Aaron's Amazing Amazon Adventure

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I fished for piranah! I swam with electric eels! I swung from vines! I ate ants that tasted like lemons! I had a Huaroni elder show me how to use a 4 foot long blowgun! I paddled upriver in a dugout canoe with only a freshly plucked branch!

It was one amazing Amazon adventure.

Every day that I stepped into the jungle to go to work it was like stepping into a zoo.

I saw so many frogs, including a Blue Jean Dart frog, and lizards and a few snakes.

I saw four species of monkies including Saki monkies! Saki monkies!!!

There were birds everywhere Toucans and Gruas and Parrots. The Long Tailed Potoo I saw was probably the most incredible bird I have ever seen.

There were some spectacular animals along the river as well, white caimans and blue and yellow macaws.

It was a dazzling 10 days.

Even though I was still working with insects (Inka [also from Yanayacu] and I baited butterfly traps with rotting bananas and checked them everyday for five days) it was so refreshing to get out of Yanayacu where it sometimes feels like I just sit in an old chicken coup staring at caterpillars.

The amazon reinvigorated my interest in biology.

Diego, the nature guide, invited me to do a turtle study in January and then asked me to help him study whales next summer!

There were some really great people at the amazon station, and a bunch of tourists.

I became such good friends with the workers that I eventually was a part of the staff, serving the tourists, washing dishes, etc.

I was able to experience so much and see so many new things in the Amazon! I'll definitely post some pictures when I can.

Oh, and yes, Dad, I took my Malaria medicine. :)

-Aaron

P.S. To all of you who have been waiting for an e-mail from me, I'm sorry about the delay, but internet at Yanayacu hasn't been working for 2 months and we have to take 2 hour long drives to get to an internet cafe. But I will write soon!

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