La Amazonía

Sorry it's been so long, y'all, things have been rather busy lately.  In this post, I'm going to relate the story of a trip I took about three weeks ago, so my memories are not quite as vivid as they were right afterwards.  For a little bit of context, USFQ was granted a large parcel of land some years back just north of Yasuní National Park in the eastern part of Ecuador for the express purpose of conservation and research.  This parcel of land is located on the Tiputini River, thus its name: Tiputini Biodiversity Station (TBS).  What makes TBS so incredible is the fact that it is located in arguably the most biodiverse ecosystem on the planet.

The trip began at around 6 a.m. Friday morning, where all of the students going to the station met at the Quito airport.  After a surprisingly streamlined trip through airport security and an hour or so of waiting in the terminal, we boarded our plane to Coca.  Coca is one of the few large towns in the east of Ecuador, founded by early missionaries and later, after the discovery of large amounts of petroleum in the jungles of the east, maintained by oil companies.  Seeing as oil companies write my tuition checks, I will try not to be too harsh on them, but if you are not familiar with the history of Texaco/Cheveron in Ecuador, it warrants some exploration.  Texaco was more or less given unrestricted and unregulated access to Ecuador's eastern territories by the dictator General Rodriguez Lara after he came to power in 1972.  Texaco, and later Cheveron, neglected to follow standard operating procedures for the disposal of hazardous materials drawn from their wells, and as a consequence, thousands of indigenous people living in the jungles of the oriente have experienced devastating health problems for decades, and their lawsuit against Cheveron (to the tune of $23 billion) is ongoing.

I'll go ahead and get off my soapbox and continue with the story.  We landed in Coca, took a bus to a hotel by the Napo river and boarded a long, thin boat for a two hour ride down the river.  After a long, relaxing boat ride, we docked at a checkpoint for the entrance to a road into the oriente originally built by an American oil company, but now maintained by REPSOL, an oil company out of Spain.  The security at this station was tight, with camouflaged men with assault rifles patrolling the area and photography strictly prohibited.  Following a short wait, we embarked on a "ranchera" (an open-air bus) down the road for a good 90 minutes.  We finally arrived at where the road crossed the Tiputini river and promptly set sail for another two hour boat ride.

On the Napo River

Me, Chloe, and Alex on the Napo

When, at last, we arrived at the station, we were given a quick briefing on the rules and procedures of the station and then guided to our cabins.  After a hearty dinner (the food at Tiputini was some of the best I've had in Ecuador), we retired to our cabins.  We all woke up around 6:30 a.m. the next day, as breakfast started at 7 a.m. sharp.  Perked up after pancakes and coffee, we were split into three groups to embark on our morning hikes.  My group went to the "puentes," which were essentially a series of bridges and platforms right at the top of the jungle canopy.  On the walk to the puentes, we observed some congas, otherwise known as bullet ants.  Congas are among the biggest species of ants in the world, and their sting is known to cause extreme pain.  Just one sting can (and has, on multiple occasions) reduce a grown man to tears.  Taking this into account, it is hard to believe that many indigenous groups in the oriente intentionally inflict 20 or more stings on young men as a part of rituals symbolizing the transition to manhood.  Candidates are expected to show no reaction to the excruciating pain.  The puentes themselves were incredible, but I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.  On the way back to camp for lunch we took a roundabout rout (to say the least), but our guide pointed out a type of plant that holds lemon-ants inside small pods at the base of its leaves.  Needless to say, we all partook in the consumption of these ants, which, as their name suggests, had a strong citrusy taste.

Our awesome guide, Ramiro, with a giant stick-bug

The Puentes

The highest platform at the Puentes

Ramiro introducing us to the lemon-ants

In the afternoon, we went to "the tower."  The tower, like the puentes, is situated high above the canopy and equipped with a telescope for optimal wildlife-viewing.  We stayed on top of the tower for a couple of hours chatting and spotting wildlife (toucans, parrots, wooly monkeys, and howler monkeys, just to name a few).  We hiked back to the cabins, took a quick rest, and then ate some dinner.  After dinner, we were invited to the lab (the largest and most technologically advanced building at the station) to view a slideshow of the various animals that had been captured on film around the station.  One of the many research projects currently being executed at the station involves a number of camera traps situated all around the University's territory.  These camera traps have captured at least two species never before caught on film in the wild (both are species of wild dog) along with jaguars, black jaguars (otherwise known as panthers), wild pigs, and many other exotic species.

The Tower

One of many camera-traps

The next morning after breakfast, our group travelled to the last of the three spots on the rotation: a large lake known to house anacondas and caimanes.  Although we did not see any caimanes or anacondas, we did get a good look at an adorable chick in a nest situated in the vegetation at the edge of the lake.  Other significant events from this excursion include: me getting bit where the sun don't shine by a giant mosquito-like insect that is known to carry botfly eggs (pray that I am not infected by these parasites and rendered sterile), and a Wooly Monkey throwing a tree branch at our group.

