AnAustralian womanhas goneviralfor her unconventionalrelationshipwith anindigenous Ecuadorianliving in theAmazon jungle. After forming a connection online, the couple’swhirlwind romancethat transcends cultural boundaries has captivated a global audience.
“I was so intrigued about how people still live this way of life and to some degree I knew there were tribes in the Amazon, but I had never taken the time to learn about it,” the Australian toldnews.com.au. “I clicked on his page and I just messaged him.”
Jordan Hauenschild, a 26-year-old Australian woman, and Pitiuruk, a 24-year-old indigenous Ecuadorian man, formed a romantic connection after meeting online
Image credits:jordankh_
Image credits:pitiuruk
With an initial message telling the Ecuadorian how “gorgeous” he was and asking to learn more about his unique culture, the 26-year-old was stunned when she actually received a response. The two began video chatting regularly “to understand each other’s cultures, what we do in our day to day, and what our [lives are] like on opposite sides of the world.” Eventually, they broached the subject of meeting up.
Four months after meeting online, Hauenschild quit her 9-5 office job and undertook the journey to meet Pitiuruk in person. Consisting of fourflightsand a bus trip from Quito to Guayusa Runa, it took 35 hours in total.
At first, she was nervous. “As the plane was landing in Quito, I realised the magnitude of the situation – I had gone on a whim with a ‘why not’ attitude and I was about to meet someone I had never seen in real life.”
Yet all that apprehension melted away when she saw Pitiuruk. “I just couldn’t believe he was real,” she said. “It was my first time in Ecuador and I just wanted to ensure I was really respectful, but I just couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.”
This feeling persisted despite the fact that they didn’t speak each other’s languages. The Australian insists that much of the magic comes from body language alone. “If the spark is there, it doesn’t matter if you can’t speak each other’slanguage,” she confided. “I’ve never had such a connection with somebody where I know exactly where I stand.”
After four months of frequent texting and video calls, Jordan left her job to travel to Ecuador so the couple could meet in person
The Queensland native also found her love interest’s family to be particularly hospitable, and she never felt unwelcome. “Our jungle is your jungle,” they told her.
During her time in the Ecuadorian Amazon, Pitiuruk and his family showed Hauenschild their way of life, from cooking to playing withmonkeys. The couple canoed through the jungle, swung through the trees, and kissed beneath waterfalls. In the end, the woman described it as “cinematic.”
Pitiuruk’s people welcomed Jordan with open arms, and her time in the Amazon jungle was “cinematic”
Jordan encourages Pitiuruk in his goal to promote the Kichwa culture, a branch of the indigenous Quechua culture native to the Amazon jungle and Andes mountains
The Kichwa are the Ecuadorian branch of theQuechua people, an indigenous people native to South America. They have significant populations in Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, and Ecuador. As the dominant culture in the area prior to Spanish colonization, the Quechua were responsible for establishing theInca Empire.
The Quechua people speak the Quechua language, of which Kichwa is a dialect local to Ecuador. There areover 10 million speakers, making it themost spoken languagein South America after Spanish and Portuguese.
Although the couple intend to continue their relationship, Jordan had to return to Australia to arrange her finances
AlthoughHauenschild said “nothing else seemed to matter” when the couple were together, she inevitably had to return to Australia for financial reasons. As they plan for “a life together,” they keep in daily contact.
Now, their happily ever after may be that much closer.
“I … received an email from Flight Centre saying they were invested in our story and wanted to see us reunited. We were both in tears because we didn’t expect to see each other for another year or so.”
Apparently, theAustralian travel agencyis offering to pay for Jordan’s next trip to see Pitiuruk in Ecuador. “They’re going to fund my flights which is just incredible. When I told Pitiuruk, we both just cried.”
The romance has inspired thousands online and gone viral for its transcendence of cultural and linguistic boundaries
Renan Duarte
Karina Babenok
News
