July 22 Farmland mapping and Pico Papagaio
Three different groups set out in jeeps to plot the land and interview farmers in the mountains surrounding Triunfo. Once arrived at the decide site, our group split up into two to save some time. I was in the group that got to walk downhill towards a floodplain, an area thAt was shared by two farms.
The daughter of the farm (maybe in her early20s) took me along and showed me all the fields and subsistence gardens that the farm had. We also were allowed to enter the farm proper: The house had several rooms overall, one enters through the kitchen where two pots were boiling away on a wood-fed fire (there was a gas stove nearby but propane is probably difficult to transport). The kitchen opened to a room furnished with a table and chairs, another room with table and chairs and one big refridgerator was adjacent to this room. From here one could enter the living room that sported two red couches. Off these rooms there were bedrooms behind curtains most of which furnished with several bed stands and nothing much else. Overall there were 11 people living at this house! There was one bathroom and a functioning cistern outside that provided running water. One daughter of the farm actually lived in Germany for a while but is now in Sao Paulo with her three children. Many of the men work in the sugar cane fields of larger plantations further south--so clearly the farm does not feed all.
The farm produced a mix of cash crops which is sold in the local market and multiple-crop gardens for personal use.
In the afternoon our jeeps brought us up the mountains to the highest peak of Perenumbuco, the Pico do Papageio. On the way up we stopped several times to see various solutions to the water availability problem on these mountains. One farm had a 50m deep well from where they pumped out their drinking water; the actual water table could be accessed through steps dug in a tunnel. Bats were inhabiting this cave-like feature. In another instance thee was a perched water table located high above the farmland in a cavemwhich then provided the water. On the hike up to the cave we passed agave plants 1 1/2 the size of humans.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
July 21
Tour through Triunfo
Triumfo is located in the highlands, in the backlands--for the most backlands are dry.
Triunfo is located about 3000 ft (1,200 m) above sea level, located on the granitic massif sporting a lot of greenery. Whereas the typical economic pattern in the lowlands is that of large plantations with workers settled along the edges, that of the highlands usually consists of small farms which is directly related to the physical environment as well as the lack of market proximity.
Triunfo itself is a much wealthier place than the towns encountered on the way here, it even sports a theater as well as several churches, stores and the like.
Coffee production was brought to Pernumbuco but it diffused from here to Sao Paulo where it brought also industrialization. Coffee production in the highlands of Pernumbuco caused a more egalitarian society than in as with plantations because it was worked on small farms which also produced food crops because of the distance to Recife. At present there is no coffee production
People that moved into these highlands were also better integrated with regional Indians, the Carirs.
Triumfo is located in the highlands, in the backlands--for the most backlands are dry.
Triunfo is located about 3000 ft (1,200 m) above sea level, located on the granitic massif sporting a lot of greenery. Whereas the typical economic pattern in the lowlands is that of large plantations with workers settled along the edges, that of the highlands usually consists of small farms which is directly related to the physical environment as well as the lack of market proximity.
Triunfo itself is a much wealthier place than the towns encountered on the way here, it even sports a theater as well as several churches, stores and the like.
Coffee production was brought to Pernumbuco but it diffused from here to Sao Paulo where it brought also industrialization. Coffee production in the highlands of Pernumbuco caused a more egalitarian society than in as with plantations because it was worked on small farms which also produced food crops because of the distance to Recife. At present there is no coffee production
People that moved into these highlands were also better integrated with regional Indians, the Carirs.
July 20
Caatinga vegetation and site of bones
Pousada -- Teatro Nova Jerusalem, Fazenda Nova
I rose at 5:30 am and took a long hike around the grounds. It was surprisingly cold outside, needed my sweatshirt. The hotel is situated in a compound that sports several large stages ( I counted 8 but it may be more) for the staging of the passion play. Next to each stage there is a sign listing the scenes of the passion play to be played on this particular stage. Quite interesting.
After breakfast we were stuffed into two jeeps 12 or more people per jeep; every nook and nanny of the jeep was put to good use including the roof which held about four people each. We drove into the caatinga -- comprised of vegetation of the arid region of the Brazilian shield. We were lucky to have been here at the end of the rainy season since a lot of plants were at the verge of blooming. Prrdominant plants are cation types of cactus as well as other drought-resistant, often thorny plants.
