Green Parrots and Orphans

Hogar Infantil Orphanage

Ocozocoautla, Chiapas

April 13 - 16, 2009

We pulled up stakes from the mango grove and turned toward the Hogar Infantil orphanage located on the outskirts of Ocozocoautla. We anticipate our next leg of the journey, where we drive into the seat of Mexican history and culture.  First though, we want to check out the orphanage, which is listed in the camping guide as a good place to camp and which had been recommended to us by other travelers we have met on the way.

First, though, Liz is desperate for some internet access as deadline is approaching and she needs to wrap up a few loose ends. This entails driving the incredibly narrow and tope-laden streets of this old colonial town. After much turning about- we have learned that Mexicans are terrible at providing directions- we finally locate an internet cafe where Liz can talk to the rest of the world.

It turns out that all of this was needless, as when we arrive at the orphanage, located on the outskirts of town, we learn that it provides wifi free of charge. The only other vehicle parked on one of the five full-service pads is another couple from Calgary! Bernie and Sandra are on a planned two-year trip around North and Central America, also in a camper van. While Remy and Bernie trade mechanical disaster stories, Liz and Sandra learn that they travel in related circles in Calgary due to their work. Sandra even owns the original of a City Palate cover painting! We trade info about travel routes as they are going in the rough opposite direction to us, as well as English language movies and books.

The orphanage runs the campground as a means of developing interest in their work. They refuse to accept payment for camping, instead asking that campers contribute to the work of the orphanage in some way. The usual means is to help in teaching English, but anything is welcome. We had stocked up on some school supplies to donate and brought some sweets to distribute. Unfortunately, we are still in the second week of Semana Santa so the majority of children are away visiting family. The majority of kids here are not true orphans, but rather the children of disadvantaged single parent families or of families that live too far from developed society to give them a good chance at school. There are some kids with behavioural issues, but the vast majority are primarily dealing with issues of poverty. Some of the kids still here are in their early twenties, but pursuing higher learning from their adoptive home. There is an American board of directors that runs the charity aspect of the orphanage, and a Mexican board that considers applications for children to attend. There are two young German men that are doing their obligatory year of social service (as an option to military service) and other professionals donate their time as well.

We did manage to connect with some of the kids during a hard fought soccer game held on the ubiquitous basketball court. It was great to see how the older kids were conscientious of the younger ones, ensuring that everyone got to handle the ball and not running up the score. They were also gracious of the hairy, sweating gringo who made up in enthusiasm what he obviously lacked in skill. For the older kids, it was all about how stylishly they could manipulate the ball and not about hammering the ball into the net- it was far more important how one scored, not how many times!

The camping allows the kids to encounter people from other parts of the world. As part of their development, the kids are also given responsibilities in the various barns on the property. Pigs and chickens are raised, while the goats are employed as lawn clippers. The bathroom dedicated to the campers is located at the end of the chicken barn, which makes for a new variation on the smell normally associated with Mexican bathrooms.

The state of Chiapas is known for, and heavily promotes, its wilderness and the collection of beautiful sites within it. One of them is located near Ocozocoautla, called the Sema de las Cotorras (or Sinkhole of the Parrots). Bernie and Sandra actually prolonged their stay by a day to go see it with us. Bernie thought it would be a good idea to ride the 12 kilometer route on bikes. Knowing the capabilities of our boys, we elected instead to disconnect our van and drive there, which ultimately proved to be the right decision.

We arrived at the park and paid our 20 peso admission fees. The "sema" is a sinkhole 160 meters across and 140 meters deep. It is apparently not the result of a long-term erosion (not above ground, anyway) but instead was a relatively cataclysmic event. The hole sank, taking the jungle with it to form the floor of the hole. We saw some groups of squawking green parrots arrive and fly down to their roosts in the jungle floor of the sinkhole. What was even more impressive were the small groups that were flying up and out of the hole, as they have to spiral upward to reach the open sky. It is apparently more impressive is in the morning, when large groups of these endangered birds perform the same maneuver to begin their day's search for food. The sinkhole itself is mighty impressive, with many pre-Hispanic paintings on the rock walls well below the rim.

We hiked halfway around to the tea house located on the far side of the rim. We allowed ourselves to be talked into shelling out another 70 pesos per head (about $7) to do the guided hike into the hole. Things took a turn for the stranger when the staff produced climbing harnesses and helmets for all of us. Bowen became nervous at this point and had misgivings about the trek. Our entire grip was shod in flip flops, but we were assured that they were up to the task of doing the hike. In retrospect, it was probably silly to be asking the Indian staff, who up until the latest generation wore car tire huaraches if anything at all, whether flip flops were suitable.

We followed our guide, taking an incredibly steep single track down from the rim. It eventually met up with a ledge that jutted out about 100 meters up from the floor of the hole and went around about half of the circumference. Where the ledge was particularly treacherous and only a few inches wide, safety ropes had been bolted in to the wall, and it was here that the harnesses were clipped in. In other places, where it was only potentially dangerous, we were on our own. The climb was, at points, frankly quite terrifying, as we teetered along the rough ledge, loose rock overhead, 300 feet up from the next piece of flat ground. The boys did wonderfully- Hollis stepped up and set a brave example, while Bowen, who was reduced to tears a couple of times, soldiered bravely on and was justifiably proud of himself at the end. Sandra was not really digging the experience at times either, but when a scared 8 year old is doing it, how can an adult in the group protest?

We made it around the ledge and back up on the far side. It was a jovial group that continued back to the tea house, buoyed by the relief that comes from having passed safely through a hair-raising experience. The refreshments at the tea house tasted better than usual. We met a Mexican family, the mother and daughter of which had done the hike with us. The daughter is interested in visiting Canada and they invited us to visit them in Mexico City if we are passing through.

We piled back into the van as dusk fell- definitely the right decision- and negotiated the cattle and potholes on the road back out. We all had dinner at a taqueria in town before heading back into the orphanage. Bernie and Sandra are heading out tomorrow, while we will be spending one more day at the orphanage to chill out.

-Remy