To the Tooth -- Thurs., Jan.10

...er, to the dentist. Today, my first upper jaw X-rays were taken since my fall. The verdict is in. Three cracked/broken teeth in the upper front of my mouth require crowns. My next appointment is Feb. 4 for a 3-1/2-hour session of impression taking for permanent crowns and the installation of temporary crowns. It will be a good while before I can bite anything with my front teeth. Oh well, I have become used to cutting my food in little bites before eating it and not eating burgers or sandwiches.

In yesterday's blog I made mention of three U.S. campers traveling through Central and South America. "One Fly" suggested I dedicate more of a blog to the predicament of the three U.S. travelers who were brutally attacked in Peru. Since today's blog is about teeth and mouth injuries this ties in somewhat due to the head, mouth and facial injuries suffered by those three people, including broken teeth and cut jaw. 

Because the story is so bizarre and almost unreal, I wasn't sure whether or not to believe it, especially with the plea for funds. So I googled the incident. What makes it believable are the comments from friends who know the people involved. No one seems to know WHY the villagers attacked them to begin with.

What if this happened to you? Who would you reach out to? How would you do it? Logic dictates using the internet in this day and age, which is where they posted four or five days after the event. That also makes sense because it took them that long to get fixed up and cleaned up from their ordeal and injuries. 

I, for one, believe them. All of their gear, passports, ID were stolen. I don't know if the truck was ever returned to them. Wyoming Sen. Leland Christensen and U.S. Rep. Cynthia Lummis’ staff spent several days working with the U.S. State Department to speed up efforts to help them.  

Here is the article from The Jackson Hole Daily: Trio attacked in Peru get government help.

Here is where you can donate, if you would like: Peru fund. Google research indicates this has been posted on many different websites and the donations total almost $15,000 so far. (The account was emptied and re-started, now back up to almost $6,000.)

See Human Rights Library, Extrajudicial Executions and forced disappearances v. Peru, II. A. #11--Richard Salazar Ruiz under Facts Alleged #57. The town mentioned in this report is Pallcca, the same place where the American travelers ran into trouble. The document makes interesting reading. Peru is definitely not like the United States.

I've given you the facts as I know them. It's troubling, but the full story isn't known yet. 

I can say, if Bob and I that had that kind of trouble in a foreign country, we'd be seeking help too. You can read and decide for yourselves. If you go back and read adventureamericas blogs from the past, it could be you or me writing them (except I wouldn't be rock climbing!).

Something to think about.

Travel Bug still puzzling about what happened there. Over and out.