The drive and subsequent hike culminated on a granitic outcrop of the pre-Cambrian Brazilian Shield. This shield is about 6,000 sq km in size, quite a huge batholith showing up outcrop on various mountain and hill tops in the region. Since the Brazilian shield was not subjected to the continental glaciation the Canadian shield experienced, it shows more fluvial and other water-based eerosional features such as hills and valleys with the occasional granitic outcrop or dome.
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Striking erosional features were 1. Sheet erosion of the granite and 2. nahmas, smallish round indentures into the rock which grow with age. In the largest one of these farmers found fossilized bones from animals of the last ice age: giant ground sloth, giant armadillo, mastodon and the like. It appears that these animals retreated from the waters to this area but their existence did not coincide with that of humans. Differing dating methods of teeth enamel, bones and cementing material revealed that there was a striking age difference with that of the cementing agent being considerably later (30,000??). The geologists and paleontologists of the university in Recife have been busy excavating, putting together, analysing and dating the bones resulting in several master theses as well as ph.d. dissertations.
Todays drive occurs along leeward side of the mountain of the Borborema Highlands which adjacent to the Borborema Oiedmont. This is the aa of agreste, a dry transitional region. Since we are driving along the lee side it is actually is drier than would be expected.. The south side shows more forested areas than the windward side. This is a typical Windward, leeward effect here.
In terms of Human occupation it is the most unsettled area of the region. Not much agriculture, more clothing industry which started as cottage industry and then blossomed to a relatIvely big industry. Also, there is a combination of rural and ecotourism e.g. activities as hiking, rock climbing etc.
We visited an outlet store which housed a variety of small not-so-much known brand stores representing the area's efforts at fashion making. Some of the t-shirts and dresses were really nice, others not so. Appantly it is common for a big international brand to buy a lot of the clothes of a certain small-scale clothes maker and just exchange the label.
Pousada -- Teatro Nova Jerusalem, Fazenda Nova
I rose at 5:30 am and took a long hike around the grounds. It was surprisingly cold outside, needed my sweatshirt. The hotel is situated in a compound that sports several large stages ( I counted 8 but it may be more) for the staging of the passion play. Next to each stage there is a sign listing the scenes of the passion play to be played on this particular stage. Quite interesting.
After breakfast we were stuffed into two jeeps 12 or more people per jeep; every nook and nanny of the jeep was put to good use including the roof which held about four people each. We drove into the caatinga -- comprised of vegetation of the arid region of the Brazilian shield. We were lucky to have been here at the end of the rainy season since a lot of plants were at the verge of blooming. Prrdominant plants are cation types of cactus as well as other drought-resistant, often thorny plants.
The drive and subsequent hike culminated on a granitic outcrop of the pre-Cambrian Brazilian Shield. This shield is about 6,000 sq km in size, quite a huge batholith showing up outcrop on various mountain and hill tops in the region. Since the Brazilian shield was not subjected to the continental glaciation the Canadian shield experienced, it shows more fluvial and other water-based eerosional features such as hills and valleys with the occasional granitic outcrop or dome.
.
Striking erosional features were 1. Sheet erosion of the granite and 2. nahmas, smallish round indentures into the rock which grow with age. In the largest one of these farmers found fossilized bones from animals of the last ice age: giant ground sloth, giant armadillo, mastodon and the like. It appears that these animals retreated from the waters to this area but their existence did not coincide with that of humans. Differing dating methods of teeth enamel, bones and cementing material revealed that there was a striking age difference with that of the cementing agent being considerably later (30,000??). The geologists and paleontologists of the university in Recife have been busy excavating, putting together, analysing and dating the bones resulting in several master theses as well as ph.d. dissertations.
Todays drive occurs along leeward side of the mountain of the Borborema Highlands which adjacent to the Borborema Oiedmont. This is the aa of agreste, a dry transitional region. Since we are driving along the lee side it is actually is drier than would be expected.. The south side shows more forested areas than the windward side. This is a typical Windward, leeward effect here.
