Day 13: Islandia Village, Peru

Last day!!!

Before big life transitions, I like doing something that’s really difficult on all axis: emotional, physical and mental. When I succeed, I leverage that feeling of accomplishment and power to kickass in the life transition.

Day 12: Islandia Village, Peru

Three hour boat ride to our final village of the trip. My favorite time of the day has been cannon balling into the river in the early evening to swim and bathe. For thirty amazing minutes, I don’t feel hot or sticky. I’ve also loved waking up in the morning and brushing my teeth while watching the hawks fly by. But the best part of the trip has been the constant laughter that starts when we wake up.

Day 11: Santa Teresa, Peru

Had an amazing time yesterday swimming and bathing in the river. It’s just a huge feces infested swimming pool with branches and leaves chilling, and a built in cardio workout current. Had a look up at the sky during the before sleep pee session in the grass. I’ve never seen so many stars before!

As soon as I had made my peace with the jungle, Peru turned things up a notch. Climbed into my sheets on the air mattress to go to sleep and it was infested with more than 50+ little, red, crawling and flying insects. Baby pincher bugs. Absolutely terrifying.

Day 10: Buen Suceso Village, Peru

Base camp in the same village for a few days. It’s so nice to have a few hours in the evening to hang out and not move heavy objects.

Today, we’re seeing people from a village that is a cult. They worship the cross. First impression: women are subdued. Expressionless people where the children don’t cry, but they also don’t laugh.

Day 9: Buen Suceso Village, Peru

That terrifying moment when you realize you were taking Advil instead of anti malaria meds because they are the same color and similar size.

Active clinic time: 4 hours
Patients seen: 12

First time I took out broken root tips on my own after the crown broke off a tooth with a large cavity. Used the east west elevator after making a purchase point with a periodontal excavator. Whenever this happened to me at school, I let someone else help me, aka do it for me. Now it’s on me to own it, and it’s so satisfying to get those suckers out!

Smooth clinic day. Kids are cooperative in this village and easily bribed to behave with toys. They are smiling and laughing. Great vibe here.

We lanced a blister on the inside of my right thumb.  Kayaking and all the extractions are ripping up my hand.

 

Day 8: Palmari Village, Brazil

Day of rest in Brazil. Got to hang out with some of the kids in the village. They are ridiculously happy and smiley, abuse puppies, and have horrible teeth.

Kayaking on the Javari, then a nap in a hammock, a three minute rain water shower, and some reading. Feels like Christmas.

It’s good to look forward to very basic things again. It’s like a life reset. I’m not thinking about buying things or wanting stuff, or feeling annoyed by someone stupid. I’m focused on the meatier part of life right now, what really matters. It’s a new kind of freedom.

Day 7: Palmari Village, Brazil

Long boat ride up the Javari to get to our first village in Brazil. Lots of time to just look around and see how beautiful the area is.

Thinking about how we perceive things and what kinds of filters we use. If I think that the Amazon is bad, bug infested and totally out to get me, that’s what I’m going to be seeing, and I’m missing the rest of the good stuff… like the way the brown river water still reflects the beauty of the sky.

Pushing myself to change my filter and change my reality to e more positive. It’s really just a conscious choice.

Day 6: Break in Leticia

Back to regroup and recuperate in Leticia for 36 hours before heading out on the tougher leg of the trip.

This is clearly the most amazing and miserable thing I’ve ever done in my life. Just took my first cold shower in four days and I wanted to cry. Got laundry done, and put on clothing that doesn’t reek, grabbed a mango smoothie. Words cannot describe how this feels. Even just sitting on a bed, typing. Oh my freaking god.

Day 5: Puerto La Gria, Amazon River

Touchdown Peru. Village has more resources than the Colombian ones. Well kept school. More advanced drainage system to collect rain water to use for everyday life.

Hitting my stride. Accepting the discomfort of the insect bites instead of fighting it. Not keeping track of how many and where. Freeing up that mental space for other things, like seeing patients.

Our group is pretty amazing. Total of 12 people: a nurse, a cook, three general helpers, two translators, one coordinator, one urologist, one dental assistant, one dentist. We are a team. No jealousy or insecurity. Very little complaining. Nobody puts their needs before the needs of the group. This morning Jaime said, “if we lost any member, there would be a huge hole.” So we take care of each other.

Day 4: Puerto Triunfo, Amazon River

Cleanliness is totally relative. If I’m dirtier than a mostly stagnant pond of water, then using that water to wash myself down makes me cleaner. Using Aveeno white peach ginger body wash just seems hilarious. Amazing the things we think we need to get clean. Branding, marketing , and capitalism are so strong in the U.S. Right now, clean to me is brown water with some suspect green foamy junk on top that has been used to wash multiple bodies and laundry. We need a lot less than we think we need to be clean.