Leticia is furthest southern tip of Colombia bordering Brazil and Peru. The hostel where I stayed at in Leticia was run by a guy that looked like he had been smoking, drinking, and otherwise consuming some nasty products from the Amazon jungle for way too many years. He couldn’t quite open his eyes past half way and while one eye seemed to look at you the other was looking past me. He told me the same story twice while checking in and then completely contradicted himself on another just 10 minutes later. He then offered guiding services into the jungle but I couldn’t get a straight story from him regarding his prices, itinerary, or anything. I wrote him off and decided to keep our arrangement to him simply providing me with a room. I decided to go down town and check things out while looking for a place to eat and perhaps find a guide that could look me in the eye with at least one of his own.
I thought I played it pretty safe…. I asked for the guys ID and I followed up with his references at one of the nicest hotels in town and at the restaurant where I met him. My guide (Jorge) to go into the Amazon in seemed to be checking out, and after only a few hours in town it looked like I was heading into the jungle the next morning. The plan included boating in the Colombian, Peruvian, and Brazilian mangroves and tributaries of the Amazon, nature watching, fishing for piranha, and staying a couple of nights in a jungle lodge. I paid about 20% down and crossed my fingers that the guy would show up the next morning as promised. I finished my dinner and returned to the hostel where I was staying to organize my gear. Jorge had indicated he knew of the hotel where I was staying and also confessed that he didn’t get along well with the proprietor. He didn’t really offer any more information about that and I didn’t ask. I wasn’t really surprised. Of course, once I returned to the hostel I couldn’t resist and I told senior ‘Walking Eyes’ that I had booked a trip with his competitor. He started by saying that ‘I was a big boy, and could do what I wanted but Jorge had a reputation for being unreliable!’ But of course that’s all he could say because ‘he doesn’t like to speak down about people’. Ten minutes later ‘unreliable’ was further explained as a ‘gambler with bad credit’. Shortly thereafter the gambler was described as someone that would take my money and leave me in the jungle while he skipped the country. He did have me a little concerned and I was grateful that I only put down a small amount of money. Within the next 30 minutes of this guy following me around I learned that Jorge was a drug dealing, counterfeiting, murdering rapist that was wanted by the police. I was thinking the police must be complete buffoons because everyone in town seemed to know him and how to find him.
The next morning I grabbed some breakfast and showed up at the agreed upon meeting point a half hour early. Ten minutes later Jorge showed up and after a quick coffee we grabbed a taxi and drove into Brazil to meet up with the hired boat. It took a little time to actually shove off but once we got on the Amazon River things unfolded as he said they would. We went upstream to a small village and walked around the jungle for a few hours, had lunch, and then took off into Peru on the Rio Yavari. It was quite amazing… we saw sloths, monkeys, dolphins, a small snake, and a ton of different birds. In some areas the jungle encroached the river so much that we had to push the vegetation out of the way to pass while other areas the river were at least a kilometer or two wide. A couple of times I thought if he was going to throw the tourist overboard there was the time and the place.
The lodge wasn’t the Hilton but it was a lot better than what I was expecting. I was a little confused at first because it seemed there were available beds but we got set up in hammocks with mosquito nets under a thatched roof in the back. I clearly told him that I preferred a bed and I asked Jorge where he was sleeping. He said he was sleeping in the boat so I decided not to complain or press the issue any further. Two hours later after trying to sleep in the hammock I decided to complain. I went to enter the lodge but I found myself locked out. I then walked around the main building to the river where Jorge was supposed to be sleeping in the boat. I shined my flashlight in the boat and Jorge wasn’t there. The bugger was sound asleep in a bed inside the lodge. I had him woken up and gave him a WTF! He was busted and he knew it. I reminded him who was paying the bills and suggested if anyone was going to sleep in a hammock it was going to be him. I know it sounds a little arrogant but he out right lied to me. For the rest of the trip my name became ‘Jefe Grande’ and I was happy with that. I seemed to establish some credibility with him and he went from being a little unorganized and careless to quite attentive. After breakfast we headed out on the river with some guys from the lodge to do a little fishing. I was skeptical at first with the ‘willow stick’ and 2 meters of monofilament line with a monster hook and a chunk of red meat as bait. We drifted in the shallows and then thrashed the water with the fishing polls. We then dropped the baited hook in the water and bam, bam, bam; we were taking strikes like crazy! We fed a lot of fish because the little buggers were hard to snag… The fish were small, the bait was tough, and the hooks were big… and I am sticking to this excuse for not landing 50 of the buggers. After a couple of hours we did manage to land a dozen or so into the boat along with a few small catfishes. We should have left them in the river because they were terrible to eat. The flavor wasn’t bad but by the time you got through all the bones there was probably 2 forks of meat per fish. Their skin had protective ‘spines’ in it too. We went out that night ‘spotlighting’ for ‘wanna-be crocks’ (I can’t remember what they are actually called) and later slept in a real bed. The 3rd day was a continuation whereas we cruised the water ways in search of anything and everything. The trip was concluded following a short motorcycle trip into the jungle and a short trek to see a local shaman. He conducted ‘ayahuasca’ ceremonies and ground his own coca leaves into an edible powder. It was all quite interesting. The process was explained to me and I tried some of the powder but other than a slight numbing of my tongue I didn’t really feel any affect. I didn’t take part in any of the ceremonies.
The next day (Thursday, June 03) I caught a plane to Bogota. Bogota is a big city and on the way to the Candelaria district I saw everything from slums, modern business and shopping centers to million dollar homes. Candelaria is the historical district and is walking distance to Parque Bolivar where all of the government buildings are located. I made a point of walking the streets, seeing a few museums, and visiting a few nice restaurants and cafes, but otherwise I took it pretty easy. I don’t think it’s a reflection on the vibe on the city but more on my state of mind. I am tired.
I am ready to start heading home. I booked a plane ticket back to Costa Rica for Monday June 7th. I will take a couple months getting back to Canada and I am sure I will kick my ass when I get back to the daily routine. I miss family, friends, (and secretly) work. I want to have a little summer at home before I return to work. I didn’t get as far as I originally planned but I feel good that I really experienced the places that I did make it to. I made a lot of friends, saw some amazing sites, had some great times, and there is no doubt that there will be a few more on the trip north.