In terms of Human occupation it is the most unsettled area of the region. Not much agriculture, more clothing industry which started as cottage industry and then blossomed to a relatIvely big industry. Also, there is a combination of rural and ecotourism e.g. activities as hiking, rock climbing etc.
We visited an outlet store which housed a variety of small not-so-much known brand stores representing the area's efforts at fashion making. Some of the t-shirts and dresses were really nice, others not so. Appantly it is common for a big international brand to buy a lot of the clothes of a certain small-scale clothes maker and just exchange the label.
July 19
Field trip from Recife to the backlands within Pernumbuco
1. Outside Recife-Natuba
In Natuba we find the site of one of the former Mts camps (= former squatter camp) where people received land due to land reforms. This is a well succeeded formal land plan reform. The people here now are involved in truck farming for serving the market in Recife. The land was given to people who already worked on the land and thus knew how to work it. In the last 25 years these people have made arrangements with Walmart and other supermarkets and thus provide essential small-scale crops such as okra, coconut and other things.
Supermarkets were eager to find producers so they did not have to use airplanes to provide all these goods from the south. The same is truE for fast food restaurants.
The area was occupied initially by 300 families, so the industry supports roughly 1,000 people.
The new landless movement is about 15 years old.
15 km west of Recife we find the cut between the Brazilian Shield and the piedmont and lowlands. Vegetation in this very hilly area is referred to as 'caatinga' . We gain in altitude relatively fast. The soils are shallow, also due to lack of precipitation and Small-scale farming, cheese production,pineapple and other plants ofnthe ananas family.
Many of the ridges are covered with new, second or third homes of people from the metropolitan area; a transformation of the natural landscape which is getting more and more common.
2. Gravata
This town is a rather large and well-to-do center of activity. We stopped for banking and postal services.
3. Caruaru
This is a little town based on the craft of clay figurines. In the last 15 years these figurines have become quite popular in Brazil so that they are shipped throughout the country. This , in turn, caused the little village to grow but it also caused it to adapt its taste to that of the times leading to some interesting results.
4. Caruaru
This town sports a healthy cottage industry consisting of lace-making and similar handicrafts. In addition, a little further away from this town, we find Brazil's jeans clothing industry which evolved from cottage industry to national status.
Physically, this area is close to the Pernambuco fault line which continues in the African country of Gabon. This is, even though at a passive margin geologically, tectonically the most active area in Brazil. Even though, no fatalities were reportedm due to earthquakes.
1. Outside Recife-Natuba
In Natuba we find the site of one of the former Mts camps (= former squatter camp) where people received land due to land reforms. This is a well succeeded formal land plan reform. The people here now are involved in truck farming for serving the market in Recife. The land was given to people who already worked on the land and thus knew how to work it. In the last 25 years these people have made arrangements with Walmart and other supermarkets and thus provide essential small-scale crops such as okra, coconut and other things.
Supermarkets were eager to find producers so they did not have to use airplanes to provide all these goods from the south. The same is truE for fast food restaurants.
The area was occupied initially by 300 families, so the industry supports roughly 1,000 people.
The new landless movement is about 15 years old.
15 km west of Recife we find the cut between the Brazilian Shield and the piedmont and lowlands. Vegetation in this very hilly area is referred to as 'caatinga' . We gain in altitude relatively fast. The soils are shallow, also due to lack of precipitation and Small-scale farming, cheese production,pineapple and other plants ofnthe ananas family.
Many of the ridges are covered with new, second or third homes of people from the metropolitan area; a transformation of the natural landscape which is getting more and more common.
2. Gravata
This town is a rather large and well-to-do center of activity. We stopped for banking and postal services.
3. Caruaru
This is a little town based on the craft of clay figurines. In the last 15 years these figurines have become quite popular in Brazil so that they are shipped throughout the country. This , in turn, caused the little village to grow but it also caused it to adapt its taste to that of the times leading to some interesting results.
4. Caruaru
This town sports a healthy cottage industry consisting of lace-making and similar handicrafts. In addition, a little further away from this town, we find Brazil's jeans clothing industry which evolved from cottage industry to national status.
