So, I have just returned from my probably last trip in Ecuador, from the Oriente (more commonly known as the Amazon Rain Forest, no big deal). 
A group of 11 of us went to a place called La Casa del Suizo which is only on the edge of the rain forest, but still a lot closer than most people have ever gotten, so I can’t complain too much. It was also a really nice resort type place where pretty much all the white tourists come. Although it was not a trip organized by ACLAS most of the students from past programs go there and I’m still not sure, but it might be part of the reason we got a better price with our stay.
We all took off in bus Friday morning and with one change once we got into the more jungly part spent I think about 5 ½ hours traveling. When we couldn’t go any further due to the flowing current of water in front of us we hopped in a canoe and took a short trip, maybe ten minutes, down the river where we “disembarked” at the front of La Casa del Suizo. Our first day we didn’t have any planned excursions so we had a late lunch of way too much food and about three deserts (of which of course I had to try all), and enjoyed the very Amazonian swimming pool and after explored the little town that we had no idea existed behind the resort (I will call it that for lack of a better name) and then ate more (dinner) and chatted into the late hours of the night, which for me was about 9:30, before going to bed. After waking and breakfast at 7:45 the next morning we set off for our first included activity- a trek in the jungle where we yet again, got to wear rubber boots. After another trip back up the river we climbed out of the boats and started out wilderness trek where we learned about different plants and insects, all of which I remember none of the names, and some of the ways of life of the native people who inhabit the rain forest. We also took a nice old rusty metal egg-swing thing across a small gorge, and then got to take turns on a “native” rope swing across a slightly larger gorge. It was a nice break with a breeze from the humidity and bugs we had been walking in. When we returned we had lunch and a short break in which I took another nap (my body decided to get sick this weekend which took a little bit of the energy out of me), and then we visited the village behind us again and visited a family and learned a little about their lifestyle. There were in total probably about 8 kids running around, offering necklaces they had made for one (or in Devan and Cait’s case two) dollars. With plenty of gnats around (which did leave me with two lovely little rings of bites around my ankles) it was a little sad to see the state of the kids because some did have very bloated stomachs (normally a sign of malnutrition or worms). Also at the house we each had a try at using the about 6 foot long blow-gun to hit a wooden target about 40 or 50 feet away. I failed miserably, but Cait hit the target on her first try and after determined practice Devan became pretty legit at it as well. Deciding we had had enough of being eaten alive we returned to the resort once again to relax more, eat more, and sleep more. This time we did sprinkle in some card playing though with the chats.
Rising early again the next morning with another large breakfast we loaded into the canoe again, this time without boots, to visit a wildlife preserve/rehabilitation center also owned by La Casa del Suizo. It was there we got to see some of the monkeys that live in the jungle, as well as a very funky looking bird who was our second tour guide because he was the only bird of his companion-seeking type at the reserve. We also got to see a peccary and some very funny looking rodent things along with two members of the small cat family (including an ocelot), turtles, and an overwhelming number of birds- the loud kinds. Many of the animals at the center were once pets and because of that would never be able to be reentered into the wild. Although we didn’t get to see the anaconda as he didn’t want to come out and say hi, it was pretty cool to see the animals we did up close, even if they weren’t in the wild. Although we did see a monkey freely swinging in the branches on our trip back to the resort which we all agreed was pretty cool. After more food, more swimming, more sun :\ and more naps, some of us went out one last time to learn how to pan for gold. There was a little bit in the batches of dirt that we found, although I have to admit I was having more fun seeing how many and how big of rocks I could skip on the river. I had more success with that we did with the gold and, true to form, inspired everyone else to abandon the search for gold and start throwing rocks into the river as well. It’s incredible how easily influenced human beings are. Good times. With that adventure/Kerry’s playtime over we returned to, yes, eat more, BUT this time I got a lovely surprise in that in my soup was about an inch and a half long maggot. Needless to say, I did not eat the soup. At first I thought it was a caterpillar but everyone else decided it was indeed a larva and as time when on and that realization sunk in it became less and less funny than it had been to me initially. The best part was in fact though, when I asked one of the workers if “it was part of the soup” his response was “let me go ask.” Nice. He never came back and let me know. They never changed the soup either. Again, one thing you would probably never find in an establishment in the U.S.- at least not twice. Before the complete disgust of having an inch plus bug’s baby in my food set in we finished off the night with some more card playing, lots of water drinking, and a slightly later bedtime of about 12:00. The next morning we awoke for our last buffet breakfast, packed up our things, and took the canoe back across the river to catch our bus(es) back to Quito by 10 am. We finally, exhaustedly, and in desperate need of a bathroom, returned to Quito about 5 in the afternoon.
All things considered, it was a good trip overall and a good final trip (as I decided that I really didn’t need to spend the money to return to the beach where the experience would more than likely not live up to the first) before I left Ecuador in a month. So, the next few weekends will be spent spending quality time with both of my Ecuadorian families (I’ll let you guess who the second one is), catching up on art workshops I have slacked on all semester, and writing my final paper for my trabajo social. So, even without more trips containing rubber boots, maggots, llamas, or very good-looking surfers, I think I’ll be able to keep pretty busy in the next coming weeks.
