Resumo de The Highland Village - Huascar P. Rodarte

Life in XVI century was short, hard, and suffocating in all Europe. But in a tiny country like Portugal the adjectives have to be reinforced to describe the everyday chores. With about one million people in a rocky land, the Atlantic Ocean lured those with guts for adventure, fame and gold. Raposo was one of them. Determination and bravery deepened a ruthless character so he was able to bear the utmost challenges to escape the fate his homeland has prepared to him. In a early morning of a cold august he departed bound to the Terra de Santa Cruz in a murky sailboat. In his heart there was no fear, just a hint of nostalgia as he looks the westernmost tip of Europe disappearing in the horizon. Seasickness made life miserable during the first week and no other thought could his mind stand other than survive his stomach revolution. When the ordeal passed, his mind resumed the plans for the new land and its richeses. More or less one hundred days after leaving de cliffs of Cabo da Roca, Raposo put his feet on the white sands of a beach in São Vicente, the first village portuguese have set in the south american coast. The vision of so called paradise is, at least, quite different from his now remote Europe. Green hills may be seen from far south to far north, compounding a high ridge with shades of blue into the distant hinterland. Onshore, indians and europeans stop everything to greet the sailboat. Raposo is delighted for what come to his eyes, mainly the nude indians, but also the happy atmosphere the whole scenery conveys. The first days in the New World is a time for fulfilling the plesaures of the flesh a young man is craving for. In fact the use of men´s desire meets the policy of portuguese government to populate the vast possessions using the only thing oversupplies in the country. The sperm. Nonetheless, this village on the shore is not the place to put his plans in march, to achieve what moved him to that land, he has to climb the steep ridge to São Paulo, the primitive village on the highlands, fruit of a jesuitic school founded to teach the local indians. That first expedition to reach the upland is the first intimate contact with the rainy atlantic forest. Part of the climbing has to be done crawling on the mud with hands clung to the bushes. After some days in S. Paulo he felt the place is perfect to set in the search for the gold he is bound for. There, he got in touch with the men known as the tamers of the wilderness, and started to gather slaves and the other stuff needed for a long march to the unknown. The main path is the peabiroo trail that crosses South America, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. And the destination, the Eldorado. Before he departs for the Eldorado, Raposo started living with a young indian girl, given to him by her father, as usual in the land.. Then came the second spouse, and the third in a short period. Raposo was about to forget the reason he came there when something happened that put him is his main track. One of his women betrayed him with someone else he has now to kill to restore his honor. After the deed he escaped to get along with some friends already departed to the Andes.That is the first of many adventures that I’ll tell in next chapters.

Resumos Relacionados