Physically, this area is close to the Pernambuco fault line which continues in the African country of Gabon. This is, even though at a passive margin geologically, tectonically the most active area in Brazil. Even though, no fatalities were reportedm due to earthquakes.
July 16
16 July
1. Field trip to modern port
We rose early to go to Suape (50 km fromRecife) which is the modern port area of Recife. It took over an hour in the bus to get there-- in the course of which we took Recife's first private toll road, left the city behind and rode through some coastal rainforest portion. The area between the bridge and the coastal forest is getting heavily built up with upscale residences with houses in the price range of up 800,000 dollars or more.
The public port of Suape is located about 50 km south of Recife and is the first deep water port along the Northeastern coast. Before this port, oceangoing vessels had to go to Rio. On average, it takes ships from here to Rotterdam 9 days and to the Unitec States 7 days.
Inside Suape is a training center for people to acquire special work skills. ALS is a school training people to work with steel - 4000. People were trained there.
The Suape port has about 88,900 direct employees, so it is clearly a major employment location requiring a lot of manpower. The port is working on infrastructure: there are 32 km of railways for cargo trains, none for passengers. Employees are bussed back and forth by the big companies present here, others rely on long car commutes, most of them from Recife.
Some numbers:
Oil refinery 230.000 oil barrels/ day--some of the. oil comes from the huge oil reserve off Brazil's coast, some from other countries.
Shipyard 25,000 indirect jobs, 5,000 direct ones
Chemical complex = lots of jobs
45 % of Suape's area is considered protrected.
According to federal law for the environment = 30% of any acquired land must be protected, so some of the 45% an be expected to be built up in the future.
There is competition of places - between harbors of various states.
2. Trip to Porto de Galinhas
Porto de Galinhas was the port where slaves could be bought at a time when buying slaves was no longer allowed but using their labor was. A code was used to market the slaves: the chicken have arrived, hence the name of the port--port of the chickens. Tourist memorabilia are chicken of all sizes with or without babies. The original fishing village is becoming a tourist town fast. Already there are a lot of tourist shops lining more than one street. In close proximity one finds a very modern resort center with a long beach stretching as far as the eyes can see. This coast is seeing a boom in construction since more and more people are purchasing a second home here.
1. Field trip to modern port
We rose early to go to Suape (50 km fromRecife) which is the modern port area of Recife. It took over an hour in the bus to get there-- in the course of which we took Recife's first private toll road, left the city behind and rode through some coastal rainforest portion. The area between the bridge and the coastal forest is getting heavily built up with upscale residences with houses in the price range of up 800,000 dollars or more.
The public port of Suape is located about 50 km south of Recife and is the first deep water port along the Northeastern coast. Before this port, oceangoing vessels had to go to Rio. On average, it takes ships from here to Rotterdam 9 days and to the Unitec States 7 days.
Inside Suape is a training center for people to acquire special work skills. ALS is a school training people to work with steel - 4000. People were trained there.
The Suape port has about 88,900 direct employees, so it is clearly a major employment location requiring a lot of manpower. The port is working on infrastructure: there are 32 km of railways for cargo trains, none for passengers. Employees are bussed back and forth by the big companies present here, others rely on long car commutes, most of them from Recife.
Some numbers:
Oil refinery 230.000 oil barrels/ day--some of the. oil comes from the huge oil reserve off Brazil's coast, some from other countries.
Shipyard 25,000 indirect jobs, 5,000 direct ones
Chemical complex = lots of jobs
45 % of Suape's area is considered protrected.
According to federal law for the environment = 30% of any acquired land must be protected, so some of the 45% an be expected to be built up in the future.
There is competition of places - between harbors of various states.
2. Trip to Porto de Galinhas
Porto de Galinhas was the port where slaves could be bought at a time when buying slaves was no longer allowed but using their labor was. A code was used to market the slaves: the chicken have arrived, hence the name of the port--port of the chickens. Tourist memorabilia are chicken of all sizes with or without babies. The original fishing village is becoming a tourist town fast. Already there are a lot of tourist shops lining more than one street. In close proximity one finds a very modern resort center with a long beach stretching as far as the eyes can see. This coast is seeing a boom in construction since more and more people are purchasing a second home here.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Monday July 12
Waking up at around 4 am I knew I was restored for more adventures even if drained of some energy. So I went with Neha on the sunrise boat trip, a sort of ciau ciau to the world of the Amazon Basin. We saw all kinds of birds and generally just enjoyed the mood.
