MANAUS

MANAUS

I was up at 6 am when we were supposed to see another meeting of the waters, this time the black waters of the Rio Negro with the white waters of the Amazon. This time the line between the two rivers was sharply delineated, the waters didn't mix at all. This is because the waters of the Rio Negro are extremely acidic. Unfortunately due to strong currents, the meeting of the waters didn't happen until 7:30.
It was with some trepidation that we set out this morning for the Jungle Trek. We slathered on the sunscreen and sprayed ourselves and our clothing with Deet. We were laden with 6 bottles of water each. We boarded a boat that was covered but the sides were completely open so we enjoyed a bit of a breeze while travelling to our destination about 50 minutes from Manaus on the Rio Negro. We were greeted on landing at a beach by two young boys who were going to accompany us on our trek and show us how to survive in the rainforest it first they handed each of the women a visor they had made of woven palm fronds.
We had 45 wooden steps to negotiate and then walked single file along a narrow path stopping at various stations to hear and see demonstrations. We sampled clove tea and quinine tea, a bitter brew used to treat malaria. We saw the largest species of fire ant - one inch long. Our guide told us that he had been bitten once and the pain was excruciating and lasted for days. After retracing our steps, we were greeted by servings of fresh pineapple and watermelon and the national drink, Caipirinha, a delicious alcoholic concoction redolent of lime. While walking back to the beach, I caught a glimpse of a green parrot. Made my day. We heard that it was pouring rain all day in Manaus while we enjoyed sunny skies and steamy temperatures.
After meeting the gang for trivia (3 Canadians we've met) and losing badly, we attended our first entertainment. We were treated to the "The Sounds of the Amazon Rainforest" by the Grupo Imbauba. It was thoroughly enjoyable and we're glad we went. Many of the musical instruments were made from rainforest materials and were used to simulate the sounds of rain, howler monkeys, and birds in a delightful folk music presentation.
After enjoying our hors d'ouevres (our supper), we embarked on an expedition to spot caimans. This required an hour boat ride to a lagoon that is part of the Amazon River. We despaired of seeing one as the other six people in our canoe were drunk and noisy despite being told to be quiet. Miraculously, our guide caught a 6-month old baby and allowed us to take pictures and even touch him before he released him back into the water. Our guide asked the boatman to turn off the motor so we could enjoy the sounds of the night. When one boor asked "What are we doing here" the guide promptly took us back to the riverboat. Of course, we were the first ones back and had to wait at a tacky souvenir shop for the other canoes to arrive. The ride back to the ship was wonderful as we had a breeze the whole way and the temperature was very comfortable.