The jungle expedition yesterday from Meulaboh to a remote village was exciting. It proved the value of small digital cameras. Especially because I had to hide it from the soldiers at the many checkpoints, and also you can walk the whole day with it. We had to drive for a few hours, and at a beautiful metal suspended bridge we left the car. Couldn't film it because of the soldiers, but it would have been great for an Indiana Jones remake. There we went, most probably being watched by rebels in the bushes. We crossed a river on a small long wooden boat. So I brought plastic bags to protect the camera in case we would tip over. Didn't use them, the urge to do an interview on the boat proved stronger.
We reached the village after a one hour walk. It's amazing to see how people survive in a village in the middle of the bush. They live from fishing and farming. I went there together with a team of medical doctors to check if there was malaria. There is no television, no mobiles, and power just for a few hours a day. It seems to be enough, and isn't it? Gave it a thought, but I don't think I could do it. Simply because you cannot deny your own background, your culture, and for me that is the Western world. Still it's good to learn from, and I did. The village people were hardly suffering from malaria.