The last breakfast was sort of sad, since the Canadian couple will stay on. They even accompanied us to the boat--sweet, that's what they were.
/are. Together with the French couple, Neha, and one other woman we set out back to Manaus--a wonderful trip during which I saw the giant water lilies but we couldn't get our driver to stop for a photo.
The woman turned out to be a tour operator owner who had checked out the lodge. Her name is Louisa, a Manaus native but residing inFlorida. She runs Brazilnut which I came across in the Fromme tour guide. I also almost had my tours arranged by that company but decided against it because I thought the money wouldn't stay In Amazonia. Actually I was wrong on that one--she is working on an interesting ecotourism- sustainability project by means of which a village which has been deprived of income will get its own lodge and training of people on how to run it. In addition, she also is responsible for the University of Virginia's semester at sea Amazon portion. Ok, and she got me interested into looking at that program more carefully --she suggested a sabbatical - ( which I won't be granted for another 20 years). And, yeah, I am supposed to look her up in Florida.
Neha, the French couple and I set out to the airport where, it turned out, we all took planes into different directions of Brazil. All at a similar time. Funny how this worked out. Across three generations, I think we had a lot of fun and great learning experiences together.
I also spent at least 2 hours with Neha alone during which time I learned a lot about Southern Indian culture.
Unfortunately the Freench couple doesn't use facebook so I'll probably lose contact with them. Maybe not....
At the time of this writing I am sitting in an almost empty plane waiting for its customers Brasilia -- Recife.
The last breakfast was sort of sad, since the Canadian couple will stay on. They even accompanied us to the boat--sweet, that's what they were.
/are. Together with the French couple, Neha, and one other woman we set out back to Manaus--a wonderful trip during which I saw the giant water lilies but we couldn't get our driver to stop for a photo.
The woman turned out to be a tour operator owner who had checked out the lodge. Her name is Louisa, a Manaus native but residing inFlorida. She runs Brazilnut which I came across in the Fromme tour guide. I also almost had my tours arranged by that company but decided against it because I thought the money wouldn't stay In Amazonia. Actually I was wrong on that one--she is working on an interesting ecotourism- sustainability project by means of which a village which has been deprived of income will get its own lodge and training of people on how to run it. In addition, she also is responsible for the University of Virginia's semester at sea Amazon portion. Ok, and she got me interested into looking at that program more carefully --she suggested a sabbatical - ( which I won't be granted for another 20 years). And, yeah, I am supposed to look her up in Florida.
Neha, the French couple and I set out to the airport where, it turned out, we all took planes into different directions of Brazil. All at a similar time. Funny how this worked out. Across three generations, I think we had a lot of fun and great learning experiences together.
I also spent at least 2 hours with Neha alone during which time I learned a lot about Southern Indian culture.
Unfortunately the Freench couple doesn't use facebook so I'll probably lose contact with them. Maybe not....
At the time of this writing I am sitting in an almost empty plane waiting for its customers Brasilia -- Recife.
Sunday July 11
I finally came down with the virus or bacterium every traveler is so afraid of due to dirty water or so. So I am enjoying the river view from my lodge room--there are worse places to be with this condition!
It is amazing to me to finally see the Amazon Rainforest with my own eyes. I will have to say, the National Zoo in D.C. has done an amazing job at replicating a flooded forest area pointing out the life within the waters as well as that above ground. In addition they do an awesome training job for their volunteers--I was one of them for a year and a half. I didn't expect to see a lot of wildlife because during the flooded season there just isn't a lot around. Also, one must always look up, in addition to down.
With all this said, the sheer vastness of this ecosystem is difficult to fathom. Perhaps I should have invested in a river plane ride just to get a feeling for the dimensions here.
