We arrived in Banos and decided to go Jungle !!! We booked a three day trip which would take us into the jungle and give us enough time to really absorb the place. We met our guid at 0900 on Monday morning, his name was Paulo or chicken (the spanish speakers among you may get the joke !) We walked to the bus station with our bags, provisions for the three days and essential footware, wellington boots !. We got a bus which wound its way down the valley, the scenery was amazing, lots of waterfalls and gradually thickening vegetation. We passed the Equadorian Army jungle Corp training camp, double hard !!. After about an hour we switched from the bus and got a pick up truck. Sam and I got in the back, we were both were really excited as the pick up truck sped us down a dirt track which led deeper and deeper into the jungle. At one point a massive vulture started following the truck, luckily it gave up the chase !. After about an hours bumpy ride we got out and walked to what would be our first camp. It was beautiful ! Situated on the river bank, a collection of huts on stilts, hammocks fixed between the trees, all surrounded by beautiful plants. We had a great lunch of guacamole with tuna and fresh bread, all prepared by chick. We then doned wellington boots and headed into the jungle. It is such an amazing place, it totally fills your senses with both the sights and sounds. It wasn't long before Chick found a huge cricket, It was good as Sam was a little nervous about them, they make such a loud noise you picture them in your mind as being monsters ! We then came across a 2 m long black snake wrapped around a tree, apparantley it wasnt poisonous, but we didnt get too close all the same !. Chick then found a suitably strong vine and we swung about about like Tarzan and Jane !. We eventually came to a beautiful waterfall and after walking in the 90% humidity it was a real relief. As we had coverd the ground quite quickly, we walked on to a second waterfall. It was nicknamed the hidden waterfall, as you couldnt see it as you approached. You had to swim through a gorge which curved around and then you saw it. It was really beautiful, chick jumped off a tree into it, Sam & I swam around and tried to take it all in. It was great because Chick was so knowlegable about the forest. There was one particular tree that we wont forget in a hurry. It's nicknamed the 'Macho'tree, when you see the photos, it'll become obvious !!. We got back to the camp and had a great supper, it was so nice just to sit there and listen to the jungle sounds and take it all in. We went to bed at about 2100, the noise was incredible, not only could you hear the river, but the crickets, tree frogs and countless other noises. It was like one of those CD's you can get to relax too. Mind you when your actually there, inside your mossi net, its a little difficult to relax, wondering what certain noises are ! The next day we crossed the river in a dug out canoe and walked to a native Indian village. A lady was making beatifully simple pottery objects so we watched her working. She then offered to paint our faces, with seeds Chick had showed us earlier. I also had a kind of henna tatoo done, which im assured will come off in a few weeks !. She also made beautiful jewellery from some of the seeds found in the forest which Sam & I couldn't resist. They live a very much subsistance excisitance, the forest really does provide everything they require. They still hunt monkeys with blow pipes and go on halluciagenic journeys ! We were allowed to have a go with the blow pipes. I went first, my first dart pathetically fell out of the end, the villagers thought that was very funny. Sam then went, they had put an orange on a stick about 15m away and with her first dart, hit it plum in the middle ! We then carried on exploring the jungle, with chick pointing out what all the trees and plants are used for. It is quite incredible. There were rubber trees, trees with sap that looked like blood, used to seal cuts. Leaves which when made into a tea act like imodium, others that help ulcers. Some which prevent cancer, leaves which are nicknamed jungle foil, they wrap fish in them and put them directly on the fire and like foil, dont burn. Palms which when flattened and scraped with a knife, produces a substance like nylon, incredibly strong and durable, almost every plant and tree has a use. We also eat ants which taste of lemon ! apparantley very good in a rum & coke !. We made our way back to the camp and had lunch before we set off for the next camp which was an hour down river. We travelled in a dugout canoe, a little unstable (we had seen one capsise earlier) but it was a great journey all the same, we saw a couple of people fishing with spears ! We got to the second camp which was at the confluence of two rivers, they then join the Amazon !. It was a similar set up to the first camp, the main differnce that this camp had a managerie of wild animals ! They had three Toucans, various parrots, a monkey and a massive boa constrictor ! They offered to put the snake around our necks, but we politely declined !!! We then walked to a nearby lagoon which had Cayman. There small aligators, about two meters long, but im sure they'd still give you a nasty nip ! It suddenly started raining really hard, it was really amazing if rain can be amazing !. We were both really tired and went to bed at about 2000 ! We both slept really well, i guess we were getting used to the noise !. The follwing morning we treked through the jungle and up to a view point, you could see the forest steching to the horizon, then mountains and volcanoes in the far distance. Absolutely breathtaking. As we sat there taking it all in, Chick made sam and I some necklaces from jungle nylon for the cord and Palm seeds for the beads, on which he carved an A & an S with his two foot long machette ! We then made our way back to the first camp where a pick up truck was waiting to take us back to Banos. Sam had developed a blister on her foot where the wellies had rubbed, we didnt have any plasters so Chick found a particular tree, cut into it to release a little sap, then applied it to Sams blister, it dried really hard like a second skin, awesome ! It really was an amazing experience, probably the best we have had so far. When you see the forest first hand you really appreciate what an amazing but incredibly precious place it is. We would both urge anyone who is thinking of going, to go.