I was in the Amazon in Tena, Ecuador eating breakfast at a jungle lodge. When I was done our guide Cezar told us to put on our rubber boots. When we got our boots on our guide told us to follow him into the jungle. He showed us a tall skinny plant, picked it and told me to eat it. It was sour but still good.

After that we hiked more and came out to a large patch of a plant that looked like corn. Cezar picked some of the leaves and wove my mom a crown! Then he led us to a river where we waded through to a rock in the middle and ate our lunch. When we were done Cezar showed us some medicinal plants and trees and ants that tasted like lemons! He offered me some of the ants to eat and I was surprised that they tasted good.

Then we came out into a cacao field and picked up some cacao pods up of the ground. Then Cezar took us to a local family’s house and then we drank a yucca drink and on the way back Cezar found me a spiky pod that I used for combing my hair. He called it a monkey brush (sepilla de mono). I really liked Tena and I can’t wait to go back.

Jesse Dechambeau is nine years old. He likes fishing and traveling.