I felt good enough to join the people for dinner (me eating tasteless rice)--two more families had arrived but they didn't mix much. So, my group that evening consisted of the French couple, the American woman from India and the Canadian couple. The latter gave us some insight what life is like one island beyond Halifax. I will put this information to good use but won't add it here. Who knows, one day I might even visit them. These guys were a lot of fun.
.
It is amazing to me to finally see the Amazon Rainforest with my own eyes. I will have to say, the National Zoo in D.C. has done an amazing job at replicating a flooded forest area pointing out the life within the waters as well as that above ground. In addition they do an awesome training job for their volunteers--I was one of them for a year and a half. I didn't expect to see a lot of wildlife because during the flooded season there just isn't a lot around. Also, one must always look up, in addition to down.
With all this said, the sheer vastness of this ecosystem is difficult to fathom. Perhaps I should have invested in a river plane ride just to get a feeling for the dimensions here.
I felt good enough to join the people for dinner (me eating tasteless rice)--two more families had arrived but they didn't mix much. So, my group that evening consisted of the French couple, the American woman from India and the Canadian couple. The latter gave us some insight what life is like one island beyond Halifax. I will put this information to good use but won't add it here. Who knows, one day I might even visit them. These guys were a lot of fun.
.
Saturday July 10
The composition of the group shifted slightly with the Brits and Argentinians departing and a Canadian couple and a young female from L.A. traveling alone arriving. This day my languages were English and French.
We explored the rain forest via a hike ( easy) and then went Piranha fishing. On the hike we learned how to make roofs of the houses found here: one takes a very young, yet unopened palm frond, opens it up by bending each frond strip and putting it tightly in place. The roofs are then made by placing frond stem below stem on the roof, about 6 cm apart. This way there is significant overlap of the leaves. A small house will use up to 800 such fronds and the roof may last between 6 to 10 years. It also helps keeping mosquitoes away.
Rosewood trees were harvested in the past for the perfume industry, there are Rosewood plantations now.
The Brazil nut industry uses the nuts from wild trees collected by locals. They get very little money for their findings whereas the middlemen get plenty. For international use there are now Brazilnut Tree plantations; however, it takes about15 years for the trees to grow. So, this is an investment in time.
The fishing expedition was rather successful, 6 White Piranhas were caught. I was not a lucky fisherwoman but enjoyed the scenery tremendously. The fish were then eaten for dinner.
We explored the rain forest via a hike ( easy) and then went Piranha fishing. On the hike we learned how to make roofs of the houses found here: one takes a very young, yet unopened palm frond, opens it up by bending each frond strip and putting it tightly in place. The roofs are then made by placing frond stem below stem on the roof, about 6 cm apart. This way there is significant overlap of the leaves. A small house will use up to 800 such fronds and the roof may last between 6 to 10 years. It also helps keeping mosquitoes away.
Rosewood trees were harvested in the past for the perfume industry, there are Rosewood plantations now.
The Brazil nut industry uses the nuts from wild trees collected by locals. They get very little money for their findings whereas the middlemen get plenty. For international use there are now Brazilnut Tree plantations; however, it takes about15 years for the trees to grow. So, this is an investment in time.
The fishing expedition was rather successful, 6 White Piranhas were caught. I was not a lucky fisherwoman but enjoyed the scenery tremendously. The fish were then eaten for dinner.
Friday July 9
What a day!! I was picked up by the lodge driver half an hour ahead of schedule (!) and got to meet a couple already seated in the car. They happen to be French but lived in Brazil for a year. So, the common language was Portuguese. This upfront.
We went to a different harbor at the Rio Negro where we were ferried onto a speed boat--btw, if the Portuguese call something has speed (as in "speed boat"), it will be fast. I hung on with all my might. We saw the meeting of the waters, i.e. where the Solemoes river and the Rio Negro meet to form the Amazon. it is just as amazing as I thought it would be. Dark wateers due to high acidy levels and cafe latte type waters because they are loaded with sediments meeting and not diffusing thanks to their different densities. This phenomenon stretches on for miles. For a short while I got to ride on the Amazon but then the boat turned and sped up the Solemoes. After half an hourwe got picked up by a van (the drive was probably for half an hour) and then we boarded a smaller speed boat belonging to the lodge. The ride up the river, eventually up the Juma river (which at times of low waters connects to the Amazon only via the Rio Madeira) was spectacular because we went through many flooded forests which can be used as shortcuts at times of high water level and seemed never-ending. We saw floating lily patches (small lilies) going downstream.
