Ok, so lunch. Lunch was made by Ursula and was tasty. After lunch we drove about an hour away to an unprotected Mangrove area. In this area motor boats are allowed, so we took a boat out to an island covered in birds. I don't recall if we were told what kind of birds they were, but the males have a large red throat they puff out to be more attractive. It has been compared to the Galapagos according to the tour guide (I'm assuming the whole bird displaying adaptation idea, etc.). I didn't particularly enjoy the island, as it smelled like bird poop and I discovered I'm afraid of large groups of birds.
After driving past the island, we landed on another one which hosts a crocodile sanctuary. The sanctuary was a little sad, as they have too little space for all the crocodiles that are there. Also, crocodiles have a very long maturation cycle (15 years) and there is a specific span in which releasing them to the wild is best. The sanctuary has about 20 crocodiles in this span, but unfortunately they have not started to release any because they want some unnecessary research money and, I believe to continue the sanctuary as a sort of tourist attraction. It's a really unfortunate situation.
After feeling a little let down by this portion of the tour, I was incredibly happy to spend some time in hot springs! Ursula took us to a local place that the city has be maintaining. It was really fun to get it, but since it was hot inside and out we didn't spend much time there. Before leaving the tour, Ursula asked us if we wanted to volunteer at a swim race the next morning. Our jobs would be to kayak next to the swimmers in the ocean and give them water and a break if they needed any help. Being sufficiently under-qualified, having just learned how to steer a double kayak, and no knowledge of life-saving skills we enthusiastically jumped at the opportunity.
The next morning, we woke up bright and early for the 6km ocean swimming race. After a few instructions, Mari and I hopped in a kayak and were off! For awhile it was quite fun. Free ocean kayaking! And with something to look and talk about while we did it! Then, one of the swimmers needed a break. So she grabbed on to the back of our kayak and we pulled her for awhile. Finally, she got off and swam a little more. Then she grabbed on again. And we pulled her. For ONE HOUR. I think that counts as cheating. After starting to feel exhausted from pulling a person in a kayak against the current in an ocean, we asked her if she would like us to signal the boat. She didn't. Finally, she went in to shore. And none to soon (I thought I, the rescuer, was going to need rescuing!) we reached the finish line! I'm sure the swimmers were more relieved than I was, they were so impressive! Big waves that day! We then had some fruit (peruvian idea of a breakfast buffet) and headed back to the hostel for some rest.
The next few days at the hostel passed by in a blur of beach, sun, reading, and good restaurants. We also discovered 3 bakeries in town which we frequented alternatively several times a day (we asked when they took the bread out of the ovens). And, oh!, I almost forgot. On our last night there, a truck crashed into the side of our hostel! It came in on the back corner and couldn't stop. It knocked down a wall and two bathrooms. Luckily, no one was in the bathrooms so no one from the hostel was harmed. However, they had to carry the driver away and someone said that he didn't have feeling in his legs. Scary! It is really fortunate that the truck hit where it did, because it wasn't a wall connected to any bedrooms.
Finally the day came where we had to head back to Lima, aka. school, cold, real life. I, of course, felt sick.
Despite feeling slightly sick, I decided it was nothing and boarded the bus prepared for 20 hours of the same horrors. The first thing that happened was the bus driver put in a movie. The movie was Taken. I'm not even kidding. I had to watch again, the story of kidnapped tourists. What does that mean?? As the day went on, I also began to feel sicker and sicker. I kept a trash bag ready at all times. Finally, just as I thought I might need to use it, we made our ONE stop of the night. After scrambling off the bus, I raced to the bathroom. I had just gotten my first bout of traveler's diarrhea. With 11 hours left on a bus. That doesn't have a functioning bathroom.
This goes in to one of the worst moments in my life list. After vomiting and drinking some water I got back on the bus and had a fitful sleep and cramps and generally yuckiness. We finally arrived in Lima, took a cab back to the house and I laid in bed for about 8 hours. I missed my classes and wanted my mom. But, the next day I felt a lot better. I ended up taking an anti-biotic for this kind of thing and am happy to report that I am doing much better. I am however, going to be a lot more careful with what I eat from now on.
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