Anticipation aboard this morning hummed through the ship as today we would be at the destination that brought us all together on this journey - Manaus, Amazonas!
The morning passed quickly as everyone was out on deck to watch for the fabled city to float into view. One or two people spotted pink dolphins. Strange looking, with long skinny noses and bright pink undersides. I haven't seen one since our fishing trip and they are way to speedy and shy for me to catch a picture. More and more buildings can be seen on the islands in the river and on the shore line. Small boats pass us coming and going. Not so much fishing now as perhaps other businesses. We docked amid much excitement on the floating dock and were greeting by happy music and nearly naked dancers!
If I have not yet told you, my friend, Elva, was here some 20 years ago. On that trip she put her camper on a barge and took several days to make her way upstream only to have the barge beach itself so they could drive off into the jungle. Some things were here, like the Opera House. But no high rises, no factories, no bridge, and certainly no welcoming entertainment!
I was on deck with the Marine and Wildlife Lecturer when we approached the official Meeting of the Waters. It is a definite and easily visible line. The deep blue nearly black Rio Negro is quickly absorbed into the murky Amazon. we veered onto the Rio Negro, hence a bridge as there are no bridges across the Amazon. I suspect there never will be. There are few roads so no real need, and in my opinion an Amazon Bridge would have to be a remarkable feat of engineering, akin to the Panama Canal.
Interestingly, although along the way we are warned to keep balcony doors closed at night because the bugs are attracted to the lights of the ship, we have not had any mosquito problems. Here on the Rio Negro there are few bugs. The Ph is so high that mosquitoes cannot propagate. Other bugs are also diminished. People have beautiful complexions since they bathe with this water regularly. Who knew!
We have traveled more than 1,000 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. Even during sporadic storms the river is mighty and flows steadily despite its width. Here in Manaus there is the definite European flare one would expect once you have learned the history.
The Royal Family of Portugal took refuge here for the Emperor Napoleon. The Court was in Rio de Janeiro but the wealth was discovered in Manaus. Seeking gold, the brave sailed up the Amazon. Not so much gold was found but the white gold of rubber was discovered. The indigenous people made many things with the latex sap of the Rubber Tree. They wore rubber shoes and coated canoes with it. They even used it to play a ball game.
Early Rubber use in South America. This was the unexpected wealth that enriched Portugal and the Rubber Barons.
Our first tour here was the first afternoon and was called
The Rubber Barons. The history is a fascinating one to me and totally I was unaware of both the successes and failures and the ultimate disgrace that rubber has attached to it. So Manaus was built with money for rich people to enjoy and to emulate their European counterparts while in the jungle! Women actually sent their laundry to Portugal to be cleaned since they did not trust the natives or the local waters to handle their fine clothes. Yes, a thousand miles to the sea and then across the Atlantic and back again and up river that same thousand miles!
St. Sebastian Catholic Church was built and shipped. The elegant homes of the people were palaces in the new world that were constructed and shipped. Everyone was able to have land. That is, everyone who was Portuguese and not a servant accompanying the Lord or Lady. Please read a little about this short lived but lucrative lifestyle. You will be as fascinated as me I am sure.
Also while checking out this topic, checkout the failed settlement of
Fordlandia. This project was Henry Ford's dream of cheap tires. Ooops! My horticultural friends will quickly recognize the flaw and everyone will realize how the poor planning and lack of understanding doomed the prospects from the beginning.
Our guide was excellent. D'Angelo is a lawyer with a 'beautiful woman' who became his wife. He wanted to marry her so decided to go to law school and improve himself. He is not yet practicing but works in a law office and enjoys his side job of giving tours of the city where he grew up. Maybe one of the best guides ever on any tour, and I have been on many.
Our tour started by going to a research park for the crops and wild life of the Amazon. We saw the tanks with the river Manatees. Barely able to see them we understood that they were being studied for rehabilitation to the murky river. Just like our much, much larger species in Florida, they are damaged by boats and strange things that make their way into the river. (Side note here: I have only seen one aluminum drink can floating by and one plastic water bottle! Surely the remnants of a tourist error!)
We moved through the jungle to the very small Natural History Museum. Some fish in bottles including the parasitic one that will "swim upstream" so to speak if you swim nude in the river! There were beautiful chairs made with the wood of deforested areas. Also an exhibit of how rubber is vulcanized and the products that the Indians made.
