Monday, March 26, 2012

Leaving Kapawi


Today we left the Kapawi Ecolodge and Reserve after a week in the jungle.  We packed up our bags with mixed feelings.  I was sad to leave the beautiful amazon, but am excited to boat with Dan Dixon in Tena.  The kapawi Lodge has a tradition that whenever guests leave, they get their faces painted like an Achuar hunter and they get to practice shooting the traditional Achuar blow gun.   A blow gun is a long tube that projects a dart when an Achuar hunter blows through it.   The Achuar make this by taking two long pieces of palm wood, carving a semi-curricular grove in each one, and gluing them together with black tree sap.   The dart is created from a very small palm twig, and has a tuft of Kapok cotton on the back end to keep the dart flying straight.   They get poison from a very large and poisonous ant and a poisonous frog, then smear the poison on the tips of the darts.  After we all had defined “war paint” on our faces, we set up a target and shot the blow gun.  We did not use poison!  I hit the target about one out of four times and got better as the morning progressed.   





We have now arrived back in Tena, and I am feeling really sick.  My belly is killing me, and I am going to skip dinner.  I’m sorry I cannot write more about the travel. 

Thank you for reading Rohan Geographic!
 

3 comments:

  1. Looks like you could make a pretty good spear out of that dart gun...

    Sorry to hear your stomach is upset -- hope that passes quickly.

    Cool face paint!

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  2. Rohan,
    I hope your tummy is better by now. I wonder if drinking that spit infused brew wasn't such a good idea.

    Look up "Smithsonian.com/titanoboa" to read about a prehistoric boa much larger than the one you saw.

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  3. Won't comment on your dad's blow dart aim
    Until knowing your belly is better.
    With that face he can only work basic care.

    Will also miss Amazon

    ReplyDelete