Thank you again, from the bottom of my heart, for allowing us to take this journey with you (without us having to feast on monkey hands and grubs LOL). It was always my biggest dream, growing up, to travel through the remote rainforest areas of both Papua and the Amazons, and while my life didn’t always follow the course of my dreams, watching your programs allowed me a chance to at least get to live a bit of it vicariously through your experiences. Words fail, but it meant the world to me to get to see these places finally, if only on a television screen.

You have truly made a difference and touched this Texan’s heart….

All the best to you and yours, sincerely….

xxx

I also want to add that I’m glad to start seeing some men posting entries on your blog. I had inwardly started referring to all of us as your “harem” ;o), or better yet… Olly’s Angels! LOL! Which I think has a certain ring to it, don’t you?…haha It’s nice to get a guys point of view on these things, too, so keep writing guys! This is a great little community of bloggers you’ve got going here, Olly.

And lastly, I look forward to what you have coming on your last China/North Korea adventure. As I’m sure you know, the U.S. has two journalists being held by the North Koreans. Very scary. Quite honestly I’m surprised that you are still allowed back into China?! My dad has had more computers destroyed by “inspections” by customs agents than can be counted, and he’s not doing anything “suspect” while over there. Don’t they ruin your stuff?

Take care, Olly!! I just think you’re awesome. :o}
And thank you for bringing us the world…

Carmen

Lena: Return to Peru?: I hope so. Not sure when. But their friendship and acceptance is the most important thing to them – we have a duty to return and we will.

Carmen: old people? We did see others in other villages but there aren’t many around for a number of reasons – a) people don’t live that long due to the tough conditions b) people age quicker c) no medical help d) history – when the older generations were being attacked by colonistas etc. Both Jose’s and Jacinto’s parents had been killed by colonistas.

Michelle: Did we show them any of the film? Yes we did and they were always highly entertained by each other and less so by Mark and I! It is an important part of the filming process, so they understand why we need to ask them to do certain things again etc… and after a few weeks, they got it completely, even making some directorial suggestions!

Reena: why were we called back? I think Juan and Anselmo helped to mend the bridges plus they understood it was just a mistake and without malice – I think it especially helped when I explained that I wanted to understand what we’d done wrong and would accept their punishments.

Brandon: adjusting back to life back home? Easy! I miss the people, not the ants.

Brandon: Do the tribe want to come to our world? Some do, but out of curiosity to see it and return, but mainly not – it is so far from their frames of references that it really doesn’t interest them – they’re keen to know what’s upstream/downstream first.

Brandon: supermarkets: yes, I tried to explain it to them – at first they thought that was good, but then they said that they thought you’d get lazy and fat and have no connection to where your food comes from.

Brandon: Misunderstanding the offer of sex? I hope not! I think they were offered as a gesture of good will but not seriously. It was more an offer of marriage first, rather than sex first. And there was no way Mark was going to behave badly!
Cathy: out-takes? Sure but they’re not that interesting! I often take 10 goes to say yes!

Carmen: vacation? I love holidaying in England with friends and family. It’s a brilliant place and full of surprises. My last great trip was in the Lake District with a mate of mine who took me to this old stone axe factory – dating back 8000 years, just sitting on a scree slope in the middle of nowhere – unmarked so tourists wouldn’t come and steal stuff. Mind blowing.

Julie: Machigenga Redicule? Well on the surface of things they did take the piss a lot and often redicule us for our failings. But fair cop. We deserved it often enough but key to it was that there was no malice in it. They were just pocking fun and it’s a classic Machigenga way to toughen you up – if you cant take it, then you have no place in the close family community. May be that’s just me – but I give my friends and family a lot of abuse! But only because I love them!

For five years, I worked as an editor/writer for a national Latino arts and entertainment magazine. As part of that, I was one of the first to chronicle the “Cuban Invasion” of the 90s, when Cuban musicians were permitted to enter the US for purposes of cultural exchange. It was a heady time, being involved with the Cubans, enjoying their live performances and workshops, hoping for at least a break in the embargo. Then, Bush slammed the door shut. Since then, I have developed quite a large network of connections to Cuba, and will use them this September when I go to the island to collect information for stories. I’m looking forward to that. I’ve begun the process to get my press credentials from the Cuban government. Let’s see how that goes. They are suspicious of US journalists, so I have that to overcome. I’ve also written features and covered religion, which is a special interest of mine. I have to say I don’t think I am quite as intrepid as you are, but I have my own sense of adventure, and this fits right in.

I was initially interested in your Machigenga show from a journalist’s standpoint. I thought, at first, it might have a political bent to it, but I found something quite different. Every week was a surprise, and I really enjoyed it. I do think you need to take better care of yourself, though. As you yourself said, “some things are just not worth doing properly.” I had a laugh when I read that on your post.

So, this adventure is over, and now we all have to wait and see what Olly Steeds comes up with next. Good luck on your next trip to visit the tribes. If you would like an editor to help you formulate your book, let me know. It’s one of the kinds of things I’ve done in the past, and not to brag, but I’m quite good at it. Editing is something I do enjoy. I know there are a lot of people out there that would be fascinated to read about your experiences. Think of it as a gift to your growing public. More than that, think of it as a great opportunity to draw the public’s attention to the plight of our world’s indiginous people. I’m glad to contribute to this good cause with my editing.

All my best…. :-)
Ana Maria’

So the Sunday that this season premiered I flipped it to the Travel Channel, and there was this Mark and Olly marathon going on. Had no idea what this was, but I thought, hell why not give it a shot. I was instantly hooked, partly jealous and very much inspired by the adventures you and Mark had out there.

What an amazing journey and learning experience that must have been for you, and for us the viewers to see just a glimpse of what was going on day to day.

I wish you well and your journeys to come and hope to see you ’round the bend in your new doc, in a new season, or just passing by as we globtrot to enlightenment.

Cheers!