Top of the Brazil Nut looks a lot like and acorn.
The Brazil Nuts themselves fit about 20 to a pod
in such a way that if you spill them out you won't be able to fit them all back into their home!
We were lucky to see an
Agouti. It is literally the only animal that can open a Brazil nut. So don't feel bad when you struggle with it as well!
Couldn't catch this sleek Agouti in action but I suspect you do not want to mess with him!
We drove in the crazy traffic and heavy rain to the Opera House. Our
guide had reversed the prescribed route so that fewer groups would be
there at the same time and I was quite happy that he did. The weather
cleared and we had the whole place practically to ourselves the whole
hour there.
The beautiful Opera House was actually constructed and Europe,
dismantled, and shipped half way round the world to be reconstructed in a
jungle! Many of the original and unique features of the building are
still working and in full use today. For example, the ladies wore
traditional Portuguese dress and the fashion was heavy and hot. Pipes
were placed through the walls on the elevated building to allow fresh
air to circulate into the auditorium. There it came up through the
floor in what today would be theater air conditioning outlets. Every
other seat on all four levels had this access. Why every other seat. A
lady would not attend a performance un-escorted
by a gentlemen. The ladies got the air cooled seats, arranged their
skirts over the pipe disc and were perfectly cool beneath their gowns!
The Mahogany and Brazilwood floor keeps with the theme of the meeting of the waters.
Four stories of boxes with four seats each and floor seats so that 701 could attend.
Pride demanded that there be one more seat than the opera house back home!
Governor's Box
Right adjacent to the stage was the Royal Box, but none ever attended.
The whole purpose of the openness of the boxes was to be seen!
The original mahogany chairs are still bolted in place individually.
They are now upholstered in tufted velvet.
Before the addition of actual air conditioning the backs and seats were caned for coolness.
The ornate fresco ceiling of the reception room for use between scts. The dark space above the lights were alcoves for musicians to be playing. In this case heard but not seen. It opened to a broad balcony high above the city and the carefully landscaped park.
From the time of the first performance in 1896 until the one the day after we left (none while we had an opportunity to enjoy) the Teatro Amazonas has been a wonder of cultured people everywhere. Known the world over as The Pink Opera of the Amazon it is an icon of civilization of a wilderness. But when you begin to understand the nature of the settling of Manaus and of the role of Portuguese Royalty and their extensive court of Lords and Ladies it becomes easy to recognize their need for the finer things in life: a maintenance of the status they would have been enjoying back home.
The circle design are the openings for the fresh air pipes.
There was also a need for the Governor, Eduardo
Ribeiro, to establish and control the populous. His cleverness at staying on both sides of the political ball game would not be unique in this modern age. He offered this opulence but made it affordable to most everyone. He very cleverly added the glass dome on top. It is not a light giving functional glass work. It is set atop the square finished structure. It could be removed, if needed, to appease the supporters of the Republic and damage the usability of the theater. It added visual opulence for the supporters of the Monarchy. He could point to it and say, see I have the colors of the Royal Crest and the flag of Portugal. He could also say, see the flag of the Republic of Brazil is in my dome.
A
model of the opera House is made of Legos.
Lego used to make a model
of an iconic building everywhere they had a factory.
And yes. Once
your child's Legos came from the bustling shipping center of Manaus!
On the way back to the shipped we passed the 'castle' of a German rubber Baron who eventually lost all his money and was disgraced after the bubble burst of the short lived rubber boom. It is now the home of the Governor of the state of Amazonas.
It was a wonderful day topped by a casual dinner in the World Cafe. Still the same good wine and service but a buffet style so that I didn't feel the urge to eat too much. After dinner I went to the Folkloric Showtime. Perched on a bar stool at the back of the theater, I was able to see and enjoy the show. It was, of course, on stage while the local one was on the floor at that same level we were sitting. The shows were not the same but this also had extravagant costumes as we would expect. I thought it was interesting that the girls were wearing loin cloths and bras in some dances and progress to more modern but skimpy dress. The final songs were Samba and the girls wore feathered headdresses and sequined bikinis. Much like picture you have seen of Rio at Carnivale. The guys wore something akin to long johns that were painted to look like tribal markings or suits of satin and sequins. Why the long johns?
