Our simple 4 hour bus ride down into the jungle to the animal refuge in the pouring rain turned out not so simple when the bus parked on the side of the road and everyone got off in the pouring rain (we walked 8 kms in it so sorry if I repeat it was pouring which it was). Turns out there was a landslide that had wiped out the road ahead. (pretty common here in the wet season) So when in Rome... we grabbed our backpacks and truged off following the crowds. Walking over a landslide in the pouring rain with our backpacks was a interesting time. We were knee deep in mud some of the time and the other side of the mudslide was down a really steep embankment. The stress was if you fell you weren't getting up in a hurry. Your butt would get stuck in the mud. Several locals offered to carry my pack for me, I guess we looked pretty funny a pair of drowned rat gringos. I didn't hand my pack over because 1. I can do it myself thank you and 2 if they did the bolt with it there was no way I was catching them. After conquering the slide we then walked about 8km to where the buses were able to turn around and take people onwards. We found a shared taxi that was heading to our village when it had another 6 passangers possibly an hour away yet. The guy looked at two wet gringos and handed us a gringo price which was more than our 4 hour bus trip. Needless to say I hit the roof and spat the dummy, I stood in front of about 6 taxi drivers and told them ¨this is what I want!, I'm not paying anymore than this and I will not wait an hour - look at me I'm a girl and I'm not happy to stay drenched for another hour!!¨´ We left 20 minutes later for a lower price and with several empty seats in the taxi which is unheard of here. Occassionaly the girl needs to chuck a hissyfit to get her way.
