By this time Percy’s commands had become second nature to us, although the Norwegians confessed that they were having a tough time taking orders. The next morning was ripe with ebullient sunshine. We were only too happy to hide away in the forest. Nagesh found a swing in the jungle, a la Tarzan, while Elmer shimmied up a tree to retrieve a green fruit. He then dipped a toothpick into the juices of the "tattoo" fruit before practicing his art on our hands. We looked on incredulously as he etched invisible shapes from the colorless liquid. But exactly as promised, a snake and a flower came alive on each of our hands, taking on jet-black outlines within an hour. Our tattoos lasted ten days.
Fishing was foremost on our agenda this morning. We rowed up the muddy waters of the shallow Gamitana river and anchored the boat under a shady tree. On a nearby boat, a father and daughter team was fishing and washing clothes. Their son, barely seven or eight years old, was standing ashore and expertly throwing in his fishing line. He’d already caught his lunch.
Elmer prepared our fishing rods; pieces of meat tied to hooks fastened to the ends of long wooden sticks. We all threw in our lines and waited in somnolent silence for a tug. Just as we were dozing off on the edge of our boat, Elmer caused a stir. We all stood up in excitement as he pulled up a big catfish struggling helplessly at the end of his line.
Inspired by his success, Kavita threw in her line in the same direction. She could feel some tugs but nothing each time she pulled up her line. Extreme patience in mind-dulling heat was about to pay off a few minutes later when she heaved out her line showing off a perfect little silver fish. Crazy with excitement, she began jumping up and down, rocking the boat wildly and destroying anyone else's chances of ever landing a catch. Meanwhile Nagesh, who was more concerned about losing the fish, rapidly goaded her to bring the catch into the boat. The ecstatic beginner first posed with her prize before handing it over to Elmer for cleaning.
Percy conducted our last activity that evening walking us around a medicinal garden in the lodge. The plants and shrubs grown here can cure anything from snakebites to altitude sickness.
Our fantastic hosts : Percy the manager and Elmer our ranger.
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