Major update is required!

Hi everyone,
I´m so sorry about my lack of updates. We have been staying in extremely remote areas and, although I was back in Quito earlier, I couldn´t find the time to write in this.

Since the last update, we headed to Bellavista Cloud forest Reserve and stayed at the remote research station there. The place was rather unused by researchers and was annoyingly far into the bush. There was also - surprise - no electricity, so we had to make do with candles and gas stoves. This was an interesting experience with outdoor toilets and poisonous snakes. Santy came up to stay with us and work with us for three days during this. We all worked rather well together, driving around the area and setting up traps. I did finally manage to get some mosquitoes, so I was rather happy. However, when one has to sort them at night by candlelight, it is rather difficult to see what they are! The cloud forest was amazingly beautiful and we were woken up one morning by a loud toucan!

After four days in the bush, we returned a day early to Quito for rest and recuperation. Julio wanted to have a day to visit the museum collection here in Quito of mantids. Santy and I spent a nice day running errands and going on dates. We went to a lovely restaurant overlooking the city on Panecillo hill for dinner, and ordered great food and wine! It was so welcome after toughing it out in Bellavista with cold showers for a few days.

After our day in Quito, we were ready to leave again. This time, we headed out along a similar but more southerly transect. We stayed in La Hesperia Biological Reserve. The name is misleading because it is basically a hacienda that brings in international volunteers who PAY to work on the farm. While I liked the owners, it did seem rather fishy to me. Many of the volunteers were ill with unusual tropical diseases. One had contracted a very nasty reaction to the pollen from one of the local trees, making his face puff up horribly and skin break out into boils and blisters. The locals believe that this is a reaction of the forest to people cutting it down, sort of a revenge. Julio and I found many mosquitoes in sites along the road from Santo Domingo de Los Colorados - a pit, by the way - to Aloag.

In that particular valley, there is a major hydroelectric project under way to dam two rivers for electricity. The locals are running the project and are concerned about the common possibility of mosquito-borne diseases increasing. This happens because damming causes a massive increase in standing water. Anyway, the managers suggested that we put in a proposal to monitor the situation during the building of the dams and afterward too! It is a unique chance to study the changes caused before and after the building of dams. They also said that financial assistance will be possible. I´m pretty excited about getting into this, as it will be a fascinating side project, and will probably really help the community.

Otherwise we are in great health and doing very well. I think I am finally used to the food here. I was irritated because one of our traps was stolen in Tandapi. I was cursing the town on the way out, and just afterwards, there was a miraculous blackout! Aha! Proof that I have God-like powers!!

We are heading toward the Amazon side today. Wish us luck!