Day one of the pampas tour was unreal. Couldn’t believe how many alligators there were. One downfall is I owe a French woman some money as the tour operator failed to tell me about a 60 Boliviano entrance fee into the park. Without my ATM card I’m not sure how I can get the money to her when we get back into Rurre. It is tugging at my mind on what I can do. I may need to get a hold of someone for Western Union or something. This trip has simply just not been smooth. It’s been like a bumpy ride through the Andes.
Again, I have a very distinct memory that I didn’t mention in my journal. I remember on the bus ride to Rurrenabaque at one point we were in an area that was very lush and overgrown. It was dark and there was lightning. I recall feeling like a T-Rex was going to come crashing through at any moment. It felt like I was in Jurassic Park and I hadn’t even seen any wildlife yet. This was another long bus ride and we rolled into Rurre early in the morning of July 15th. Once in town, there was a little time to kill before boarding the truck that would take us on a 4 hour ride to the park where the pampas tour would be. It was about half way through that ride when it came to my attention I needed to pay money to get into the park. I was beside myself thinking fucking hell, can’t I just see one fucking thing!? As mentioned I did have a nice French woman loan me the money so I could get into the park. She was taking the tour with her boyfriend and they were going to be on the same tour as I. At the end of the truck ride we met up with our designated tour guides. Now, I should have been more pissed about this detail I’m about to mention but I was thankful to be going at this point. I paid for an English speaking guide through the travel agency and well, he happened to be “sick” so I got a Spanish speaking guide instead. Thankfully, the French couple were able to interpret for me as they understood Spanish. We boarded a supersized canoe with a motor and were on our way. Right from the get go wildlife was everywhere. Birds, Capybaras, Monkeys, Alligators, and Caimans. It was insane how many alligators/caimans there were. There would be a bunch of them laying on the land and a bunch swimming on the top of the water. The French couple interpreted to me the tour guide stating for each one we see the same amount are underwater. I was mesmerized seeing all this wildlife. It was what I truly had been wanting this whole trip. The chance to be out in some nature. It was a strong start to the tour and the momentum continued.
Basket of Thoughts 