I got up, packed, and then drank 3 cups of some of the best coffee I’ve ever had because I knew we had a long day ahead of us.  Today’s plan was to take an hour bus ride to the Amazon River where we would depart in canoes for the Waorani Nation.  

The bus we took had windows which allowed us to take in all the nature for it’s true color and texture. We stopped for a quick pee break and I saw a black and red tree frog which I couldn’t catch. Unbeknownst to me, this tree frog was probably poisonous so I was lucky he was also faster.  

As we rode in the bus, deeper and deeper into the forest, it became clear how remote we really were about to be.  We would see people bathing in the rivers, working on their small farms, and even a few kids playing soccer in their yard. This gave me some perspective about how different our lives truly are. 

Before we got onto the canoes, we made a stop at a local convenience store.  I bought many snacks that I didn’t know the names of, but all were very tasty. They even had Gatorade in glass bottles which I thought was pretty cool. 

We pulled up to the river and saw three giant canoes waiting for us with some staff already inside them.  We packed up our stuff onto the canoes and set off for the Waorani Nation.  With music on the speaker and views of the Amazon we’ve never seen before, we were definitely vibing. 

I’ve never seen so much greenery with canopy trees that tower over us. Some trees must’ve been at least 100 feet tall and their trunks were the size of my car. The river was mostly only a few feet deep, but there were times when it opened up into a giant mouth.  Our top speed was about 16 miles per hour and I’ve never seen anyone maneuver a boat, car, or any vehicle the way that our guide did.  We would thread the needle through branches and logs that I definitely thought we were going to hit. 

Halfway there, we stopped on a beach at another tribe location and munched on some sandwiches and fresh fruit.  After re-applying some sunscreen, we set off the finish our journey to the Waorani Nation. 

Our canoe ran out of gas about an hour away from the Waorani Nation, so I got out and enjoyed the water for a little.  I saw a tree hanging down across the water pretty close to where we stopped, so I had no choice but to climb it. Our guide couldn’t get the motor started for about 25 minutes and some of us got very nervous.  Right after we got it started, we saw some parrots at the top of a tree and then shortly after, we saw some spider-monkeys swinging from tree to tree.  

6 hours on the canoe only felt like about 2 hours because of how much I was enjoying the scenery, nature, and smells of the jungle. Once we arrived to our living quarters, we quickly realized that this was going to be unlike anything we’ve experienced before.  With no warm water, lights, or electricity, two nights here is definitely going to challenge us.  

We waited for dinner in the dark while taking turns rinsing off in the showers.  Dinner tasted amazing as we were all very hungry from a long day of travel.  Falling asleep was no issue with all the soothing sounds of the bugs, birds, frogs, and rain all around.