Canoeing on the lake

This is the little bastard who got to my most tender spot through underwear and pants... Evil

Giant spider on the dock at the lake

In the afternoon, we travelled upriver for a good while to fish for piranhas.  We did not succeed in catching any piranhas, supposedly because the river was higher than usual.  Instead of taking the boat back to the station, we were invited to put on life vests and simply allow the Tiputini River's strong current to take us back home.  Naturally, we all obliged.  The float was relaxing for the most part, though it got rather cold after a while and we were all too terrified of this parasite, known for swimming up poor humans' urethras as they urinate in the water, to relieve ourselves.

After dinner, we split into groups yet again for a night-hike.  On this hike we saw two whip spiders, a giant worm being eaten by ants (the worm must have been 10 inches long and an 1.5 inches in circumference), and what the guide called a "cigar grasshopper" (which apparently doesn't translate very well into english, as I couldn't find a picture online).  This grasshopper is apparently the biggest species in the world and lived up to its name, as it was large, fat, and brown.

The next day, we rose bright and early yet again, and repeated the whole traveling process in reverse (boat on the Tiputini River, Ranchera on the REPSOL road, boat on the Napo River, and flight from Coca).  We came home tired, behind on our homework, but all very happy to have spent the weekend in one of the most biodiverse places on the planet with new friends (from now on I will have a very positive view of the University of Illinois, for example).

More photos:

This was a really spiky tree

Also good for making unicorn horns

Yes, those are bats under that tent of leaves

Thank God for rubber boots

That enough butterflies for ya?

Cool moth

Thoughts on Occupy Wall Street and the Tea Party

Over the past few weeks I have heard quite a bit from pundits and politicians comparing and contrasting the Occupy Wall Street and Tea Party movements.  Those of you who are familiar with my political leanings probably assume that I have much more sympathy for the Occupy Wall Street movement than the Tea Party movement.  You would be correct in that assumption.  But in contrast to the partisan representatives and media figures who so often penetrate the public discourse with their petty political posturing, I am not writing this post to vilify the Tea Party, or even to overtly endorse Occupy Wall Street.  I am writing to say that, from my perspective, both movements represent a positive change in the American political landscape.

My thoughts on the matter were sparked by this political cartoon, posted on a staunchly republican friend's facebook wall:

This political cartoon, and the generalizations it draws with both protest movements and the media's perception of them, represents a large portion of what is wrong with modern political discourse.  Painting the men and women participating in the Occupy Wall Street movement as marxist, unpatriotic, freeloading hippies is obviously outrageous.  Painting Tea Partiers as ignorant, rich, racist reactionaries is equally ridiculous.  The fact of the matter is, the majority of people participating in both movements are concerned American citizens who have gleaned that there is something fundamentally wrong with both the current state of American society.  The difference is the lens through which these people see the problem.  I don't intend to underplay the fundamental differences in ideology and the extremely different impacts these ideologies can have, I am simply saying that both movements have an acute understanding that something is amiss in the United States today, though they may have very different thoughts on who to blame.

Regardless of how brainwashed the followers of Glenn Beck might seem, how obviously corporate-funded the Tea Party movement is (see the Koch brothers or Newscorp), or how directionless the Occupy Wall Street movement is, we must not lose perspective of the roles each of these groups are playing in the ongoing development of America's political culture.  What both movements have managed to do is generate interest in the modern social, political, and economic realities.  Both movements have initiated a heated discourse throughout the country about the proper direction for the United States.  The fact that I do not see smaller or larger government as the solution to the problems at hand in our country (I prefer to think of myself as an advocate for different governance) is a topic for another time.  What is more relevant here is the big picture.  People are getting involved and educating themselves about the world around them, and I see that as a positive trend for the functioning of our democracy.  Yes, dogmatism without rational thought is a problem, but I remain optimistic, because at the end of the day I can sit down with my right-wing family members and talk with them about politics.  We rarely agree on anything, but there's always at least one or two topics on which we can find common ground.  At the very least we will have been forced to confront differing opinions and constantly evaluate why we believe what we do about the way things ought to be.

Although this is the most cliché Thomas Jefferson quote of all time, I think it is relevant to this post: "Every generation needs a new revolution."  I am not hear to say that I agree with the Tea Party, or even that "I am the 99%."  I'm just happy people are out there challenging the system, themselves, and each other.

I'll get back to blogging about Ecuador shortly, I just had to get that out of my system.

The Beach

This weekend we went to Atacames, a town on the northern coast of Ecuador.  Before I get around to recounting the details of our trip, there are a few memories from the previous weekend (my host brothers' combined birthday party) that deserve to be preserved for posterity.

But first: my host mother is adorable

The cracker game: the rules are simple.  One tilts one's face back, places a cracker on one's forehead, and uses facial expressions to move said cracker to one's mouth.  This will be played at every gathering I am involved in organizing when I come back to the states.

