try and showed us a plant the natives used for temporary tattoos (I got a leaf shape, Jaime a heart, and Chris sweated his off - twice, ours lasted nearly a week on our hands). He obviously felt miserable but refused to turn back.
We got to Lago Negro after more than an hour of beautifully thick foliage (with lots of rustling from wild pigs that we heard but never saw) and Cebero obviously didn't feel well. To let him rest, Chris (the lifelong water-farer) volunteered to steer us on the boat to see the macaws that were supposed to be in that area. Cebero willingly let us go so he could rest. We set out in the boat and the oars were so different and the wind so strong that Chris had a very hard and frustrating time controlling the canoe. We got out far enough to see a tree where several macaws were perched but they refused to move. We went back in and Cebero led us to an area near the last lake on our way back where we could see them more clearly in the trees.
 |
| The closest we got to the macaws |
When we got back, Chris got him more medicine (the tylenol equivalent - paracetamol) and he took a nice long nap. Chris and I set up in the hammocks on the second story and read while trying not to be eaten alive. Chris eventually went for a walk and I sat there and watched as a huge group of capuchins came right next to the big house to eat the extra and old fruit that had been thrown out. I was dying to get that shot of a mommy monkey with her baby on her back but it's about the only picture I didn't get (other than the sloth we never saw).
Chris came back from his walk and grabbed me to go see a group of howler monkeys he'd found. At first they were shy, but after several minutes standing still, they accepted our presence and came out and let us watch as they ate. We were eaten alive as we watched was the only downside. We saw another group of capuchins on the way back and went to the information hut where they had posters with all kinds of information on the area. A lot of very sad pictures of things they've seen and what goes on on other tours - including a picture of a wild pig being held down as they cut it. It was horrifying and incredibly sad.
We didn't want to bother Cebero at all but he was kind enough to ask one of the workers who sometimes is a guide to take us out on the lake for sunset. Rosa Maria elected to come with us. Up to this point, she'd been accompanied everywhere by the little spider monkey from the boat. A friend of hers had rescued it and she was rehabilitating it (one of the Germans tried to touch it and was told he was in semi-seclusion) to join the spider monkey breeding program she has as spider monkeys are endangered (sadly, a delicacy in the area). He would get mad when Chris would talk to her - very jealous, going so far as to pee and poop all over her to show it.
Chris and Rosa Maria sat closest to the front and were talking the whole time. They were obviously kindred spirits. You could tell she loved him - whereas I don't make the best first impressions and Jaime came off too strong. We watched the sun going down and the bats coming out over the lake. When we got back, we had more plaintain chips before dinner. That night's dinner was by far the best and we relaxed a while before walking back to shower.
On the walk back, in the dark, I froze as I saw something a few feet from us in my headlamp. Chris turned his too and we both saw this large dog-shaped creature so close to us. It was a nocturnal ant-eater. It moved slow enough that we were able to frantically move for Chris' camera but unable to get a good shot as it slowly climbed up a tree. It was still wonderful to see.
That night, I had more trouble falling asleep but less than normal. I should have known this was a bad sign. In was woken in the middle of the night by the loudest thunder I've ever heard. It startled me awake so strongly that I tossed around in the bed trying to figure out what was going on with the torrential rain, thunder and lightning that I woke Chris up. He was pleased for it. Somehow he really would have slept through the most incredible storm I've ever been in. He was enthralled. We stayed up and watched as the lightning brightened all the jungle around us. We could see the bugs trying terribly to get in out hut and out of the rain. It was incredible, both frightening and awe-inspiring. Chris spent the next day talking about it and how he wished he'd taken a video for his dad to see. It was very sweet how much he talked about how much he wished his dad had been there.
The next morning, Chris had intended to go for an early morning walk near the big house again but when we woke before the alarm, it was still raining. It was soaked outside. As we walked to the big house for breakfast, our road was blocked, as it would be several more times, by a large tree that had been struck or blown down in the storm. And I do mean big tree. There were so many of them. I was so in awe of all of it that it took me a while of standing in front of one of them watching the red sap run free from the cut portions where the men had hacked through to clear a path to realize how truly sad it was for these giants to come down. There was something there that made you feel so small and really appreciate your own limited time by seeing such old and enormous beings come down.
 |
| A fallen tree - one of the smaller ones |
That morning the same man who took us out on the boat the night before took us across the lake for a short hike since Cebero was still sick. We walked more easily because of the wet leaves but with more difficulty with the debris we encountered everywhere. It was the one day we didn't encounter any animals.
We came back to make jewelry out of the coco nuts and the seeds of a tree I can't pronounce. The nuts held larva and we made them into rings. I found the whole thing a little disgusting but kind of cool. Cebero insisted on coming out to make rings for Jaime and I. Chris and I worked on some seeds that they use for necklaces that are just gorgeous. We had a last lunch and said goodbye and thank you to everyone. Chris vowed to come back and has already started hatching plans to come back next year to do a project on medicinal plants.
Cebero came with us on the boat. He slept the whole way. It was a stormy looking day and there was less to see. Chris and I sat in the front and relaxed. We stayed in the same hotel and went to the same restaurant that night. We woke the next morning and hopped on the bus back to La Paz. This time it was a nicer bus with comfy seats and we chose the seats with the most leg room.
I had finished my first knitting project while we were at the hotel the first day. Neither of us got as much knitting in at the reserve as we'd thought we would - we were busy. So I tried to start my next project on the bus. Obviously I can't tell you what either of them are because they're gifts. The road was bad enough that Chris got sick to his stomach (worse than me), but it made knitting very difficult and the humidity made the yarn almost impossible to work with. What a pain but at least I tried.
We stopped for dinner in a place with only fried meat stands. Neither of us were interested and we rested and slept the rest of the night. It got cold coming back up to the mountains and we hadn't brought the sleeping bag (we were going to the jungle!). And when the bus got in to La Paz at 4:30 we didn't really know what we would do. Fortunately, the bus staff were kind and let anyone who wanted to stay on the bus til 6. I went down to get our extra clothes to layer up to sleep a while longer. It was nice to not get kicked off immediately.
So that was Monday morning. We'd decided we were going to go do the Bolivian ruins site of Tiwanaku before heading back to Cochabamba that night. That was a good and bad plan. We were really too tired to take much of it in but it was nice to have had the opportunity to go and see. We unfortunately paid for a cheap tour to drive us out there and move around, which they did, rapidly.
This last bit has been more than a little rushed since I've been working on this for two days and it's ridiculous how much time I've been in this cafe. And they're closing soon! So I've decided to save most of the last week for the next post. Because I don't know about you but I'm awfully sick of this one. Sorry to have killed you with it but there have been loads of great memories and pictures in the last couple weeks.
I have lots more pictures (especially of the jungle) and stories to share but this is where the cafe closes so this is where it ends folks. We'll fill in the cracks later. Thanks for sticking with me. We'll be in Cusco and going through the Sacred Valley (and obviously Machu Picchu) in the next week and a half. Then we'll be back on the east coast for a week to visit family before we're off to Thailand where we're meeting Chris' good friend Stephane.
Only other big news is that our Bangladesh plans may have just fallen through as of a few hours ago. Sad to say but what else is new?
Hope all is well with you, we miss and love you all!
Sara and Chris
No comments:
Post a Comment