Our second day we went Caiman hunting and caught a little baby. we drove around in the dark for nearly two hours when our guide gave some sort of inaudible signal to the boat driver. ... side note, the jungle men have all these noises that dont sound human because the jaguars will pick it up and hunt them as prey - no joke! - so they hum, or whistle to eachother in this mysterious language of bird type quality... Holding the alligator i found it more beautiful than i ever imagined one would be. A hard shell but still smooth and warm. its muscles clench and strain with such power for such a little beast. i cant imagine the momma! It seems so metaphorical that such a scary and ugly thing - a thing that lives in the darness, hiding from the eyes of men, could be so incredibly majestic.
Our third day in the jungle... and my feelings vascilated between awe and appreciation to overly annoyed frustration. It became a personal observation that at any given time, there is always at least one thing that is highly uncomfortable. Mosquitos. Biting Flys. 80% humidity. Drenching rain. Terantulas. But really, it is a place unlike any other.
Captains log... last day in the jungle... ´´The time has begun to slip... like the black river. Already it is time to go. Ther is much work and travel involved in actually exiting the deep jungle, but i am grateful we have come. My body feels very very tired. my eyes still heavy with the last of sleep...´´
There are so many moments that are missing from this recollection. The wasps. The soccor tournament in the village. Staying up and drinking with the men. Falling off the swinging vine. sleeping in hammocks in the jungle. fleeing the mozzie net at three in the morning to pee - after our guide said in broken english ´´if you have to go to bathroom in the night, no more than one meter from hamoca please. poison snakes.´´
There was so much sensory information it would be impossible to replicate with words. It was beautiful. It was dangerous. The jungle, i think, is like the dark side of a woman. Deep, mysterious. Unknown. With such vivid colors and other worldly beauty.... And if you piss her off, she will spike you in the forehead with palm tree razors.
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