Brazil: Part 2 of 3 The Amazon: 6 Boat Day Five & Six: Dolphins, Villagers, Monkeys Oh My

It's day 5 and we're still pretty far up the river, and we have lots of ground to cover to return to port in time for our scheduled disembarkation.  This is where knowledge of the river and current speeds comes in handy.  To us gringos we were never going to make it in time based on where we were, but gratefully the locals are in charge here.  And with an extra speedy run heading downriver we still have loads of time for a very full last couple of days.  

One of the most surprising things about the Amazon was all the river dolphins.  I had never heard of such a thing.  And even more surprising is that most of them here are pink.  They are everywhere and we had them swimming alongside us the entire week.  Of course they're nearly impossible to capture in the wild as their jumps last a nanosecond and you never know where they'll pop up.  We were offered a dolphin encounter to "swim with the dolphins," which admittedly sounded cool if not slightly out of my normal preferred tourist ethos of steering clear of kitschy photo ops at any expense to the subject.  We were reassured to know that these experiences are in line with conservation efforts to preserve the dolphin population.  

This is what "swimming with the dolphins" really looks like here.  A close encounter feeding session.  They're friendly suckers, and perhaps a bit too friendly.  Dallin and Trevon quickly learned just how friendly which necessitated playing a little defence to protect certain appendages.  

The experience was worthwhile, but certainly not something we wanted to spend hours doing.

We had an opportunity to visit an indigenous jungle tribe, the Tatuyo. They live a lifestyle that is so foreign to us, devoid of most modern amenities and living free off the land and river. They represent a culture of the Amazonas indigenous people that is mostly inaccessible to any visitor. Offering visits to foreigners they generously share their culture giving us a glimpse into life deep into the Amazon we only read about in National Geographic. They speak a tribal language vastly different from Portuguese but the chief knows enough Portuguese to speak to us via our translator guide sharing the story of their tribal traditions with music and dance. Most never leave the tribe or see anything of the world beyond the banks of the river. A view into their small, insular world ironically expands mine. This tribe is open to visitors. Many tribal lands are not and setting foot in some other tribal territories is extremely dangerous. But here at Tatuyo we are welcomed guests, and photos were encouraged in this beautiful cultural offering.

One final round of fishing

More birds

On our final night we took one last special excursion out to an old hotel ruin in a secluded area off the Rio Negro.  The evening light cast a magical warm light on this exceptionally beautiful waterway.  We saw a few birds and generally took in the gorgeous vistas.  

Our guide spotted monkeys in the lower trees, so we pushed ashore for an unexpected interactive monkey encounter.

That moment when boat fever was high and Dallin discovered random cereal he forgot he packed from our airbnb in Rio and sugary comfort cereal euphoria ensued.

Our local crew created a most authentic expedition. They know every nook and cranny of this rainforest and its waterways.  They, all native to Amazonas and spoked almost no English, guided our vessel through incredibly complicated waterways all without technology, such an analog method that comes only from deep knowledge of the jungle.  Three meals a day full of local offerings, prepared safely for our foreign constitutions. Activities led by our guide and crew were plentiful and immersive. The flow was ever changing according to the weather, and mostly because we were on jungle time. 

After nearly a week totally off the grid in the jungle my 5G flickered on again approaching Manaus. So many thoughts as we exited the Amazon, one of the most immersive adventures we’ve taken. This was no luxury adventure holiday. Aboard a typical wooden river boat, it was a dirty, sweaty and often uncomfortable experience. But the payoff was an adventure of a lifetime deep into the Amazon.  

Next . . . onto Iguazu

Brazil: Part 2 of 3 The Amazon: 5 Boat Day Four: Piranha Soup & Boat Life Real Talk

A visit to the sacred Banyan tree

Let's talk about our river boat.  A very rustic, authentic Amazonian riverboat, with three levels, two usable.  The most basic amenities and not terribly clean, but this is the Amazon.  

Down time on the boat was spent here, the stern deck with a few chairs, small card table, wooden bench and hammocks. And most importantly a steady breeze was often found here depending on the direction of the wind and where you positioned your chair, the goal was to find a spot in the path of the breeze and out of the sun, not as easy as it sounds.  Not plush by any definition, but plenty spacious for our group of four (this is when we were especially happy to be the only guests aboard, having this space to ourselves was definitely nice).  Apart from the dining area directly below, this was the only onboard leisure space.  Except from meals, we definitely favoured the upper stern deck to pass the hours sailing.  

Absent of other amenities, the boat had a chess set, so these guys played many rounds of chess.  We had a deck of cards, but those were less useful in this environment.  Apart from this chess set, there were only a couple of bird books aboard the vessel, so other than that and our own books, there was little to do given we were totally out of cellular range.  While we were all thrilled to see the bars on our phones flicker back to life as we approached Manaus on the return, I absolutely loved this time off the grid.  Attention is an undervalued commodity. 

The dining room on the lower level.  This is where we took all three meals.  There was a dedicated cook on board who prepared all three of our meals each day.  Given the basic nature of the voyage, I wasn't expecting much, but we were surprised by the variety and quality of the food served.  I failed to get any photos of the meals served, but each spread consisted mostly of local cuisine with a handful of international dishes to keep us happy the entire week.  And despite the rustic conditions being in such a place, food was prepared very well and no one fell sick. 

Tiny cabins with basic beds. Only two had en suite toilet/shower rooms, gratefully we had the sense to book these. All water comes from the river, so even with a shower you’re never really clean, though my hair loved the river water compared to the hard water of London. The shower head is directly overhead in the cramped bathroom completely soaking the toilet, sink, bin and anything else. For an extra fee aircon was an added option, and in some cabins only. And only available at night. We had to tell the crew when we turned in to turn on the aircon generator and what time to shut it off in the morning. The extra cost was entirely essential as the cool respite of the nightly aircon was like a daily dose of sanity. Life otherwise, even when the boat was in motion, was often a breezeless sweatfest. You adapted to discomfort, but not really.  

The cramped cabins and bathrooms were only divided by thin plastic walling where noise had no boundary. To say we were experiencing boat fever by day 6 is a big understatement. We were packed and ready to leap off the boat the minute we arrived. The discomfort is the price to pay for such an immersive experience. 

Our guide said many locals in the Amazon have missing finger tips. On our first piranha fishing excursion  it was quickly evident why. Dipping your fingers into the water even for a brief moment is not advised! Fishing for piranha in the Amazon is as cool as it sounds, and for the boys will go down as one of those travel memories you wish you could bottle up.  Just truly unreal. These waters are murky but so very alive, so catching piranha wasn't terribly hard. The boys caught several piranha, and a few other fish, in just a few short fishing sessions. It was a wildlife bucket list experience fulfilled. We brought some of them back to the boat where the cook made piranha soup. What an experience!

You could hear the grinding of their sharp teeth against the hooks. 

Caiman

Bird spotting while fishing

The closest we got to the Waimiri Atroari tribal territory where they are known to kill any trespassers. The territory is a mere kilometres from this spot.  I wasn't looking, but our guide said he saw them through the binoculars from our boat at one point. 

More piranha fishing

A little more exploring as dusk gives way to night before packing it in for the day.

Pure solitude

A pair of macaws to bid us good night

We brought back a couple of the piranhas we caught and our cook made piranha soup!  

Goodnight!