A few photos...

Our volunteer house

Me and Katie

Small river

Bomb fire

Puyo market

Puyo

Breakfast in Arutam

Shelly

Irshim volunteer house

Macheteing the bamboo in Irshim

Weaving in Irshim

Coeur de palmier

Irshim breakfast: papachina, plantain and beans

Dollis and Reina, my guides.

A storm is coming!!

A day in Baños ...

Baños is so great! Such a party town.. Last night I had the most amazing burrito and danced away to some hard core reggaeton music in Leprechaun bar. It was actually really fun!
This morning we woke up at 5.15 am to go to the thermal baths and see the sun rise over the hills. I was really suprised that it was so packed at that time. There is three pools, one cold, one warm and one boiling. I went with Chad and Liv and we mostly stayed in the warm one because the cold one was freezing and the hot one was BOILING! It actually hurt!
Then we came back to our hostal, Plantas y Blanco and had the most amazing breakfast I´ve had in 2 weeks: eggs, home made bread, cheese, jam, freshly squeezed orange jus and tea. YUM! After that, we didn´t go zip lining. We actually went Swing Jumping off El Puente San Fransisco above the Rio Pastaza! It´s similar to bunjy jumping except instead of bouncing you jump off the bridge nd swing back and forth.. I was so so scared and almost didn´t do it! I climbed up onto the ledge and freaked out and wanted to get down but the guy litterally pushed me off! SOOO SCARY! But so amazing! I´m glad I did it! Not sure I would do it again though. The drop was terrifying, until you start swinging, because you ´re litterally free falling and it feels like it´s never ending...
We also walked around Baños and walked into one of the masses at the cathedral which was quite impressive. The cathedral was packed and they played music. And yes papa I light a candle :-)
Baños is really beautiful and fun, and I will definitely come back for a day or 2 when I leave Arutam.

We´re heading back to Arutam this evening so I nead to stock up on food before we go! Oh I also forgot to mention that whilst I was in Irshim, I was given a Shuar name. My name is Nunqui. Pronounced Nunkwi. Nunqui is a goddess, mother of the earth, a forest spirit. She is very special to the Shuar, especially to women. She lives in the ground, caring for the roots and at night comes out and cares for all the things around her. In the old days, Nunqui offered a baby to the Shuar who could receive anything she asked for. The baby made the Shuar discover Chicha and how to prepare it as well as learning how to hunt and cook. Howver the Shuar were ungrateful and became greedy, so Nunqui took the baby back leaving them frantically searching for the it. Since then, the Shuar are very thankful to Nunqui and have apparently learned from this and teach their children to be grateful to the plants and all around them.
Chad is called Nurinkias, which means warrior and Katie is called Ipiak which means crazy women!

I also wanted to share with you that I currently have about 90 mosquito bites on my body! It is awful!! I can´t wait to leave the forest and stop itching! The hydrocortisone cream is really helping but I need more!!



Maintenant pour les francais! Excuses pour ne pas ecrire en francais, mais je sais que vous comprenez et j´attends des commentaires!!! Allez Allez! Vous me manquez tous enormement! C´est genial ici!
Je suis a Baños en ce moment,  a 3 heures de Arutam, on sámuse vachement ici! Ce matin j´ai fais du ´swing jumping´ c´est un peu commen le saut a l´elastique sauf que au lieu de rebondir tu ´swing´sous le pont! C´etait genial mais je pense pas que je le referais. Ca fait trop peur! Le mec m´a litteralement pousser parce que je pouvais pas y aller toute seule!
On retourne a Arutam ce soir.. Pas trop heureuse de retrouver la nourriture des Shuars apres un weekend merveilleux, mais je survivrais!!!
Je vous embrasse tous tres fort et j´attends vos commentaires!!!



RIM!!!!!! Ou es tu??

Running from the jungle tribe..

