Up at 7 waiting for our pick up. Payed the hotel bill after the receptionist had checked with many people that we had been given the bargain price we were told!
We loaded our bags and us into the back of an open pick up and travelled for an hour along dusty tracks into the jungle. Hiding from the relentless sun was the biggest challenge! We passed many tiny villages, rice fields, water buffalo and a few egrets (birds).
After, we transferred to a long, skinny boat. It was difficult to keep the boat from toppling over and the driver was constantly bailing the water out. Most of it landing on Christine!
The boat took an hour to transport us down the river. switching from one side to the other to avid the many hazards; tree stumps, logs, sandbanks.
We disembarked from the boat at a local farm. Many of the cows and buffalo were wallowing in a deep mud bath and were totally covered in thick, gloopy mud! Walking through the farmland we saw a few huts, many farmers working in the fields and a few very nervous children. We continued on and entered the jungle where we trekked for the rest of the day. Many fallen bamboo branches and tree roots making it easy to trip. Eventually we arrived at a hill top with a view over the extensive jungle. Then, made many crossings of a small river ... some times shoes off, some times balancing across small logs (which we often slipped off and ended up with wet shoes!) Soon after we arrived at a pretty waterfall where we would spend the night. Off came our sweaty, soaking wet clothes and on went the swimming costumes. The water was great! Crystal clear and so refreshing. A well deserved break! Darryl relaxed a little too much whilst lying on the adjacent rocks and fell asleep!
Hammocks were erected, complete with mosquito nets and a tarpaulin used to protect us from any rain. The guides lit a fire and prepared our meal. Bamboo soup, or so they called it. The food was cooked inside huge tubes of bamboo which the guides had cut from the jungle. They also chopped smaller pieces of bamboo to make us each a cup. Tea was served!
Dinner was delicious and there was plenty of it! Many vegetables, a few leaves from the jungle and the all important, rice! The sun went down at about 5pm and the guide from a second group that had arrived, turned into hunter mode. He allowed us to follow with our head torches, while he hunted for food. He used a catapult made with elastic bands. He was rewarded with a huge frog and a small snake! Unfortunately, he was only carrying one stone when he discovered a huge 3m cobra, with a body as thick as an adults arm. He fired and hit the snake but as he did the snake attacked. He had no more stones for his catapult so had to retreat. The snake because it was dark, headed straight for the light, causing the guide (who was wearing a head torch) to stumble ino the water nearby! The guide did however escape, but he was very afraid. This had been a close call with a very big poisonous snake!
The evening was finalised with cooking the catch to eat in the morning. Rice wine was sampled along with a local medicine made from the jungle and good for your stomach. After discussing the days events, learning about animism (religious belief of living off the fruits of the land and river) and sharing a few camp fire stories, the hammock was calling.
We loaded our bags and us into the back of an open pick up and travelled for an hour along dusty tracks into the jungle. Hiding from the relentless sun was the biggest challenge! We passed many tiny villages, rice fields, water buffalo and a few egrets (birds).
After, we transferred to a long, skinny boat. It was difficult to keep the boat from toppling over and the driver was constantly bailing the water out. Most of it landing on Christine!
The boat took an hour to transport us down the river. switching from one side to the other to avid the many hazards; tree stumps, logs, sandbanks.
We disembarked from the boat at a local farm. Many of the cows and buffalo were wallowing in a deep mud bath and were totally covered in thick, gloopy mud! Walking through the farmland we saw a few huts, many farmers working in the fields and a few very nervous children. We continued on and entered the jungle where we trekked for the rest of the day. Many fallen bamboo branches and tree roots making it easy to trip. Eventually we arrived at a hill top with a view over the extensive jungle. Then, made many crossings of a small river ... some times shoes off, some times balancing across small logs (which we often slipped off and ended up with wet shoes!) Soon after we arrived at a pretty waterfall where we would spend the night. Off came our sweaty, soaking wet clothes and on went the swimming costumes. The water was great! Crystal clear and so refreshing. A well deserved break! Darryl relaxed a little too much whilst lying on the adjacent rocks and fell asleep!
Hammocks were erected, complete with mosquito nets and a tarpaulin used to protect us from any rain. The guides lit a fire and prepared our meal. Bamboo soup, or so they called it. The food was cooked inside huge tubes of bamboo which the guides had cut from the jungle. They also chopped smaller pieces of bamboo to make us each a cup. Tea was served!
Dinner was delicious and there was plenty of it! Many vegetables, a few leaves from the jungle and the all important, rice! The sun went down at about 5pm and the guide from a second group that had arrived, turned into hunter mode. He allowed us to follow with our head torches, while he hunted for food. He used a catapult made with elastic bands. He was rewarded with a huge frog and a small snake! Unfortunately, he was only carrying one stone when he discovered a huge 3m cobra, with a body as thick as an adults arm. He fired and hit the snake but as he did the snake attacked. He had no more stones for his catapult so had to retreat. The snake because it was dark, headed straight for the light, causing the guide (who was wearing a head torch) to stumble ino the water nearby! The guide did however escape, but he was very afraid. This had been a close call with a very big poisonous snake!
The evening was finalised with cooking the catch to eat in the morning. Rice wine was sampled along with a local medicine made from the jungle and good for your stomach. After discussing the days events, learning about animism (religious belief of living off the fruits of the land and river) and sharing a few camp fire stories, the hammock was calling.
