What does it mean to be indigenous? The front cover of my travel guidebook (The Lonely Planet) proposes one way of interpreting it. A short man without clothes and with paint on his face. Surrounded by trees. Looking up. This is where your own imagination comes into play. He is either looking for a plant with healing powers or looking for some dinner. Maybe a monkey, a snake or, even better, what about some human flesh?
I stayed in a lodge run by an indigenous community in the Amazon jungle a week ago. Some form of eco-tourism. And it’s true. Their life-styles are different from anything I have seen before. Some members of the community could speak English and taught us about their traditions: the food they prepare from the river and the forest, the crops they cultivate, the importance of interpreting dreams and what plants they use for medicinal purposes.
However, the crazy jungle men interpretation from my Lonely Planet turned out to be very inappropriate. In reality, there are only a few tribes in the Ecuadorian Amazon left that live without knowing about the presence of other civilizations. And then it’s yet to question how – “untamed” they are.
So I am afraid I won’t go home with bloodcurdling stories about being chased by crazy jungle men. What stood out to me more than anything were the qualities that they share with the outside world. Our guide was wearing jeans. No skirt made out of palm leaves. After a long hike through the rainforest, the first thing he did was playing volleyball with his friends. Not hunting jaguars. It was Saturday night that showed it all. The Ecuador-Chile football match. All men of the community gathered around the only television present in the village. The atmosphere after the game (Ecuador lost with 2-1) reminded me of the last time Holland lost from Germany.