Wow! What a week I have had! So on Monday, I made my way to Irshim with Katie, Helen and Chad. Jorge who lives in Irshim accompanied us on the 3.5 hour trek through the jungle. We were supposed to leave straight after breakfast around 8 am but it started to rain so much that we waited and left around 11 am. So the trail to Irshim was so so muddy! We arrived there soaking wet and I had mud up to my thighs!  Luckily we didn´t have to carry our backpacks because a horse accompanied us too and carried them for us which was amazing! We named the horse Shelly but later realized Shelly is a boy named Macho!
Oh my god! I thought the food in Arutam was bad! I take all of the bad things I said about Arutam back! In Irshim all we had to eat was boiled yucca, boiled plantain and boiled papachinos (some kind of potato)! I hardly ate whilst I was there, it was that bad! I´ve lost so much weight, I´m definitely pigging out this weekend! We did have 2 soups which were pretty good though. One was made with rice, yucca, carrots and chonta (which is a palm), the other was a heart of palm soup! It was actually quite yummy!
Irshim is completely different from Arutam. It is in the middle of the jungle, there is no road, no electricity. It is so much more authentic and primitive in comparison to Arutam! In Arutam they have mobil phones and matresses. In Irshim we slept on wooden bunk beds.. comfy! However it did wonders for my back!
Working in Irshim is like a labour camp compared to Arutam! We worked from about 8 am until the afternoon and only breaked for lunch. I should really stop complaning though because (thankfully) mother nature was not on my side and I left Irshim on Wednesday. So I only worked there for one day. Which was plenty for me anyway! In the morning we chopped down some bamboo with machetes which is such hard work. The bamboo was to be used for the roof of a water tank they are building and also for the floor of a new house. In the afternoon, we went into the forest to find heart of palm (coeur de palmier). I didn´t realise where the heart of palm actually came from. We chopped down five 100 metre high palms, called Chonta. Once the tree has fallen, towards the top of the palm there is a dark area where the heart is. Then we had to slice through the several layers surrounding the heart. We taste it fresh from the tree too! It is nothing like the one in cans. When we got back to their house, the mother made a soup from the heart of palm which was really good! So on Wednesday I left in the morning with two of the family´s young daughters: Dollis who is 12 and Reina who is 10! Funny right! I was so happy to get back to Arutam which feels like luxury in comparison to Irshim! I was starving when I got back and I missed lunch too, but the volunteers who had stayed were kind enough to give me some bread they had brought.
A new volunteer arrived this week, whilst I was in Irshim. Her name is Liv. We´ll most probably go travelling together after this, as well as with Chad and Helen.
On Wednesday evening, we went back to Enrique´s parents house to dance to Shuar music and drink yummy chicha! On thursday, we went into the jungle to dig up and replant banana trees. That was so much hard work! We rested in the jungle after. Jaime´s wife (Jaime is one of Enrique´s brothers) joined us and kindly offered us more chicha and sugar cane which was really nice! It rained in the afternoon so we didn´t work. So me and Liv went to the shop in the next village, Pitirishka and we got caught in torrential rain but luckily managed to catch a bus there and back!
On friday, we cleared a path through the jungle with machetes. I am becoming quite a pro with that thing! Liv got stung by an insect on her hand and her whole arm started to burn for about two hours. Enrique and Alex (his cousin) kindly told her she wouldn´t die! I would have freaked out! HAHA!
This morning, me, Liv, Katie, Helen and Chad made our way into Banos which is about 3 hours from Arutam. It is absolute heaven here! It is surrounded by green mountains and our hostel has the most amazing roof terace with the most amazing views!!!! I´ll upload some photos from my trip so far tomorrow before I go back to Arutam.
Right now we are going to find out if we can go zip lining accross one of the valleys and then we´ll go make the most of happy hour in Casa Hood and drink some Mojitos!

Miss you all so so much! I wish you were all with me to see this!

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Quick message from Puyo!

This is just a quick message as we came back to Puyo today to buy a few things.

Firstly, sorry for not coming on skype but it doesn´t work in this cafe!

