Earlier in the week, we noticed a chicken locked up in a coop which is unusual since all of the chickens run free on the island. This upset us, as we thought they were going to kill the chicken for food or send her to the market. We later found out…
“Go through these and pick out the bad ones!” Gilberto says pointing to a pile of about 5,000 beans. These days we are amazing bean sorters. Each morning after breakfast we spend a few hours tirelessly going through what seems like endless Chiclayos (peruvian slang for whatever type of beans…
Theresa and Dallas are two of the 6 Red Uakaris on the island. They are the only species that have to live in cages because of their aggressive behavior toward other monkeys, and each other. Our cottage over looks the Red Uakari’s cage, so naturally we have become best friends….
Carlos is a little rough around the edges. He can be sweet, often taking your hand in his and playing with your fingers, but he mostly just wants to pull hair. As soon as you let your guard down, Carlos will leap toward your head and pull your hair with…
Sueca and Perla are the island’s two howler monkeys. Sueca was brought to the island when she was a baby, with a broken tail, wrist and three worms in her neck. She had to spend two weeks in the hospital. Today, she is healthy and happy, and luckily her tail…
One of our least favorite volunteer tasks on La Isla De Los Monos is raking leaves (they call it sweeping). When Davidson first explained the task, we thought he was kidding. Sweep the jungle floor? Funny. Turns out he wasn’t kidding. It takes two hours for four people to rake…
We first met Anita in the kitchen, face planted in a bowl of soup. Anita loves food and a result, she’s a little chubby. She doesn’t have many friends on the island and prefers to play alone. Since she is still a baby, she’s a little clumsy and it’s funny…
When the sun starts to make its descent in the Amazon, hundreds of dragonflies begin to dance. With a swirled, periwinkle and tangerine sky as their backdrop, they sway back and forth giving their last adieus to the setting sun. Last night was special. The day had been hot so…
Melita, a Monk Saki,was the baby of the island before Neeko arrived earlier this week.. and she definitely plays the part. She needs to be attached to something (preferably you) at all times because she scares easily. Sometimes she plays by herself when we are sorting beans, but she always…
Last week, on our walk through the rainforest, we came across a beautiful, white fruit with green and yellow spots. I had never seen one before and asked Gilberto what it was. “Noni!” he exclaimed. No way! He has noni trees growing in his backyard, and I’m at home paying…