Einmal Rum bitte - Weltreise mit dem Maulwurf

In Panama hatte ich einen netten Typen kennengelernt der mir irgendwann mal von den Tsachilas, einem indigenen Volk in Ecuador erzaehlt hatte. Er hat damals 2 Jahre mit ihnen gelebt und als Volunteer gearbeitet.
Wer etwas mehr ueber die Tsachilas erfahren moechte: Hier ein paar Infos (leider nur auf englisch, oder gerne auch auf spanisch wer mag).

Many know us as "Los Colorados," due to our custom of painting our bodies and hair with the achiote plant, but we prefer our true name: Tsa'chilas. "Tsa'chila" means "the true people" and our native language, Tsa'fiki, means "the true Word."

Tsa'chila men paint themselves with the red achiote plant and wear a "Crown" made of cotton on the top of their head. Men wear a distinctive skirt with navy blue and white stripes, and a red sash tied around their waist. Both men and women paint stripes on their bodies using natural black dye ad wear necklaces made of seeds found in the jungle. Women wear a multi-colored skirt; in the past, they would bare their torso.

In ancient times, we were known as the province of the Yumbos, mountainous territory of the Cordillera Occidental, which was inhabited by Tumbos, Niguas, and Tsa'chilas. The name of Santo Domingo is due to the order of religious Dominicos who evangelized us back in the 60's.

Many years ago, our people suffered from the dangerous illness of yellow fever, and many Tsa'chilas lost their life. With lots of effort and our own knowledge of nature, we were able to survive many illnesses and bad spirits, transforming ourselves into something new and different, into something true.

On one particular night, some of our shaman had a ritual and through a vision were able to see the use of the achiote seed as the salvation to overcome the bad spirits that were attacking our tribe; this being the reason that the Tsa'chila men still use the red tint in their hair today.

Our ethnic group has approximately 2,500 people, which are located southwest of the province Pichincha. We are distributed among 7 different villages surrounding the city of Santo Domingo de los Tsa'chilas. This land is known for its very fertile grounds and abundant vegetation, with subtropical climate.

Geographic location of the Tsa'chilas:
Country: Ecuador
Province: Pichincha
City: Santo Domingo
Altitude: 655 m
Temperature: 18-25C

Our shamans are known worldwide for their ancestral knowledge over medicinal plants and for their spiritual connections. Shamanism keeps our culture alive and is something that is passed down from generation to generation.

In reality, due to the growth of Santo Domingo, we have slowly started to change; however, we fight hard to maintain our customs and traditions, which are threatened daily by 'civilization.' Some of our important holidays include "Ka'sa-ma," which for us is The New Day or New Year's. We also celebrate the harvest of sugarcane, cotton, and corn. During this time, our parents also "ask for the hand" of the youths to be married.

A big strength right now is the collaboration of many cultural groups who are motivating and rescuing our indigenous traditions. These groups have found alternative means of income thru agriculture, reforestation, tourism, selling of handcrafts; meanwhile, through these activities, we are able to transmit our values and culture.

We invite you to get to know our Tsa'chila culture in the village of Los Naranjos. Here, you will have a rich experience of an ancient and still vibrant culture. As part of your visit, you will learn and experience:

* The history of the Tsa'chila people
* Customs and ancestral traditions
* Tsa'fiki language and Tsa'chila folk tales
* Traditional clothing and other items
* Tsa'chila dance and music performances
* Enjoy traditional meals
* Jungle walks to learn about native medicinal plants
* Ceremonies and spiritual healings from a Shaman
* Handcrafts
* Traditional games
* $15 a day

***We welcome short or long-term volunteers who desire to have a unique and rich experience living in our Tsa'chila community, getting to know our customs and traditions and helping us with community projects. We appreciate a $12 a day donation.

If you would like more information or design a custom visit with us, please contact:

Alejandro Aguavil: 085570207
Edwin Aguavil: 094078108
eaguavil@gmail.com
Centroculturalnaranjos@hotmail.com

In Quito bin ich erstmal mit dem Taxi zum Busterminal gefahren (ca. 25min). Dort habe ich dann einen Bus nach Santo Domingo genommen (ca.3 Std). Am Busterminal habe ich dann nochmal Edwin angerufen. Die Kommunikation war etwas schwierig da er nur spanisch spricht und neben der Telefonkabine ein Typ mit einem Presslufthammer am arbeiten war. Egal wir haben uns dann doch noch gefunden. Mit einem Taxi ging es zu einem weiteren Taxistand von dem aus Taxis in Richtung Puerto Limon fahren (ca. 30min). Dann nochmal 15 endlose Minuten auf einer staubigen und ziemlich holprigen Strasse und dann habe ich es endlich geschaftt!
Zu erst werde ich erstmal der restlichen Familie vorgestellt und dann zeigt mir Alejandro das Familienoberhaupt ein bisschen die Gegend.

Das war schon echt eine sehr beeindruckende Erfahrung fuer eine Woche das Leben der Tsachilas miterleben zu duerfen. Und es ist auch sehr interessant ihren Spagat zwischen Tradition (Haare faerben, trad. Bemalung, Rituale...) und der modernen Welt (Handy, Internet, Alkohol...) mit zu erleben.

An den Vormittagen habe ich der Familie bei der Bananenernte oder anderen Arbeiten auf der Farm geholfen. Nachmittags wurde meistens gechillt, Fussball gespielt.........

Abends wurde mir dann noch die Ehre zuteil an einem shamanistischen Ritual teilnehmen zu duerfen, definitiv ein Highlight in meiner Zeit bei den Tsachilas.