On arrival we found that our rooms were upgraded to rooms with a river view. The lodge is completely built on very long stilts connecting each room-hut with a sort of boardwalk on stilts. Everything was placed in the rainforest along the Juma River. No electricity during the day only at night till dawn. No problem! Cold showers only. It's warm here anyway.! No air conditioning, of course.
Primary language =Portuguese,secondary language = english, third language = rtSpanish (for me French). And then there is this German father speaking to his son exclusively in German which his wife doesn't speak. I was exposed to this medley of languages for 6 hours that we literally sat in our motorized canoe cruising the rivers and flooded forests.
We had a chance to visit a small mercado on some island. Not very well stocked but, I assume, with necessities- I saw oil, water, banana chips and bags of wheat, big bags. Canned food as well. The two bedrooms had a two hammocks and other very simple furniture, the kitchen was large and open to the back (mosquito nets). Once in a while a customer comes via canoe, comes to buy and talk and leaves again. No bathroom, no toilet! I wonder where the waste goes....
The person who seems in charge of many activities told me that he is a member of an Indian tribe on the Brazilian border with Guyana. He grew up speaking his native language of Wiki.... And then in school opted for Portuguese (English was an option). He learned English later when he decided to work in Tourism. 13 years ago he left his tribe but visited regularly up to 6 years ago when his mother died. He explained the tribe is now only 3000 people strong many of whom are old. The young do not wish to learn from the old anymore so a lot of indigenous knowledge gets lost as people leave for jobs.
We saw the following animals:
1) river creatures
- iguana swimming
-pink dolphins in a small group
- grey dolphins ( several groups)
2) Forest creatures
Igapo - seasonally flooded forests of the black waters
Varzea - flooded forest of the white (= cafe latte) waters
- Squirrel macaques, a monkey that is active during the day and moves in large bands around the e of the varzea forests/we saw it also along the agape forests
- capuchin monkeys moving around in big, noisy bands at all levels of the forest.
3) birds
-toucan, black body, white front, either Toco Toucan or Cuviers Toucan
- four green / red parrots not clear which
-brown hawk (black-collared hawk)
- jakanna - a whitish heron with a pale blue head and black eyes, yellow on its back.
- a swallow tanager = an aquamArine colored. Bird with dark wings
We went to a different harbor at the Rio Negro where we were ferried onto a speed boat--btw, if the Portuguese call something has speed (as in "speed boat"), it will be fast. I hung on with all my might. We saw the meeting of the waters, i.e. where the Solemoes river and the Rio Negro meet to form the Amazon. it is just as amazing as I thought it would be. Dark wateers due to high acidy levels and cafe latte type waters because they are loaded with sediments meeting and not diffusing thanks to their different densities. This phenomenon stretches on for miles. For a short while I got to ride on the Amazon but then the boat turned and sped up the Solemoes. After half an hourwe got picked up by a van (the drive was probably for half an hour) and then we boarded a smaller speed boat belonging to the lodge. The ride up the river, eventually up the Juma river (which at times of low waters connects to the Amazon only via the Rio Madeira) was spectacular because we went through many flooded forests which can be used as shortcuts at times of high water level and seemed never-ending. We saw floating lily patches (small lilies) going downstream.
On arrival we found that our rooms were upgraded to rooms with a river view. The lodge is completely built on very long stilts connecting each room-hut with a sort of boardwalk on stilts. Everything was placed in the rainforest along the Juma River. No electricity during the day only at night till dawn. No problem! Cold showers only. It's warm here anyway.! No air conditioning, of course.
Primary language =Portuguese,secondary language = english, third language = rtSpanish (for me French). And then there is this German father speaking to his son exclusively in German which his wife doesn't speak. I was exposed to this medley of languages for 6 hours that we literally sat in our motorized canoe cruising the rivers and flooded forests.
