ALWAYS Take Note of a Man's Tshirt

Today I awoke early (unfortunately) and started my day with another yummy excellent hotel breakfast.  These are my last few days in the rockin' hotel in Pucallpa with air conditioning, big comfy beds, wireless, fridge, running water... so I am thoroughly luxuriating in these pleasures while I can.  I thought that tonight would be my last night here but Fernando informed me that they payed for me to stay through Sunday night.  YAY!  Though i am looking forward to living on the hospital grounds, I also realize that life will be VERY different there.

Moto'd over to the central market to buy a man's work shirt to hide my burning skin (see my photo of the man's shop I bought it from, hee hee) and then off to lake Yarincocha, which connects to the river Ucayali and rented a boat for the day.  My motokar man was lovely (or so I thought).  His name is Joseph and I enjoyed talking to him.  He says he's been a single dad since his babe was 1 and a half and that mama lives in Lima.  His son is 10 years old now and Joseph is 35.  He invited me over to have lunch with his whole family (mom, son, aunts, etc.) tomorrow.  I thought I'd met my first friend outside of work.  Later, as I downloaded my photos for the day, I took a closer look at him.  Check out the T shirt on that boy!  DUDE!  Really?  The picture is self explanatory and the words in Spanish say "Fast Food."  I won't be having lunch with him tomorrow.  Call me a judger, what can I say!

Nonetheless, I did arrive safely at Yarinacocha, so I thank him for that.  

Met a true friend named Mario who motorboated me around Yarinacocha and to the first indigenous community in the Ucayali region, the Shipibos.  Wonderful, colorful, kind people. See the boys that watched our boat while we went to check out the community.  Also see the little Shipibo puppy and I.  Mario has been tour guiding for 30 years and showed me LOTS of cool things in the jungle.  We saw dolphins, chameleons, monkeys, anacondas (monkeys and anacondas in cages in small zoo for tourists, :( sad to say), and he introduced me to a yummy seed (see the pic).  You eat the white fur off the seed, which tastes a little like banana, and then spit the green/red seed out.  I ate a few seeds as he laughed at me before showing me that we are to spit the seeds out.  Silly American in the jungle.

We ate dinner together on the river after a 4 hour journey to San Francisco (where the Shipibos live) and back.  I had my first Cecina (dried, salted meat - maybe cow, maybe not) and fried plantains.  Mario taught me about all the different meats that exist in the jungle and how yummy they are, but I am filled with new Spanish words and won't remember all that he revealed.  I've got Cecina down now and that's about it.  

Shipibo girls  and one little guy sang a beautiful Shipibo song that I will try to download (download didn't work...).  Shipibos are famous for their pottery and yet I saw no pottery.  I bet we didn't go far enough into the community.  I will have to ask Dan's mom Flora who has been to where I went today.

That's it for the day!

No breakdowns yet and getting ready for bed so I think I am in the clear.  It was a wonderful day full of adventure and new people.  Just what I love.  

Loving you all too, 

Beth