If it were an accessory, it'd be a big copper belt buckle, slightly rusty. Water goes out in the middle of the afternoon. Some of the bars and restaurants have those swinging saloon doors that Clint Eastwood used to come sauntering through. The dust gets in your mouth. It is like a town out of a cowboy western except the horses are three wheeled mototaxis. Oh and there are bandits. Five minutes after arriving in Tumbes, a robber tore Fernando's camera away from him and made a getaway in a sputtering mototaxi (pictured above, not the actual getaway vehicle). Earlier in the week, I caught a funeral march as it went through the Plaza de Armas for a policeman who had been killed by robbers.
I walk around a little scared. But Stacey handles it. She is the intern stationed here and more gangster than I.
I've spent the week here in Tumbes, getting a handle on what's going on. The Santuario Nacional Los Manglares de Tumbes is under MEDA's care. It's a mangrove forest, the only one in Peru and ecologically important. We need to sustainably generate USD 100,000 yearly to support the cost of operation and we have five years to do it. To make this kind of money, we're going to have to turn a tranquil mangrove sanctuary into a buzzing, commercialised Disneyland. Sell souvenirs. Offer exciting adventures. Add value. To save the mangroves we're going to have to sell plastic versions of them. Hoo-ray for capitalism and consumerism.
Life imitating souvenirs.
To do some research on target markets, we headed to Mancora, a touristy little surf town a few hours south and stayed the night. Mancora's tourist dollars will likely play a large part in keeping the mangroves afloat.
Fernando dug for crabs to help forget the indignity of watching his camera get away from him on a spluttering 8 cc mototaxi.
It's nice in Mancora, touristy but the scenery makes up for it. Check the emo sunset complete with birds flying off into the horizon.
I get to spend my weekend (and my dollars) here, in a town that would barely exist if not for tourists. And I'm going to love it.
Hoo-ray for capitalism and consumerism.
2 comments:
who has been holding this town back from development -- the people, the system, the government, the politicians, or the foreign imperialism?
i am very interested to know although i know we may not have the clue to know it yet.
hahah.. "emo sunset complete with birds flying off into the horizon"
that photo reminds me of Bedazzled. anyway, great photos. great post
and cheers to ecotourism. better than flying to dubai for indoor skiing, or coming here to smuggle ivory
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