I had my breakfast at my hotel which
wasn't bad, (they served good coffee) and afterwards I made my way to the
Mashaquipe office for 8:30am. There were quite a few backpacker couples already
gathering and before too long we were all led down to the Beni River by a
couple of guides.
We all boarded a boat and it was great to be travelling along the river. Our first stop was to purchase our Parque National Madidi tickets at the reduced cost of 110 Bolivianos! We all then boarded the boat again, where we travelled for about an hour before stopping along the river bank. Here we visited a local community who process sugar cane into pure sugar and honey. We all had a go at pushing the large handle that turned the three big drums that crushes the sugar cane, which was great fun! The juice tasted great with a twist of lime and orange! We also had a taste of the sugar block which is produced and is sold for 10 Bolivianos (a block) at the market in Rurrenbaque, which seemed madness considering the amount of work involved in producing it. We were also shown some other fruits in the jungle including and tasting the coca fruit, which wasn't quite ripe yet.
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We boarded our boat again and travelled for about a further 90 minutes before docking at El Bala, the home of Mashaquipe. We were all shown our cabins, most were in dormitory style, but a Swiss couple had their own cabin and so did I. Within 15 minutes of arrival we were all sat around a table eating a huge meal consisting of plantain, rice and chicken amongst other things, which was finished off by some melon. After lunch we were split into groups, I was with the Swiss couple and we were all told we would be having a walk into the jungle later in the afternoon. We all had time for an afternoon's nap which was great.
The Swiss couple and I with our guide set off at 3pm and headed down to the river bank, where we travelled by boat south along the river for about 20 minutes before disembarking and heading off into the jungle. Our guide showed us many things, including trees that produced sap to treat acne, and a tree that contains poison which can be used at the end of an arrow tip! We also came across a tree that had bark that tasted and smelled like garlic! We spotted many ants along the way, and we also came across a wasp’s nest where I was subsequently stung on the hand! We also stumbled across a tiny frog and a very large butterfly.
After a good two hours walking in the jungle, we returned to the boat where we headed back to camp for our evening meal of fish, rice and pasta. One of the other teams had apparently spotted a huge spider, maybe my time will come later!
Whilst I was sat with my guide and the Swiss couple during our evening meal, he explained that we would be heading into the jungle in the morning and camping during the night before heading back the following day. I happened to mention that I was supposed to be doing the '4 Day Magic Tour' which involves two nights in the jungle? My guide seemed a little confused and had to call over a nearby man (whom he referred to as the 'administrator'), who basically just said 'don't worry' as he would 'work something out' ? I also learned that the Swiss couple had no intentions of spending a night in the jungle, as their package involved spending two nights staying in their cabin! (I think they are going to say something in the morning at breakfast) I will just see how things develop.
On our return to our cabins after our evening meal we spotted a cicada, a snake and a frog!
We all boarded a boat and it was great to be travelling along the river. Our first stop was to purchase our Parque National Madidi tickets at the reduced cost of 110 Bolivianos! We all then boarded the boat again, where we travelled for about an hour before stopping along the river bank. Here we visited a local community who process sugar cane into pure sugar and honey. We all had a go at pushing the large handle that turned the three big drums that crushes the sugar cane, which was great fun! The juice tasted great with a twist of lime and orange! We also had a taste of the sugar block which is produced and is sold for 10 Bolivianos (a block) at the market in Rurrenbaque, which seemed madness considering the amount of work involved in producing it. We were also shown some other fruits in the jungle including and tasting the coca fruit, which wasn't quite ripe yet.
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View from boat - Rurrenabaque to El Bala
.JPG)
View from boat - Rurrenabaque to El Bala
Processing Sugar Cane
Processing Sugar Cane
Processing Sugar Cane
We boarded our boat again and travelled for about a further 90 minutes before docking at El Bala, the home of Mashaquipe. We were all shown our cabins, most were in dormitory style, but a Swiss couple had their own cabin and so did I. Within 15 minutes of arrival we were all sat around a table eating a huge meal consisting of plantain, rice and chicken amongst other things, which was finished off by some melon. After lunch we were split into groups, I was with the Swiss couple and we were all told we would be having a walk into the jungle later in the afternoon. We all had time for an afternoon's nap which was great.
The Swiss couple and I with our guide set off at 3pm and headed down to the river bank, where we travelled by boat south along the river for about 20 minutes before disembarking and heading off into the jungle. Our guide showed us many things, including trees that produced sap to treat acne, and a tree that contains poison which can be used at the end of an arrow tip! We also came across a tree that had bark that tasted and smelled like garlic! We spotted many ants along the way, and we also came across a wasp’s nest where I was subsequently stung on the hand! We also stumbled across a tiny frog and a very large butterfly.
Heading off to explore the jungle around El Bala
Frog in the Jungle
Owl Butterfly in the Jungle
The Tuichi River in El Bala
After a good two hours walking in the jungle, we returned to the boat where we headed back to camp for our evening meal of fish, rice and pasta. One of the other teams had apparently spotted a huge spider, maybe my time will come later!
Whilst I was sat with my guide and the Swiss couple during our evening meal, he explained that we would be heading into the jungle in the morning and camping during the night before heading back the following day. I happened to mention that I was supposed to be doing the '4 Day Magic Tour' which involves two nights in the jungle? My guide seemed a little confused and had to call over a nearby man (whom he referred to as the 'administrator'), who basically just said 'don't worry' as he would 'work something out' ? I also learned that the Swiss couple had no intentions of spending a night in the jungle, as their package involved spending two nights staying in their cabin! (I think they are going to say something in the morning at breakfast) I will just see how things develop.
On our return to our cabins after our evening meal we spotted a cicada, a snake and a frog!
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