A visit to the local village

On Saturday morning we visited the local village of Ayacucho. It is just a few kilometers down river from the lodge and has a population of about 200. The lodge is actually built on land owned by the village and in return, Mike provides jobs on a rotating basis for the people of the village.



The people of Ayacucho are mostly subsistence farmers and fishermen and are obviously very poor. Most of the homes barely had walls.







This is "Main Street" where there is a community center, school, clinic and ...








thanks to Mike, a water treatment system.








At the conclusion of our visit, we went to the local craft market which was opened just for us today. As part of Mike's relationship with the village, guests of the lodge are brought there during their stay.



All the women and children waited patiently behind their long tables of crafts, and when we entered they all applauded politely.

There were about 15 or 20 families selling baskets and beads. It was tough not to buy something from all of them. I bought a handmade basket from a little girl for 40 soles (about 15 dollars) that would have sold easily for 100 or more in the Charleston sweetgrass basket market. Mike told me the 40 soles was equivalent to three or four days pay for her family.

Location:Comunidad de Ayacucho