"At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time."
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche
Today was going to provide our Morningstar youth a life memory – they didn’t know it yet, but most of the chaperones already reading the tea leaves. We understood that Victor had a lot on the line so he had pulled out all of the stops to make sure the community was excited about the performance. We understood that with a town this small, if they responded to the advertising, there would be great numbers of people to show their support. After reviewing the venue, we knew it would allow the crowd to be up close creating a very interactive environment.
The morning started with a short bus ride to a village outside of Limon, called Indanza. Indanza was the home to newly discovered set of petroglyphs etched into obsidian rock. There are over 700 rocks and 1500 catalogued figures that ranged from representations of everyday life, animals, and astrological signs. Limon/Indanza area hopes to turn this newly discovered archeological find into a tourist attraction and opportunity for the town. After a family style served breakfast of potatoes, boiled eggs, fruit, juice, and the worst tasting cheese I have ever put in my mouth, Jose walked us through acres of these things. It was hot morning. So half the group was less than enthusiastic and found other distractions like climbing trees, cutting banana plants and finding cool looking bugs to throw at each other. Kieri tried to keep them engaged, but even she became distracted by the bugs occasionally. There were some very interesting insects flying and hopping around. We did eventually make it around to most of them, but the group was looking now for some relief from the heat which was hovering around 86 degrees in tropical humidity. Fortunately Indanza has just the place. Near the petroglyphs was a camping spot called “The Happy Camp”. Serious. It required us to use a rope drawn cable car across the river eight people at a time. Once across, the camp located in a 90 degree bend of a moderately paced river, there was a gradual sand entrance to the river, very small rapids to float through and a very good rope swing. With no insurance or lawsuit concerns, there was no limitations to the things our group could think up to do whether it was back flips off the suspended cable car into the river or multiple people swinging 30 feet on the same rope. It was a perfect activity to follow a hot walking tour through chest high grasses.
After a couple hours of this, we pulled ourselves back across the river, back to our waiting bus and anticipated being taken somewhere for lunch. But our hosts had other plans. We were all standing next to the bus waiting to get on when those serving us lunch laid out a perfectly white sheet about 2 feet wide and 20 feet long. We all stood in disbelief looking at each other wondering what they were doing. They didn’t make us wonder long. In the tradition of the Shuar Indians, the regional indigenous tribe, they tumbled a cornucopia of food onto the sheet starting with plantain chips, followed by seasoned potatoes, completed with boiled hominy and three types of meat: pork, beef and guinea pig (cui). It took us a moment to realize what they wanted us to do, but we finally got it and while it felt very primitive, it made the meal. The whole group was either on our knees or sitting on the jungle floor eating food laid right onto the cloth with no utensils or napkins. It was one of the best meals we have eaten here. We stuffed ourselves.
We loaded the bus and headed back to Limon to get ready for our show. Now let me take a moment to give props to our bus driver. He had already gone down in the Morningstar annuals as one of the best drivers we have ever had if not THE best. His ability to maneuver in busy cities, parallel park on narrow city streets clogged with traffic, and pass slower vehicles on winding mountainous roads was unmatched. But today he outdid himself. The petroglyphs were off the beaten path. The road to get to Indanzan area was not paved, included multiple time-tested bridges (if you know what I mean) that actually had signs before them that prohibited large vehicles from crossing them, and full on rivers that he had to splash through. The amazing thing is that whenever he encountered any of these obstacles or challenges, he performed them with about as much concern as you and I would have making a left hand turn. Amazing.
We arrived back in Limon and started to set up for the show. After Jim Stark secured a loose breaker, we were able to set up the sound system. We also had to re-hang just about every costume back on a the racks they were hung on at the end of the last show. They had taken the short route from Cuenca over what the driver called a “bumpy” road. After everything was set up, we waited for the crowd and polished a few numbers. The chaperones predictions proved to be right. 1/3 of the town filed into a typical South American gymnasium and was packed by the time the show was into its third number. Ecuadorians traditionally show up late for such events, but two thirds of the place was filled for the beginning. The crowd was enthusiastic and pushed the energy of the show with each number. The Disney Princess number nearly ended in a stage rush of children to touch one of the characters. At the end of the show, many of the performers were invited to attend a prom dance of sorts the following night in the same location as the performance. If you asked the group which show was the most memorable, you would hear Limon from almost every performer. It had a great impact on the teenagers and they really made the town feel validated that a group such as them would travel all the way to Limon to put on that kind of show. Many of them had never seen something like this before. The group shared with them their uniqueness and the crowd and town were changed as a result. A great performance, a great crowd, a great experience – a lifelong memory.
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