So this week, I´m planning on going to a different community called Irshim with 3 other volunteers. It´s a 3-4 hours hike in the jungle and you actually live with a family and do real work! And yes Papa, it is included in the price, it´s part of the same program just a different community.

Last night we made a camp fire next to our house and bought some sugar cane alcohol called Cristal. That stuff is lethal! Waking up to a bowl of mashed yucca was not my idea of hangover food! So we ate in Puyo when we got here! I also woke up with the worst back pain along my spine as if it´s bruised.. ouch!

So I´ll write back  next weekend when we come go to Baños. MWAH X

Living with the Shuar..

Where to start? I don´t even know! From day one I guess...

So I arrived in Arutam on Sunday 13th, with a volunteer I randomly met on the bus from Quito.There are 5 volunteers including me at the moment. We all live in a house in the jungle with hammocks to relax in during our free time. The jungle and the views are so amazing, I can´t even describe what it is like here. It´s kind of comparable to Pandora in Avatar!
The people from the community are all really nice and friendly towards us, but the children are scared of us. Probably because they aren´t used to seeing white people! The community is made up of one family of maybe 40 people and they live in several houses around the the forest close to the road. But Arutam is actually 1500 hectares!!
This week the work wasn´t bad at all. The first day (Monday) we planted corn in the jungle and then in the afternoon we picked up cow poop to make manure! It was hilarious! Then the main coordinator, Enrique, who we generally work with took us on a short walk through the forest. We climbed a really shaky tree house which they built a few years ago. And we could see the whole Amazon and the Rio Pastaza in the distance!! On a clear day you can see several volcanoes but that´s only if your lucky. I havn´t been lucky yet!
Tuesday was so boring! It rained almost all day and we couldnt work, so Enrique took us to his parents house where we drank chicha. Chicha is made from yucca which is masticated by the women and then fermented for a few days. YUM!! In the afternoon, we shuvled some dirt from the side of the road and watched some of the Shuar guys play volley ball and that´s about it.
Wednesday, we turn the ground in a field and planted more corn! Then we watched the Shuar guys play football against a group of students from Guayaquil, Ecuador. Go Shuar!! They won 4-2! In the afternoon, we walked into the jungle to collect palms to fixed one of the roofs in the community. The jungle is so amazing! I can´t even describe it! You´ll have to wait and see the pictures!! In the evening we went to Enrique´s parents house, where some of the sons showed and taught us their traditional Shuar dance. Good times!
Then yesterday (Thursday), in the morning we carried planks of wood from the forest closer to the community! Ouch! And in the afternoon, we trekked into the jungle, showered in a waterfall! AMAZING! And then we slept in a house in the jungle with an AMAZING view! We made a fire and ate dinner. And then we came back this morning after sunrise and made our way into town, Puyo.
Every day here is such a blast, we laugh so much and the Shuar love sharing their culture and stories with us.
Now more importantly, the food! Generally for breakfast we have popcorn (yep, like the one you have in the cinema!), sometimes pancakes, fruit. For lunch and dinner, we´ll have plantain, yucca, vegetables... It´s really my cup of tea but it´s not terrible! We did have a really nice yucca soup, fried yucca (which takes just like fries) and plantain pancakes.
I know I´ve forgotten to say so much but there´s just too much to talk about I can´t even remember it all !!

Got to go now.. Got to pick up the laundry! It´s impossible to dry your dclothes in the jungle because it´s so humid and they stink! Oh and my camera broke (so sad!) so I need to go fix it or buy a new one!

Love you all and wish you could all see how amazing this place is!

One day in Quito!

Hello again! Today was very tiring visiting Quito. Jet lag is definitely catching up with me!

