Baños – Monkeys

February 27, 2010

OK, I plan to leave Baños today.

At breakfast I am talking with fellow travelers, and one of them mentions the monkey preserve.

MONKEYS?!?!?

I quickly weigh monkeys vs. being THREE days behind the plan, and the Monkeys win.

To days ago I was int he Andes. Today I ride into the Amazon. Incredible!

I rode out of Banos to the town of Shell. That’s right, folks, Shell had such a big operation here exploiting the Amazon building their business here that the town got named after them.

Translation: Airplanes crossing.

I didn’t know how to find the monkey place, but a lady where I bought a water told me to keep going the way I was going, and to turn left at the cows.

Cows?

I got it when I saw this.

Further clarification.
Translation: The Monkeys

So I park the bike, lock my riding gear into it, and enter the gate.

First thing I see is a monkey running at me…from overhead. I have no experience with monkeys and I am scared. I see people farther away…surely they would not let these monkeys loose around people if the hurt / bit / etc.

ACK! He is so happy to greet me he jumps off the overhead line…and onto my head.

I try not to panic.

I love animals, but have ZERO experience with monkeys.

help?

(By the end of the day I am totally inured to pretty much everything the monkeys do to me…)

I took 300 pictures..
I’ll only bore you with 100.

There were 4-5 dmogs that live here. They are marvelously enduring of everything the monkeys dish out–the coatimundis, too. This juvenile is trying to hump the dog.

yeah, that’s monkey pee on my shirt.

I had to get  used to them trying to chew on me.  never got bitten, but I was wondering a few times if I should have gotten those rabies shots the CDC recommended…

I have to tell Karina I got a new hairdresser…

This guy decided to take a nap on me.

This was the highlight of my afternoon. A walk in the jungle with the dogs…and monkeys…and coatimundis…

Lazy Monkey. I’m the transportation. I loved it.

Well, I have no more fleas.

Ok, I could not help it. o comment, but I had to take a picture…

This one decided that I was suckable. Literally. I had a monkey hickey. Finally the handlers got him interested in something else other than me.

I spent the whole afternoon there. what a treat! It’s a trip highlight for sure.

<>

LUNCH!

At the hostal one of the lady travelers said she didn’t know she needed a Yellow Fever vaccination for Brazil. I paid $150 for mine in the states, she got hers for free from the Ecuadorian public hospital.

Now I’ve had this rash / blistering / general yuck on my hands for a month. It itches a little and the skin is peeling off. Kinda gross to mention, so I haven’t before. I decide to try my luck at the Shell hospital on the way back.

The Hospital:

I walk in, a nurse-looking person greets me in the hall, I explain what I am there for, she writes me a prescription  for a cortizone cream, tells me to get a different pair of gloves, and I walk out. 5 minutes tops. No fee, either. 🙂

NEVER in the States…

I stop to take a picture of this. How often do you see a pig bein sliced up and served roadside? The lady is super nice even though i already told her I ate chicken 20 minutes ago, and shows off her pig.

🙂

Great Day.

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