Bolivia: La Selva

Day 6 of Bolivia was the day for “La Selva” or the Amazon jungle.  The journey was made by boat with a much more relaxing 3 hour ride through a wide open river that was lined with the picturesque jungle.  After arriving, we geared up for our first trek through the jungle.  When I stepped foot into the forest it was like stepping foot into the movie Avatar.  The trees were up to the sky, the deadly spiders were busy spinning their webs, and we were just humans trekking through the jungle.  There was also a surprising number of “mariposas” (butterflies, I love that word in Spanish) flying around everywhere.  Words cannot do the jungle justice.  It was beautiful beyond belief, like walking through a dream.

            After we finished dinner, we grabbed our flashlights and headed back into the jungle (not without some hesitation since it was pitch black out).  It was only at night that I was able to see every spider web with a deadly “araña ” (spider) the size of a quarter at the center.  Try having sweet dreams after that sight.  Still it was a trek I was glad I didn’t skip out on.  The jungle done not disappoint.

            Day 7 we took our final trek through the jungle and we encountered a rare group of jungle pigs.  We stood very still as a group of about 100 pigs passed just feet away from us.  These pigs are native to the jungle and can be very dangerous especially when traveling in large groups reaching more than 250 in size.  There was also a very foul smell given off by the pigs, signaling they smell humans.  I stood as stiff as a board as they walked just feet away from me.  You’re thinking what can a pig do right?  Would you want a group of 100 jungle pigs chasing you up a tree?  I also started breathing again once they last one was out of sight, then the aftershock/amazement kicked it.  Our guide told us how lucky we were to have such an encounter.  On the rest of the trek, we learned about some medicine trees that have all sorts of treatments including curing malaria.  The guide also showed us a branch of a tree that holds drinking water.  He took off a branch for us and we all shared in drinking some jungle water.  Eventually after we were all drenched in sweat and the 100 degree jungle began to get the best of us, we regressed back to camp for lunch and packing up.  We headed back to Rurrenabaque mid-day and the following morning we took a plane back to La Paz. 

            The final day in Bolivia was one I will never forget.  It began by paragliding for the first time over La Paz.  Don’t get me wrong, the paragliding was great but it was not the high light of the day.  The highlight came after my friend had landed from the last paragliding run.  I was waiting on the other side of a large farming field when my friend began waving frantically to come to her.  I walked over with little anticipation as to what she needed to tell me, but then she pointed to a cow and said that it is about to give birth. 

There I was in the middle of field in Bolivia about to watch a cow give birth.  After we watched the momma cow struggle for a few minutes, one of the paragliding instructors took it upon himself to play the daddy role.  He walked to the back of the cow, rubbed her side and then pulled at the legs of the baby calf until the calf saw the light of day.  Immediately the momma cow began licking her baby and bam, the paragliding instructor/cow birther was a hero and I got to witness the miracle of birth. 

To be honest, I don’t think I could have put a better stamp of an ending on such an incredible week.  Bolivia opened my eyes to a world of new things: the high altitude of La Paz, the Amazon, and the miracle of birth.  Hasta luego Bolivia, you have certainly been good to me.