Woke up really early for breakfast in my hostal which is lifeless! I've hardly seen anyone other than the staff, who are very nice! Then made my way to La Mitad Del Mundo (google it!), 13 km North of Quito. Had to take two buses to get there and this is when I realised Ecuadorians do not, I repeat DO NOT know how to drive! The bus lanes are in the center of the road here and the bus driver kept swerving into the other bus lane! And bus drivers seem to honk their horns for no apparent reason...
Anyway, I arrived safely at La Mitad Del Mundo, which means The Middle of the World, by the way. This was very cool! It's actually cordoned off by a wall all the way round and inside there are many touristy shops and restaurants and several museums too. And all around are mountains which get covered by clouds as midday comes around. Absolutely beautiful!!
I then made my way back to Quito and walked around the Old Town. It is filled with colonial buildings and churchs and is very pretty, in comparison to La Mariscal district (New Town) which is quite run down and full of unfinished buildings. Apparently today is the 50th anniversary of something religious (sorry for the lack of details, I didn't understand what I was told) and there was a huge procession through the streets of the Old Town. Hundreds of people were walking towards one of the amazing churches, Iglesia de San Fransisco, chanting and throwing rose petals on the floor. Very interesting!

Tomorrow morning, I'm off to the jungle for 4 weeks, where I'm volunteering. I'm so excited! I have a 7 hour bus ride ahead of me! It's 5.5 hours to Puyo and 1.5 hours to Arutam. So please no one worry as I won't be updating until the weekend!!

Bye bye for now!

So the journey begins...

Writing straight from Quito, Ecuador!
I finally made it after a long day travelling with dissapointing American Airlines! No individual screens (only First Class passengers have them) but more importantly no free booze! It was $7 for wine and $5 for a can of beer! So there was no taking my mind off this crazy trip I've embarked on! However, the friendly air hostesses, food and full size cans (not the poxy little one you get with EasyJet!!) were nice!

So here is how my day went... Caught my first flight from Heathrow to Miami, which took 10 hours!! And we were late (I'll explain more after!) American Airlines are very cheeky! Firstly, they make you walk through First Class (reclyning seats, individual screens, they even eat on plates and use metal cutlery! Which makes no sense. You're not aloud to bring a knife in your luggage but they give you one on board!), then they make you walk through Business Class (reclyning seats, ...) and then you get to Economy Class! Which isn't all of that! You do get a comfy head rest though! We watched Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps and The Ghost Writer (both boring!). Had lunch and dinner before arriving in Miami, 20 minutes late. Then I realised I only had 40 minutes to get off the plane, collect my baggage, go through customs, go through security, check-in my luggage and catch my next flight! And Miami Aiport is freaking huuuge!
I caught the SkyLine or SkyTrain and litterally ran to customs where a very slow and annoying man casually told me 'you ain't gona get there' when i told him I had 5 minutes to get to my next flight for boarding! Then I ran again to baggage reclaim, found my backpack on the floor with everyone elses suitcases! Tried running to the connecting flights area but failed.. it is impossible to run with a backpack on your back! Not funny! Had to catch the stupid SkyLine again and arrived just on time for boarding! Fiouf!!
This flight from Miami to Quito lasted 4 and half hours and was so bumpy!! Had dinner again as well and watched Morning Glory with no sound because the earphones wouldn't plug in! Hmm..

We got off the plane in Quito and almost instantly I felt the altitude. It kind of feels like Steven is sitting on my chest whilst I breath! I was bombarded with 'taxi, taxi', 'senorita this, senorita that', 'Secret Garden' !!! Apparently it is a hotel! Jumped in a taxi, with a crazy female driver doing 90 km/h down the main avenue and arrived at my hostal, which is dissapointingly silent!
Not complaining though, I'm knackered!! I only have 1 day in Quito before I go on to my voluntary thing, so I have a busy day ahead of me...

Check back next time to see where Angelique goes next!




Ps: Miss you Mummy, Papa, Emma-Jane and Steven! :-(

J-6 !!

As the title shows, there's only 6 days left until my big trip! Eeiiik!!

I'll be spending the first 4 weeks volunteering in an indigenous community called the Shuar, in Arutam, Pastaza, Ecuador. Then I'll be backpacking my little self around Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Costa Rica, Mexico and finally 1 week in New York City baby!
I'll be back home on July 16th!! Aaaah! So far!

Wish me luck!!