The Amazon

We would go from the bustling city of Rio on the coast to the heart of the Amazon rain forest--Manaus, Brazil. Manaus is situated where the Rio Negro (the black river below) flows into the Amazon River (the brown river below).

Instead of staying in Manaus (which is basically an industrial, run-down port city), we were able to find a lodge situated along one of the tributaries of the Rio Negro… the Amazon Eco Park.

It wasn’t long before we happened across some super-sized bugs. I put my toe in this picture to give some perspective on how friggin’ big this bird flying insect was! Luckily, it was no longer alive!

During our three day stay at the lodge, we had access to a variety of activities along the Amazon. First up, piranha fishing! We used raw steak as bait, and just dipping the steak below the surface would attract several piranha that would quickly take a bite and swim away (we had to re-bait the hook over and over!). Most were too smart to get snagged by the fish hook but we did manage to catch a couple.

“Hellloooooo"!!!”

The next day we would go to a population of wild monkeys:

Kung Fu Monkey!

Our guide told us that this monkey was the leader… we got the impression he didn’t like us very much. :)

At night we went cruising through the tributaries looking for Cayman… smaller-looking alligators. Our guide had a big flashlight that he would sweep across the water. They were easy to spot with their orange eyes glowing above the surface! We caught one on video:

More cruising through the tributaries looking for wildlife and just taking in the scenery:

A local boy pulled a sloth off a tree so everyone could get a closer look and hold it

Wild parrots swooped in to try to steal food from the open-air eating area. Smart little guys!

The next day we would get an up close look at the ‘meeting of the waters’… where the Amazon flows into the Rio Negro. Because the rivers originate in very different parts of the Amazon, by the time they meet, they have very different compositions, temperatures, velocities and colors! They don’t fully mix until several miles downstream.

More life along the Amazon:

Gas station on the Amazon River. Where we were, the river was over a mile wide.

Many people travel waaayy down river on large, open-air boats and sleep on closely-spaced hammocks. From Manaus, it’s a solid 4 days to get to the river’s end at the Atlantic Ocean.

The city of Manaus:

Our last day, we would learn a little more about the way people live in the jungle.

Grooves cut in to a rubber tree and the process of curing it over hot smoke. Manaus used to be (in the 19th century) an extremely wealthy city as it had a world monopoly on the rubber trade. However, once rubber seeds were smuggled out of Brazil the boom was over and the city has since fallen from grace. Natural rubber is still one of the regions biggest exports and many local people still collect it the old fashioned way.

The cassava root is one of the tropics’ largest food source. It grows everywhere but must by peeled, shaved into small pieces and roasted over a fire before it can be eaten:

Cocoa trees

A walk through the dense jungle close to our lodge.

Back at the lodge, more toucans!

One final picture with our guide (in green) and some friendly Germans we came to know on our few days there.

Next stop: Trindad for Carnival!

Hang gliding in Rio

I had been hoping since early on that we would end up in Rio for Scott’s birthday.  The timing worked out and we decided to do something truly memorable for his big day.
One of the neat things we had heard to do in Rio was hang glide over the gorgeous city and ocean.  As I am not too fond of heights, I was glad to hang out on the sidelines, take pictures and video, and just enjoy watching Scott have a great time!! 
Scott met with his pilot, Konrad (a native German who hang glides throughout South America), where they rehearsed the take-off and other “do’s and don’t” (like, “never touch the glider!”).
Getting geared up and ready to run off the ramp

Konrad had a camera mounted on the front of the glider… a perfect way to capture the experience.   Here’s an edited down (3 minute) video of the 12 minute flight… check it out!

scott hang glide v3 from scott w on Vimeo.

As they launched off of the ramp, I also took this video from land. 

Rio De Janiero, Brazil

We had a new appreciation for air travel as we took our first plane since landing in Peru in October and flew to Rio in a mere 1 hour from Foz de Iquazu.

We wasted no time and hit the famed beaches of Ipanema and Copacabana! 

People on the beach playing a soccer version of volleyball:

Moving along the coast we took the cable car up to Sugarloaf Mountain to take in the amazing view of Rio from above:

Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) Statue as seen from Sugarloaf

Ipanena and Copacabana beaches on the left… ‘Christ the Redeemer’ perched on the mountain on the right:

A samba show to get the flavor of the local culture:

Something on our “must-do” was to see a soccer match in a foreign country.  In Buenos Aires, the soccer season had not yet started… but we were lucky enough to catch a game in Rio.  Two of Rio’s top teams: Botafogo and Flamego would face off.  Despite Flamengo having international superstar, Ronaldhino, the final score was 0-0.  It was still a blast to see two great teams and two great sets of fans… complete with banners waving, loud chanting, drum beats, etc.

A little beach time in the Barra neighborhood close to where we were staying.

The perfect summer drink… coconut water!!

Watching the Superbowl at the hotel, we met a couple fellow Americans to pass the time, David and Joao.  Only, the commentating was in Portuguese as were the commercials!

 

Everywhere we went in Rio it was evident that Carnaval was right around the corner… billboards, practices in the street, announcements on TV, etc.  We would not stay in Brazil for Carnival, but would be in near-by Trinidad (a couple stops away!).

This video captures Rio and Carnival perfectly!  An amazing film by Jarbas Agnilli and Keith Loutit, done with a film/ editing technology that makes everything look like it’s miniature… a must-watch!!

Next stop:  the Amazon jungle via Manaus, Brazil