Got up at around 5:30am to see the sunrise in such a pristine setting. Traversing big and small rivers and their pristine shores is hypnotic.
As I am soaking up all the beauty and raw nature around me, I am wondering why all this vegetation in the jungle reaches out and fights for the top to get some light to survive and thrive. Why is growth and survival such a basic thing in all living things? And why is helping and supporting each other also a thing in all of us? Where are we all going?
We see indigenous people living along some of these rivers. As they see our boat approaching, they get in their canoes and paddle to get closer ... some people in our boat throw plastic bags that float filled with clothes and supplies to help these communities. An interesting custom to see.
This is as thick a jungle as I have ever seen. There is life everywhere. But it feels fragile too. None of this could live outside the thin atmospheric veil around this specific planet which is at a very specific distance from a very hot star ... one change and it would all be gone. Life is very resilient on Earth, but it feels very fragile too.
The line for breakfast on the boat was long but moved fast. A plate with a lot of things I did not know what they were… but very tasty ... some white goop with floating transparent balls, a strange looking banana, and sweet coffee.
I met a lot of people on the boat ... working people ... hustling and doing what they do every day to live ... an ex-military guy that lived in Bolivia and loved to curse in Spanish ... the very helpful crew of the boat ... a French man married to a Guiana woman and an American daughter all living in Arizona ... the kitchen crew that were always giving me extra stuff to keep me fed and happy.
Even though I feel lucky and privileged to be able to travel and see the world like this, I see that the people on the boat also feel lucky that they are able to help the people on the river. All relative. "turtles all the way down."
I also wonder what our bodies feel with no electromagnetic radiation around ... no cell or wifi signals ... I imagine is like the effect that a noisy environment has on our sense of peace. This place is indeed peaceful.
This is as thick a jungle as I have ever seen. There is life everywhere. But it feels fragile too. None of this could live outside the thin atmospheric veil around this specific planet which is at a very specific distance from a very hot star ... one change and it would all be gone. Life is very resilient on Earth, but it feels very fragile too.
The line for breakfast on the boat was long but moved fast. A plate with a lot of things I did not know what they were… but very tasty ... some white goop with floating transparent balls, a strange looking banana, and sweet coffee.
I met a lot of people on the boat ... working people ... hustling and doing what they do every day to live ... an ex-military guy that lived in Bolivia and loved to curse in Spanish ... the very helpful crew of the boat ... a French man married to a Guiana woman and an American daughter all living in Arizona ... the kitchen crew that were always giving me extra stuff to keep me fed and happy.
Even though I feel lucky and privileged to be able to travel and see the world like this, I see that the people on the boat also feel lucky that they are able to help the people on the river. All relative. "turtles all the way down."
I also wonder what our bodies feel with no electromagnetic radiation around ... no cell or wifi signals ... I imagine is like the effect that a noisy environment has on our sense of peace. This place is indeed peaceful.
We finally made it to port in late afternoon and the offloading began. Slowly but surely all the people on the boat disembarked, with their hammocks, first and then the truck and then the motorcycles.
We then rode a short 20 km from the port of Santana to our hotel in the center of Macapa. Surprisingly a very modern and relatively wealthy city with nice hotels and restaurants.
We went to a great restaurant for dinner ... had risotto with camarao ... and called it a day.
Tomorrow we are taking the rest day we did not take in Belem to get ready for the journey north.
Sunrise in the depths of the Amazon
Some of the houses along the shores of some of the rivers we navigated through on our way to the might Amazon river and Macapa
A water world
Another day in paradise
Good morning!
Breakfast at the very tight, small, and crowded restaurant in the boat
Lots of Acai loaded on the boat at midnight somewhere
A commuter boat connecting with ours to take some passengers on to other rivers and towns
The mid morning nap on the boat on the bunk beds
Jhoner, Mike and Roberto
Children swimming at the dock in Macapa when we arrived
The hammock floor after everybody left - where are the hammocks?
The precarious off loading of the truck in Macapa
The overnight river journey
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