After spending half-year in the Amazon jungle, specifically in the Colombian region of Vaupés, working for an educational program established by the Colombian government in 2018, I gathered a lot of material from the indigenous communities of this region, part of this material including video and audio recording of local fables and tales, traditional music, expeditions, travel blogs, among other interesting content. Since the project was aimed to bring education to some of these distant communities, I found myself in a very convenient position that allowed me to get close to these fascinating people, cultures, and traditions.
This first video is part of a series of mini-documentaries filmed in Vaupés, Colombia. Geovanny Martínez (a local tour guide) shared a couple of fables during an expedition to the Guacamayo Mountain (Vaupés) in March of 2018. He and his colleagues organized this trip for a group of botanists and biologists who study the region.
In this series of stories, it can be noticed how the ancestral oral tradition of the region has influenced the way these groups communicate and interact with each other. These ancient stories make part of the spoken heritage of the locals, influencing not only their languages and dialects but also the cultural aspects of their rituals and beliefs. On this occasion, we are hearing first-hand the origins of some of the local bird species as well as the explanation of the causes behind some of the natural aspects of their environment. In this case, a story of envy and jealousy justifies the characteristic color of this popular river located half an hour from the city of Mitu.