The muddy yellow-brown Amazon flows swifter and deeper and carries much of the land erosion from the shores and the silt from the bottom along with it. The denser Amazon is still drinking water for those living on the many islands that are either permanent or occur during the rainy season. Fishing is the main occupation. Many families have homes on stilts and only a small boat to navigate to the bigger city to buy ice. Lots of the little boats had huge ice chests first thing in the morning.
The division of the waters is clear. In this case the Rio Tapajos runs several miles along side the main waters of the Amazon before it becomes a blended one river. The Amazon always wins!
The captain was good at helping us to spot a few signs of wildlife on shore. A sloth high up in a tree that looked quite like the termite nest nearby. An Iguana perched on a bare branch, lots of birds and even cattle. That is not so wild. There are actually farmers with horses and cows and goats.
Maica Lake is not so much a specific lake although there is a small one. It is the district which includes many islands and the flow of the Tapajos River.
The lady who was our guide talked most of the time telling facts and interesting stories about the people and life in the Amazonas. I loved the stories of her grandmother who had been given, many years ago, a Spider Monkey. Someone had cut open an Anaconda and found a mother and baby Spider Monkey. The mother dies but the man gave the grandmother the baby. She shared many funny and surprising stories about the life of Chic, the monkey. The most poignant though happened about two months ago. The Grandmother passed away. The lady was in an assisted living place and died about 11:30 at night. From about 11 o'clock that night until well after midnight that monkey cried out like it was in a lot of pain! It was not with the lady but home with her daughter. Animals are amazing.
But we are here for the fishing. We used hand lines that were baited with beef chunks. Small ones. Piranha do not have especially big mouths. At least not the ones they were hoping that we would catch. They can get quite big. Mostly, because they are cheap, the fishing families use them as their main source of protein and sell the other fish they trap in split bamboo traps or modern nylon nets.
The first thing any of the 25 of us caught was a quite nice catfish. The fish we sought stay in the weeds which makes it especially difficult when you also have 25 nylon fish lines in the rapid waters!
L0VE the expression of the lady in blue!
Razor sharp teeth slant backwards so the more you struggle the more you are injured!
Play Find the Sloth!
Under the tarp for rain protection heading toward town to get ice.
Beaches! And yes people swim here on the Riviera of the Amazon!
Santarem - Pearl of the Tapajos!
Very well used on this trip - the classic symbol of Viking!
Home again! Those two wrap around cabins on deck three are amazing!
Maybe next time!
Our fishing trip ran an hour long so we almost missed our included tour of Santarem. We rushed to our cabin to get Elva's ticket and use the bathroom. No time for lunch. We raced back and found our bus and realized that we left our QuietVox headsets in the room. Luckily we snagged the last two extras from Murray. He is a Shorex manager who has been really nice each time we see him. After a race so we would miss nothing, we waited 30 minutes on the bus, not sure why.
We set out across the bumpy, pot hole filled, narrow roads into the countryside. Although the destination was called the Flower House by our university student guide, Iago, there were not many flowers in site. We thought we were going to a greenhouse or nursery. In the muddy forest we found a demonstration of how a Brazil nut grows and the opportunity to buy something made from the coconut sized but smooth shelld outer casing. Each holds about 25 nuts in a further shell.
Then we were offered samples of various bee and fly covered fruits and candies. Moving on there was a demonstration of the full process of making tapioca from a Manioc root! And no Brazilian agricultural tour could be complete without the demonstration of gathering latex from the rubber tree! Did you know they can stripe the tree over and over because it seals up and heals itself!
Back on the ship we took quick showers and met family and friends in The Living Room. That is the Atrium where there is evening music and drinks while watching a so very nice slide show. We each had a different but very amazing day! We went back to the Chef's Table where we had a reservation for Anthony's French Bistro. Delighted to have Eric again to lead us through this gourmet delight.
Soupe Aux Truffes was a beef cheek consomme with a puff pastry cap. Crottin de Chavignol was wrapped in a short crust with a Sancerre sauce. The Granita was Vignerons du Beaujolais and a main course of La Quenelle de Sole Souffle was quite fine. The sole had been finely broken up and combined into the souffle style. It was all topped with a Dombes Sauce similar to a lobster bisque.
The dessert was Millefeuille with cream and raspberries. Delicious but not as many layers of pastry as we would normally expect. The wines were varied and delicious. Another fun and fancy night!
During dessert, Judy from Trivia, found me as they were eating at the Chef's Table that night as well. Their dinner companions happened to be the Bonnie and Linda I was seeking to say hello from my friend Donna. I had left a note for them at their cabin when I had determined who they were. Only 3 Bonnie's on the ship and only one from California. When Judy introduced us they were still leery of me. When I sent the note by way of guest services they thought I was stalking them! Once I showed them showed them Donna's picture on my phone.
We lingered over coffee and dessert before joining the growing crowd in the Star Theater for the Singers and Dancers presenting Song and Dance. The shows have been very good and the small band plays so very well. The small team of performers are quite talented and a pleasure to watch.
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