The chocolate game: for this game you will need: dice, a winter hat, gloves, a scarf, a butter knife, a fork, and a large chocolate bar that is divided into squares.  The players go around in a circle rolling the dice until someone gets a six.  When this happens, whoever rolled the six must put on the hat, gloves, and scarf, and use the knife and fork (no hands!) to cut into the (still wrapped) chocolate bar and eat the candy square-by-square.  While this is happening, the other players continue to roll the dice until someone else gets a six.  Once someone else gets a six, the person who was eating the chocolate before must stop what they're doing and pass the materials on to the next lucky individual.  This game gets very competitive, very quickly.  People love chocolate.

The chocolate game in full swing

La Familia Sevilla + one Sullivan

Now for Atacames:

Our trip started, like many do, with a cab ride.  Being the arrogant gringos we are, the four of us decided to take the first taxi at our disposal, which happened to have exactly one of the four required symbols for a legitimate taxi.  Well, as it happens, the bus terminal in Quito is deep in the south of the city (the part of the city where gringos are usually advised against visiting), and it was our cabbie's "pico placa" day.  "Pico placa" is a law in Quito that makes it illegal for cars with certain numbers on their licence plates to drive on main thoroughfares during certain days of the week (this is done in an effort to reduce congestion and pollution).  Suffice it to say that us four gringos got a scenic tour of all of the back roads of south Quito for a good half an hour.  When our cabbie took us down a particularly sketchy street, a bit of nervous laughter spread among us gringos, to which the cabbie responded, "haha, guess I'm kidnapping you!"  He proceeded to say, "hey, you look like you have a lot of money, so pass up the bags!"  The four of us looked at each awkwardly for a good few seconds before the cabbie declared that he was joking.  Really funny.  Hilarious.

Our seven-hour bus ride featuring such cinematic gems as, "Into the Blue 2: The Reef," "Driver," and "Dragon Wars: The Final Battle" (all dubbed, in Spanish of course).  We also got pulled over twice by police, who forced us to store our bags under the bus, shoved video cameras in our faces, and patted us down (makes me love my civil liberties).  We caught a cab from the Esmaraldas terminal to Atacames (this cabbie was much better, though he was going 120 km in a 50km zone), and met up with our compañeros who had come the night before.

We stayed at an $8-a-night place called "Chill Inn" that featured an adorable puppy, hammocks, and nice-enough rooms.ccAt about 5:50 a.m. on Saturday, four of us in one of our rooms were awakened by the sound of a woman screaming bloody murder outside of our room.  We can only speculate as to what happening, but it was very disturbing, and I don't think any of us slept particularly well for the rest of the night.

A good example of life at the "Chill Inn."  This cat and I had a moment.

The next day we had a nice breakfast at the hotel and then caught a pair of moto-taxis to Sua, a beach a little further down the coast from Atacames.  Ben, Julia, and Gwen decided to go whale watching, so the rest of us decided to stay on the beach and be vitamin-d absorbing vegetables for a while.  For lunch, we went back to Atacames and chowed down on some mariscos and then headed back out to the beach.  In the evening we made a run of the various Atacames bars, I nearly got robbed by a bunch of small children who were surrounding us with the pretext of teaching one of our friends how to dance (luckily, Alex came over and loudly announced we needed to move along).  We ended our evening with a 1:30 am dip in the Pacific, and then called it a night.

The next day, the majority of our group decided to catch an earlier bus back to Quito, but Gwen, Julia, Ben, Michael, and I decided to stick around.  Once out on the beach, Ben and I negotiated with some of the people working on the beach and ended up parasailing for only $35 split between the two of us.  We did some bodysurfing, had some ceviche, and then decided to head back to Esmaraldas to catch a bus to Quito.  As luck would have it, when we got to Esmaraldas (around 3:30), there were no busses with open spots until 11:30 pm.  To kill time we went down to Las Palmas, a beach in Esmaraldas where we were certifiably the only white people.  We played Yahtzee and watched the sun go down over the Pacific.  After a few more hours of homework, boredom, and near-insanity, we boarded our bus back to Quito.  We got to the station at 6:00 am.  Needless to say, classes for the next few days were rather painful.

Right now partial exams are getting into full swing, so I'm going to be rather busy for the next few weeks.  On friday I leave for Tiputini, USFQ's biodiversity research center, so I should have some interesting stories once I come back on monday night (though this means I will be missing both Ecuador's world cup qualifier against Venezuela, and the red river shootout [for the first time in my 20 years]).

Yeah, that look on my face says, "what the hell am I doing parasailing in Ecuador?"

If I don't end up killing myself somehow on this trip,
my mother will get me afterwards for being so reckless

Yup, this happened

Ceviche on the beach

Loitering to pass the time

Me, Michael, Ben, and Julia at Las Palmas

Like I said before, we all went a little crazy at the end of the long wait