We last left off with our first Eco-Fair and the festival of
Raymillacta (or ”Town Party” in Quechua) approaching. I´m happy to report the Eco-fair was a huge
success and Raymillacta in La Jalca was unforgettable.
At the Eco-Fair we
sold all of the native Aliso and Putcaro saplings in the first few hours. Our
artisan group Pachamaytuna also sold a lot of beautiful scarves, ponchos,
shawls and tapestry´s. The turnout from other communities was fantastic too.
There was organic coffee, honey, vegetables, sugar and tons of other delicious regional
products. It was so inspiring to see so
many people come together to appreciate and support sustainable, organic industry
here.
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| At the Ecofair in Chachapoyas |
Raymillacta was incredible. In La Jalca we had great weather and Brian and I really
felt like part of the festival this year. We marched in the parade in our
traditional clothes and I even got to "model" the Artisan goods in a fashion
show.
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| La Danza del Oso (Dance of the Bear) |
We are getting
ever closer to establishment of the conservation area and recently finished the
biological studies in the field. The team of biologists found over 30 different
types of orchids, evidence of the endangered Spectacled Bear (Oso de Anteojos)
and some beautiful hummingbirds and tanagers. We can´t wait to get out in the
field for more investigating.
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| "Llamapampa" future conservation area |
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| Tanager |
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| Orchids |
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| Hummingbird |
This week we
returned from a three day camp in Tarapoto where we took part in teaching an environmental
education camp to underprivileged kids. We camped in the jungle, went on nature
walks, talked about conservation and had bonfires with s´mores. We learned how
to play the Peruvian equivalent of dodgeball which is called Mata gente (Kill
people). We can´t wait to show our friends back home this version of the game.
