Saturday 20.9.14 – Jungle walk, Cooking class.

Woke up before the engines and had a little better internet, managed to post a status. The morning was quite foggy, yet again a different start to the day. Motoring up the river, fog preventing the bird watching.

Foggy morning on the Napo River.

Took a bit of a look around the ship.

The corridor to our cabin, last on the left. Stairs up to
next deck,

The bridge, driver at the helm.

Looking down from Bridge to bow of ship.

Breaky at 8.00. Departed the ship at 9.00 onto the canoe for a little bit to a hike through the jungle. Lots of butterflies when we arrived, gathered around some soap left on the landing.

In the jungle walk we saw:

• A huge millipede, Aunty Sue got to hold it even. 
• Butterflies 
• Spiders 
• Amazing plants 
• Javier made a ‘wad’ for a blowgum from some Kapok cotton and a reed. 
• Cacoa trees 
• Yuca 
• Coffee 
• Hellaconia 
• Macaws 
• Caterpillars 
• Slash and burn farming – where they cut the trees down and leave them to dry, then burn them, to start farming little areas, probably about the size of a basketball court. 

What exactly is it that Javier picked out of that log
Suzie?

One very interesting centipede.

Interesting stuff in the jungle.

Interesting stuff in the jungle.

This is the cotton from the Kapok tree, that they form
into a wad to use in blow guns.

Javier, with some of the
Hellaconia plant, they use in
ceremonies.

Here's me acting like a Toucan.

Yellow fluffy caterpillar.

Tall tree, that glistened bronze
colours, beautiful smooth bark.

Spider whose name I can't recall.
Looks like a zucchini to me.

This guy was making a boat shaped bowl they use to
mix chicha - beer.

Butterflies on the riverbank.

Butterflies on the riverbank.

What really struck me today was the patterns in everything, interesting leaf patterns, colours on the tree trunks, old and new growth, seeds sprouting, wood grains etc

The hike was probably a good couple of hours along the river basically, but through some plantations of small Yuca (they eat the root), coffee and cacao. We finished in a little community and were met by the canoe. There was a little Macaw in a nest in a dead palm tree, we could just see its head poking out, we think it was trying to cool down.

Macaw in a big old palm tree.

Met back on the ship by the staff with juice and grilled banana with cheese. This juice goes down so well, after time spent out in the heat and humidity.
A little time to consult some bird books before lunch (fried calamari, curry fish and poached tree tomato).
2.30 Cooking class – where the Chef prepared Palm heart with Ceviche sauce, all very nice. We are meant to get the recipe.

Javier and Chef preparing  Palm heart with Ceviche
sauce.

The final product - dee-lish-oush.

Then Avela wove a hat from a palm frond and Freddy carved a toucan into a breadnut.

Avel weaving hat.

Part way done.

Freddy calving a Toucan from a Breadnut

We received our 15 minute warning for next canoe trip, however it had to be delayed due a storm. Up to the deck to watch the storm, we could see the rain in the distance, but it never really hit us.

Storm clouds.

At 4.00 we were called again, it was a landing on a river island, muddy landing on a mud beeach, where a family of kids were net fishing and were gutting/cleaning them. The guides talked to the kids and sought permission from the parents to enter into their property.

Cleaning the fish.

We traipsed into the jungle for about 5 minutes, only to be turned back due to a deep river/creek we couldn’t cross.

How deep the water was. That's
Santiago - our Aurora guide.

Avel helping Suzie back over the bridge he
made from one of the canoe seats.

Back to the canoe for a bit of a birdwatching tour, we saw:

• Osprey 
• Snowy Heron 
• Great heron 
• Egret 

Back to the ship, which was travelling reasonably quickly, the canoe paces alongside, ties up and we get off row by row. The canoe seats and seat backs are planks of wood, 3 people per seat, so the guides put us in and out in threes, they slide out the seat backs for each set of three, all pretty well organised. Little club sangas and tamarind juice awaited us, the juice resembled the Napo River water. Time for a shower and a bit of time to watch a storm in the dark on the horizon, lightning, thunder and a huge storm head.

Dinner (something on red cabbage, shredded chicken w/potato and corn and dessert a local fruit Abaco (looked like a huge starfruit)

Then briefing and then…Pepe –one of the waiters/barmen sang for us, he has Mexican heritage and sang 3 songs, very well for the most part. It was great.

Pepe, singing his heart out.

Then Jose (barman/waiter) and Renee (guide) taught the salsa to those brave/game enough to have a go. It was a fabulous end to the night.

Jose, strutting his salsa.

Some of the willing passengers, having a red hot go.