Half Way There!

Today was another day of travel.  I know that you are all thinking that we had decided to wait in Tena for a week before Dan Dixon was available to boat with us.  Yesterday, we thought again.  The Amazon lodge that caused us to stay an extra night in Quito, was fully booked for this week.  However, we realized that there is more than one lodge in Ecuador.  After looking online for awhile, my parents found a great one!  Kapawi Eco Lodge and Reserve is run by the indigenous Achuar community in the middle of the Amazon.  One cannot access the Achuar community by any road, and if one decided to walk, it would take up to two weeks from the nearest town.  For us to get to Kapawi we need two days.  Today we bussed to the town of Puyo, an hour and a half to the south of Tena.  Tomorrow, we have to take a small plane to an Achuar community.  Then, the three of us will take a canoe to the lodge itself, deep in the heart of the Amazon. 

In the morning, with our gear in hand, we started the short ten minute walk to the Tena bus station.  When we arrived, there happened to be a bus departing in five minutes.  Hastily the three of us, bought our tickets and hopped on the bus!  During the ride, the dense jungle slowly grew more intense.  Finally, with a sudden jerk, the bus stopped.  We were in Puyo, the first leg of our journey was completed.  Along with the Amazon trip the manager of the lodge booked us a hotel in Puyo.  We though it was going to be a simple building on the side of a busy street, but we were wrong.  To get to our hotel we crossed a foot bridge over a wide and flowing river.  After entering a gate on the other side of the river, we were in El Jardin Hostel.  This is a giant garden area with several huts and buildings.  Dispersed in the Garden are several paths, a reception building, two hot tubs, a small stream inhabited with ducks, and a building consisting of several cozy cabin rooms.  In the garden, lives a turtle, two parrots, one baby parrot, several grass hoppers and some ducks.  We landed butter-side up!



I am so excited to be here!  This hostel is so beautiful and to think this is only a check point on the way to the real Amazon lodge, makes me ecstatic!  I can’t wait to see the Amazon jungle tomorrow!

Thank you for reading Rohan Geographic!  

P.S.
The probability of Internet at the Amazon lodge is very low, and we will be back on line Monday.  All blogs will be backdated!