More on Day Two this evening, as I'm about to go to Dr. Torres' office to learn about various vector-borne diseases (malaria, chagas, leishmania). But for now, a photo-preview.
In Shuar culture, the face must be painted before venturing toward the waterfall; for these communities la cascada is sacred ground. I don't partake in the actual vision-inducing ritual, as this would require spending two nights alone in the jungle, ingesting some sort of wild psycho-tropic drug, and then swimming by the waterfall for some time. Apparently, when the Shuar do this, they receive visions of their life's purpose.
Instead, Gustavo uses the lipstick-consistency dye from a strange looking plant to paint me as a tigre. Because I am fierce, he says.
Darn right I am.
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