After two survivors were handed their tribal walking papers in Africa in week one, Paloma Soto-Castillo became the third cast-off on Survivor Gabon. Despite making a few friends, Paloma couldn't outlast the long arm of fellow Kota tribe member Ace, who arguably sealed her fate after influencing her participation in a hard-fought pole challenge. When the challenge was over, the tiny Paloma couldn't hang on to last another week.

The day after her exit from Survivor Gabon, we caught up with the small but vocal Paloma Soto-Castillo to find out what went wrong and how she feels about her time in Africa.

THE DEADBOLT: So do you think Ace had anything to do with you losing the challenge?

PALOMA SOTO-CASTILLO: Well, obviously he had something to do with it because he told me to be on the pole. But like I said earlier, I feel that even if Sugar was on the pole and I went out with Bob I feel the end result would’ve been the same in that case. I mean, Crystal would’ve dominated any single or man on that team. I mean, on the third round she drug Ace across the finish line also. So I don’t specifically feel that it was his fault that I lost the challenge. But at the same time it wasn’t the smartest move on his part, and I feel that whatever he wanted to do he accomplished. He wanted to see me look like a weak person and that I was incapable of doing something and that’s what he got out to the tribe by putting me on the pole.

THE DEADBOLT: What were you and Ace like when you were off camera?

PALOMA: It’s basically the same. I mean, he would say something and I wouldn’t necessarily snap back but I was very sarcastic with him. Like if he said something that bothered me, I’d be like, ‘Well, why do we have to do it that way?’ An example of it came out when he said, ‘Oh, I think we should throw this challenge, blah, blah, blah.’ And I was like, ‘Well, I think we still need to win.’ Like I’d always say something when he would say something instead of nodding my head like everybody else did. I was always quick to respond and be like, ‘No, it shouldn’t be this way.’ I think the cattiest I ever got was at tribal council.

THE DEADBOLT: Since Sugar did so well when she was on Exile Island, do you look at her differently now as a stronger player?

PALOMA: I do look at her a little bit differently. I mean, Sugar is still Sugar to me. She was able to find clues and make her way across Exile and find the immunity idol and anybody who does that deserves a pat on the back. But she’s still Sugar and I’m still sure she’s going to be playing an emotional game, but you never know.

THE DEADBOLT: How valuable is Bob to the tribe?

PALOMA: Bob is very valuable. I think Bob, at this point, would be the stupidest person to vote off. As a decision, he would be the stupidest decision to get rid of. I mean, he’s a provider for our tribe, he is a workhorse, he does not stop, he builds everything - He’s just a nice guy, doesn’t have a mean bone in his body, doesn’t upset anybody. He’s just a genuinely good person.

THE DEADBOLT: What type of dangers did you guys encounter that we didn’t see? Were there snakes and other animals?

PALOMA: There were snakes and you could hear the elephants at night. There was wildlife out there, we were in the middle of the jungle. So, you know, there‘s always that possibility something could happen and you can never be too careful. So definitely there’s a lot of wildlife and it’s a dangerous aspect of the game. Like when you’re walking around, you want to be extra careful where you’re walking, always watching where you’re going to step next, because you don’t want to possibly scare a snake and get bitten. And the bug bites you get, the ticks, everybody was scared of getting Lyme disease from the ticks, there were so many ticks there and there was just so many things - The elephants at night coming into the camp.

THE DEADBOLT: How do you think the alliances will play out now that you’re gone?

PALOMA: It seems like the 'onion alliance', as they call it, I believe that’s pretty strong. I mean Charlie, Marcus, Jacquie and Corinne seem to have it all figured out. And if that alliance remains strong and they all remain loyal to each other, I believe it will take them really far into the game. I feel that Sugar will be next and then Ace and then Bob and then it’ll be them four. So I think if that alliance stays true it will definitely get far in the game, because they’re the only ones that have an alliance. Kelly doesn’t have anybody anymore, Sugar and Ace have each other and then Bob is on the outskirts, so...

THE DEADBOLT: How could you have done it differently?

PALOMA: In retrospect I feel like I should’ve aligned - to be more on target, you know, more talkative and develop a closer relationship with Corinne and Jacquie and get into circle and maybe the whole Ace thing. Maybe not voice my opinion so much and maybe bit my tongue at times and not been so adamant about letting everyone know how much I couldn’t stand him and voiced that. I should’ve maybe kept that to myself a little bit more so I wouldn’t have put such a huge target on my back.

THE DEADBOLT: What surprised you the most? What happened on the show that you weren’t expecting?

PALOMA: One of the big surprises was Sugar finding the immunity idol, that was very surprising. Other than that there was really nothing that surprised me. The four-way alliance between Corinne, Jacquie Marcus and Charlie actually surprised me, too. They did a very good job of being discreet about it and not letting anybody know they had a really strong alliance. So that actually surprised me as well.

THE DEADBOLT: What about the weather? When I was talking to Michelle she said it was cold in Africa.

PALOMA: You know, during the day it wasn’t really that cold. I mean, to be honest, it was like perfect weather. It wasn’t too hot or too cold, it was - You know, Gabon lies on the equator so it was actually pretty good weather. But at night it would get cold, because it usually tends to get cold in a lot of places and we did have very little clothing. So I do agree with Michelle in that at night it was really cold and if you have no clothing and nobody to cuddle with it then it really sucks.