The Pachamama Journey, Ecuador

Although there were obviously many things that drew me to come to South America, this part of the trip was something I had been looking forward to doing for a few years and we essentially planned our trip around. Close and longtime family friends of the Binders started an organization called The Pachamama Alliance over a decade ago and I have seen it grow from small gatherings to a worldwide organization with thousands of members. Initially, the goal of the Pachamama (meaning "Mother Earth") Alliance was to assist a group of idiginous people in Ecuador, the Achuar, to maintain their territory of prestine rainforest as well as their culture. Where it sets itself apart from many of the old Save-The-Rainforest-type causes is that the founders realized early on that just trying to save these people was a fruitless task unless we were also able to understand and change the root casues of the things threatening the Achaur territory and lifestyle: In short, the consumption and lifestyle of The People of The North (us). So, this trip with the Pachamama Alliance is designed to have People of The North like me and Zack see the Achaur Territory and traditions, see why its worth saving, and most importantly begin to think about what needs to change in order to do so.


Our group was about as diverse as they come, with ages ranging from 11 to 60. We had a family of 5 from Boulder, CO, a monk, a mother son duo, a German engineer who recently left the auto industry in Detroit, and of couse the "twenty somethings" as we became known. We met up in Quito and boarded our bus for a town in the Andes to see a market, hike a lake, and of course visit some Shamans. I don't think I can do the Shaman meetings justice through a blog, but they were quite the experience. His comments about each individual (while translated from Quichua, to Spanish, to English) were amazingly right-on about almost everyone. Impressive. We were then all "cleansed" and prepared for out trip into the rainforest though a ceremony that involved 95% alcohol, fire, and plants... performed by the Shamans whole family. Again, can't quite do it justice in words but certainly brought the group together and prepared us for the main part of our trip.


We then took two plane flights, on progressively smaller planes from Quito into the rainforest. You quickly realize the vast and untouched nature of the territory you are entering, only to be reminded that this is of the last such terrain in Ecuador. Its nothing but green in every direction, with the occasional brown cuts of river and small landing strips of the villages (there are no roads, so plane and canoe are the only means of transportation). After landing on the dirt runway, we took a motorized canoe (that immediately reminded me of that ride at Disneyland) to Kapawi Lodge, an ecolodge set on a small lake. We spent the next two nights in the villages of the Achuar, seeing their culture and learning more about how they have able to live for hundreds of years with little to no influence from the outside world. We spent two more nights in the lodge, explored the river and the jungle, and experienced some great rain storms (No, that's not Zack on the left in the picture, its my homey Quin - the youngest of the family from Boulder). I could probably write a book (there are already quite a few) on the profound nature of being exposed to such an environment but I will just say that it was certainly an experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.



Ok, for those of you just here for stupid pictures... onto what you all have been waiting for and missing: THE BEARD WATCH. It had been relatively non-newsworthy since Zack decided to shave and I decided to do nothing but let it flow for 2 months. As you can see from the first picture, the beard (as well as me in general) had become completely untamed and primal after over two months away from society. That meat you see is Cuy... aka Guinea Pig... and is quite delicious. I decided it was time to reconnect with civilization and clean up my appearence once back in Quito. I figured there was no better way to show that I was ready for the real world again than with the Handlebar Mustache. I have quickly learned that no one can take me seriously, not even Zack. Oh well, no one really took me seriously before so its actually not that much of a dropoff.

Next Stop: A short little plane flight to Santiago, Chile and then further south to the wilderness of Patagonia.

Also, Here are a ton of really great pictures from our trip, taken by a member of our group... the great Antoine Bonsorte.

Greatest Hits: First Half

Amazingly enough, we have survived the first half of the trip. We've been gone over two months, and have just under two more to go. I finally got access to a decent internet connection and computer, so thought I would put up some highlights and favorite pics from the first half (these are just off of one of my memory cards, not counting Zack's pics, or my other cameras... there are quite a few more where these came from). It has flown by and I am sure the next half will be even faster. Looking through all these makes me realize how far we've travelled and how massive and diverse this continent is. I feel we haven't even scracthed the surface. Speaking of which, we are in Quito preparing for a week long trip into the rainforest. Should be a few more pics to come...

Lima, Peru

Ok, second post in a day... this is what you all get for bugging me about why I haven't done a blog in "forever". We flew from La Paz to Lima, most flights anywhere connect through Lima, so we decided to stop through on the way to Quito, Ecuador. Those of you with maps in front of you might be wondering why we are going backwards, which is a logical question, but long story short we have to be in Quito by March 20th and it just worked out this way, ok? Many people had said Lima sucks, but we have quickly learned to ignore most people and judge things for ourselves. Luckily for us, we had been put in touch with a friend of a friend, a girl named Kara, who lives in Lima and would be happy to show us around. She has been a great host, taking us to great restuarants and bars, giving a walking tour along the coast (as seen in the pics), and connecting us with the locals, and a bunch of American twentysomethings.

