encounters (and a joke)

it was not the first time daruman arrived late for the start of a tour. of course, he could put the blame on his alarm clock, which ran late yet again. even so, there would have been at least one other reason for his getting up late: the night before he had been out drinking and dancing with some pretty canadian girls he had met in the community kitchen of his hostel in tena. having recently graduated from university and being fresh from the airport they were easily impressed by daruman's travel expert routine.
daruman even has an excuse for turning in so late: the girls just did not want to leave the bar and daruman had to stay with them, because they would never have found the way back on their own. however, being university graduates they proved to be far better used to drinking than daruman, for which reason it was rather them who had to take the lead when they finally staggered out into the tropical night.

anyway, the guided two day jungle trip, at the delayed start of which daruman felt rather hung over, turned out to be a full success. still, as he lay under the covers in his cabaña that night letting himself lull by the sounds of the rainforest daruman could not stop thinking of the stupid joke he made about her name when they first met there between stove and sink ("a shame i'm not called harold..."), of the short, wild dance they shared in that bar and of the quick smile she gave him when she passed the window of his room the next morning their eyes briefly meeting for a last time.

it is incredible how many nice people you meet when travelling. daruman's memories of his southamerica trip will mainly be about these encounters. maybe he should consider a trip to canada next summer. you never know, after all. ;)

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