| The hammock The hammock is a lot more then a bed for the Indian life philosophy. It presents also a chair and will be used also the most of the time during the day.
It is a genial discovery from the Amazon area. The hammock protects for unfriendly guests like snakes, scorpions or insects a lot better then a lower bed. Also is a hammock easy to carry on journeys, easy to hang up in the jungle while hunting or during visits of other community or even on boat trips over the Amazon River.
Today is the hammock discovered the world and is well known. You can find thousand of different models all over our planet.
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| Piaroa Indians
The Tribe of the Piaroa Indians in Venezuela has about 10.000 members. They
live in the forests and savannah along the rivers Parguaza, Manapiare, Autano, Cuao, Sipapo
and Guayapo. Just a few also along the Orinoco and the lower parts of Vichada and Guaviare in
Columbia.
Mostly the ceremonial masks and their weapons are famous handicrafts.
Very common in Venezuela is the use of halicugenic drugs. Plants holding these
drugs are Epena (Virola spp.), Yopo (Anadenanthera peregrina), Ayahuasca (Banisteriopsis caapi)
or Engelstrompete (Brugmansia spp.). The snuff drug Yopo is very popular in the
Orinoco basin. High on Yopo the shaman gets in contact with the demons of the
jungle. They help him to cure illness and to find and destroy the souls of the
enemies.
Offer: Masks, thrust weapons, drug sets, Piaroa dolls (Shamane)
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| Pemon Indians
The Caribbean tribe of the Pemons has about 15.000 members.
They settle in the Gran Sabana in the southeast of Venezuela up to the Rio Branco in
Brazil and parts of western British Guyana. Abundant using the former richness
of the animals of the highlands they are now mostly farming. Especially Yuka is
important to replace potatoes, make Casaba bread and beer. Also the farm pine
apple, bananas, flour bananas, papaya, Yam roots, sweet potatoes and peanuts.
The National Park Canaima with 3.000.000 hectare protects the Indians for
problems with gold miners and other intruders. The National Park also offers
jobs as ranger, porter and guides among "Home of gods", how they call the table
top mountains. Most of the guides of
Backpacker-Tours
are Pemon Indians.
Souvenirs: backpacks, cumache, bow and arrow |
| Yanomami Indians
One of the most original Indians worldwide are the groups of Yanomami
Indians, which live in the southwest of Venezuela and the northeast of Brazil.
The anterior residents, mostly Aruaks, were banished or killed.
Today there are about 22.000 Yanomamis. In the 80's and 90's about 1.500
Yanomami were killed by Intruders and gold miners. The settlements is along the
rivers Siapa, Maravaca, upper Orinoco, Ocamo and lower Padamo in Venezuela and
along the spring side river of Rio Demini, at the upper Araca, Rio Marari and
the spring area of Rio Cauabori in Brazil.
The habitants at Ocamo, in the Sierra de Unturan and the basin of Siapa are
almost unexplored and almost untouched of white civilization. The Yanomamis live
traditional in Shabonos (villages) with 80 to 100 people. The live by hunting,
fishing and farming of flour bananas and Yuka. Friendly villages visit each
other during the harvesting time and celebrate traditional show fights and the
snuff drug Yopo (Anadenanthera peregrina).
They hunt with blow guns and poisoned arrows. The muscle paralyzing poison Curare
is produced by the Strychnoss liana. Uncovered and fertilized, the yellow soap
is cooked and mixed with a sticky resin, so the Cuare poison stays at the blow
gun arrows. It kills by heath stroke by paralyzed muscles.
Souvenirs: bow and arrow, blow gun and cuare, baskets
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