Randomly, Kara had yet another friend of a friend come through Lima for the night, 4 bros newly graduated from USC on a one week trip to do Machu Picchu and connecting through Lima for the night. They bought drinks like they were free, rocked V necks so big I didn't even know existed, and sweated profusely while dancing on the local Limenas. Their flight was to Cusco at 6 am, so they went straight from the bar to the airport. Not sure if it was because it was their first night in South America, the fact it is just one week away from work, or the fratacity still running through their veins... but they went nuts and entertained us all. Thanks fellas, you make me feel young again.

Maybe its because we have had a local show us around, maybe its because we haven't really left the only nice parts of Lima (Miraflores and Baranco)... but I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. It certainly hasn't sucked. It's been the closest I've felt to being back in the states, even California, as the fancy shops and restaurants line the Pacific Ocean. I've eaten well, gotten some sun and had a few drinks. Huge thanks out to Kara for being a great host. Next stop, Quito, Ecuador to prepare for the journey into the Amazon.

Lake Titicaca

I've fallen behind a little bit, it was bound to happen. We went to Lake Titicaca last week, the day after doing The World's Most Dangerous Road. The two activities couldn't really have been much different, the former being dangerous and heart pounding while the latter was about as slow paced as you can get. While it was scenic and relaxing and for sure a great place to go, I can't say this entry will be long or mindblowing by any means. Anyway, we took a 4 hour bus from La Paz to Copacabana which is on the Bolivian side of the lake (Puno being the Peruvian side), managing not to get stuck in any rivers this time. The boat ride from Copacabna to Isla del Sol, the main island in the middle of the lake and supposed birthplace of the Incas, takes about 2 and a half hours. My guess it would be just slightly longer if you were to swim, judging by the boats leisurely pace. We hiked from the North end of the Island to the South which took about 5 hours and caught the boat back to Copacabana. The next day we headed back to La Paz. Ok, this is the last time I get to do this. "Titicaca"... hahahaa.

The World's Most Dangerous Road

Mom, I may have mentioned I was doing a "bike ride" the other day, but I intentionally left out some details of where this bike ride would be. There's a road about an hour north of La Paz known as "The World's Most Dangerous Road" or the "Death Road" that you can actually pay to bike down, so we did. Used as an actual main highway from La Paz to Coroico since the mid 1940's, there were many deaths due to cars plummetting off the 2,000 foot drops from the narrow road with little to no guard rails. There are all kinds of contradiciting statistics about the numbers of deaths and stuff, but what I can tell you from my own experience is that it is a very long, steep, narrow road with many winding turns and dropoffs that cars really have no business driving on in one direction, let alone both directions. Admittedly, it has gotten safer in the past few years due to the "New Death Road" they built on the other side of the valley which greatly minimized the amount of car traffic on the Old Road. After arriving in La Paz and hearing it was one of the highlights to do in Bolivia, we set out to find a reputable company that would let us bike down the road and experience it for ourselves.

We decided this wasn't the type of thing to try and go budget on, so we went with the biggest company called Gravity, which is a little bit more but we decided was worth the price. We heard stories of people paying half what we paid and having the back brakes fail, so we felt good about the choice. The bikes are all new with full suspension and disc breaks, and well maintained. The guides are well paid and experienced. A young English couple, Joe and Lucy, who we met and befriended through our Salar de Uyuni trip joined us. We boarded the bus in the morning and headed up and out of La Paz to the top of the road at about 15,700 feet where we pleasantly discovered it to be snowing heavily. We bundled up and got a saftey lecture from our guide, boarded our bikes and headed down the road. Over the course of 4 or so hours, we dropped about 10,000 feet in altitude over about 40 miles of road, mostly dirt, with very little pedaling. The road wound along the cliff side, under waterfalls, and past many crosses and memorials to those who managed to not stay on the road. The temperature went from near freezing to sunny and sweltering heat. We arrived at the bottom to enjoy a cold beer and buffet lunch at an animal sanctuary and resort in Coroico.

It was a great feeling to know we survived, but it wasn't really until the ride back up the road in the bus that we realized what exactly we had just come down. We stocked up on some cervezas for the three hour ride back up the Old Road we came down. It had been a few weeks since they drove back up the road due to mudlsides, so we were told it was quite a treat to go back up. Despite the snow storm at the top, we were also blessed with one of the clearest days in a long time, allowing us to see all the way back down the valley to see the road, as well as up to the snow capped crags up the valley. We stopped to take a few pictures, as well as for a bathroom break, and though I contemplated peeing off the ledge, I got scared. We arrived back in La Paz exhausted, surprised at how much riding a bike without pedaling can wear you out. So Mom, I am alive and well, don't worry. Our next stop is not quite as dangerous, but has a much funnier name... Lake Titicaca.

Oh and when I walked into the bar in the hostel the other day, a girl yelled "THIS IS SPARTA!!!" at me, so I guess the beard is doing just fine.