Day Three: Departing Morabaiko, you emerge to incredible mountain vistas, as you enter the villages of Yurong Paru, and then cross the Echillibar River to get to Monkey Mountain, one of the larger Pakaraima communities — named for the seasonal migration of monkeys from the northwest to the Kanuku Mountains to the south. The people of Monkey Mountain are multilingual — they speak Patamona, Macushi, and Portuguese, as well as English. A nearby waterfall allows you to cool off after the hot and dusty drive. Locals search for the precious minerals found in the area and use them to trade for fish and meat with Brazilians in nearby border villages such as Mutum. East of Monkey Mountain is Taruka, a relatively new village, originally formed by Brazilian Amerindians f leeing harsh conditions in their country. During the great Rupununi uprising of the late 1960s, most of the villagers returned to Brazil.
michael lam
Day Four: Leaving Monkey Mountain, you come to rustcoloured Tuseneng, founded by Archibald Scipio, the son of an itinerant black balata bleeder and an Amerindian woman.
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Because of Scipio’s appearance, he wasn’t readily accepted by his community — so he moved to the area that is now Tuseneng. Gradually, others joined him and formed the village. Having been adopted by his mother’s side of the family, Scipio went through the full crucible of training for Amerindian boys. Eventually he became a piai man, or local doctor. Passing the Kawa River (which is dry most of the time, but can rise to chest-deep in the rainy season), you reach Bamboo Creek for a brief stop, and then arrive at Paramakatoi. At an elevation of 2,500 feet, PK — as it’s called for short — is named for a wild guava found in the area. Branches from the trees are used to make arrows. If you want a bit of historical intrigue, ask the villagers for Macaw Cave, where you can see an urn with ancestral skeletal remains. From PK, the safari leads straight to Kato. With its setting like a natural postcard, Kato was the location of that experiment in growing potatoes and onions. The waterfalls nearby are earmarked for a future hydro-power project that will give electricity to the village.