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11/2/10 Today's highlight was definitely the last hour and a half. I decided to go down to Kwite earlier this afternoon to help carry food back up for tomorrow's Independence Day festivities.
At about 4pm, it started to pour. Heavy rain, like welcome-to-the-rainy-season rain. Jon and Piper (regional leader) showed up an hour later, just as the river was rising. At one point, half a tree was floating downriver.
By 6pm we were on the trail. That's when it got fun. As darkness closed in, the purple and pink flashes of lightning lit up the trail. We were all soaked, yelling to each other to make sure we were all OK on the trail. Haaaooooaaaahhhh. Some people slipped and fell. We would all crowd around them yelling, laughing. Haaaooooaaaahhhh, haaaooooaaaahhhh, haaaooooaaaahhhh. They would yell and laugh as they picked themselves up.
As the blinding rain pummeled us, I thought about how I was one of the guys. It was as fun as it was exhilarating. Plus, I carried my chacara Ngabe-style (woven strap of bag on the forehead) which always earns some campo cred.
I arrived in Calante a little after 7pm, soaked, tired, and happy.
Side Note: They waited in Kwite with the food until everyone was ready so that they could all leave together. Though I waited with them, my impulse was to set out earlier because light would soon be an issue. It was interesting to see the community dynamic and my own cultural values manifested. Oops.