We had a chance to visit a small mercado on some island. Not very well stocked but, I assume, with necessities- I saw oil, water, banana chips and bags of wheat, big bags. Canned food as well. The two bedrooms had a two hammocks and other very simple furniture, the kitchen was large and open to the back (mosquito nets). Once in a while a customer comes via canoe, comes to buy and talk and leaves again. No bathroom, no toilet! I wonder where the waste goes....
The person who seems in charge of many activities told me that he is a member of an Indian tribe on the Brazilian border with Guyana. He grew up speaking his native language of Wiki.... And then in school opted for Portuguese (English was an option). He learned English later when he decided to work in Tourism. 13 years ago he left his tribe but visited regularly up to 6 years ago when his mother died. He explained the tribe is now only 3000 people strong many of whom are old. The young do not wish to learn from the old anymore so a lot of indigenous knowledge gets lost as people leave for jobs.
We saw the following animals:
1) river creatures
- iguana swimming
-pink dolphins in a small group
- grey dolphins ( several groups)
2) Forest creatures
Igapo - seasonally flooded forests of the black waters
Varzea - flooded forest of the white (= cafe latte) waters
- Squirrel macaques, a monkey that is active during the day and moves in large bands around the e of the varzea forests/we saw it also along the agape forests
- capuchin monkeys moving around in big, noisy bands at all levels of the forest.
3) birds
-toucan, black body, white front, either Toco Toucan or Cuviers Toucan
- four green / red parrots not clear which
-brown hawk (black-collared hawk)
- jakanna - a whitish heron with a pale blue head and black eyes, yellow on its back.
- a swallow tanager = an aquamArine colored. Bird with dark wings
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Wednesday July 7
July 7
I rose early to be at breakfast at 7 am which, by the way, was again a delight. I then joined a canoe trip tour for reconnaissance of the surrounding archipelago. The lodge is located at an archipelago counting about 400 islands; there is another archipelago in the vicinity counting in excess of 800 islands. All this in the Rio Negro. The river here is enormously wide and I don't think I got a good sense of its width yet. I thought I see the other bank of the river (and thought that was wide, lol), instead it is archipelago next to archipelago. Life clearly has to be lived in and on boats.
The water levels are never the same: they are either going up or going down. So, there is no normal water level. This area of the Rio Negro is currently experiencing its dry season; it started just this month. Thus the river here will be losing 4-5 inches per day to evaporation. One can actually trace the highest level of the waters on the tree trunks. So far, the river lost about 50 cm after the highest level of 2010. The year 2009 showed an all time high water level at roughly 2.5 a 3 m higher than that of 2010. A high water level can be a sign of more deforestation since more water turns into runoff on the nearly bare soils. Even so, the water is high and we found ourselves canoeing with the paddle and machete through pretty much what could be termed tree canopies. That's what the archipelagos are at this point: flooded islands with waters standing about 6 m above ground, at some places more.
There is an enormous amount of palm trees here which is the work of a certain fish species. When the palm trees stand under water their coconuts will ripen, their color will turn from green to yellow and then they will plop into the water. The fish get attracted by that plop and they come in droves and eat up the coconut leaving the Very hard and heavy core wherervere they spit it out. Once the land eventually dries up, the core has a chance of sprouting giving rise to a new palm tree!
I was subjected to a long speech in Portuguese some of which I actually understood. Well, the history...I could make out names like Pizarro and the like. I, however did not know that Jacques Cousteau did a lot of rersearch here. It was he who taught the people here that the pink dolphins arr friendly creatures intersted in contact with humans. Before that people killed these gentle creaturrs. Cousteau also did some other groundbreaking work here which I will elaborate on another time.
The palm trees are heavily armed with spikes so that animals don't get to their precious cargo: coconuts. We were also shown a tree the bark of which can be made into a tea.
When women drink this tea, they do not get pregnant. If they drink a lot of it while pregnant, it will cause an abortion.
I spent the afternoon watching the Spain Germany semi-final game with for me disappointing result. However, the Spanish were better, I think,
Of course I was the only one rooting for Germany (the Urugayan family commiserated)--we all made unhappy noises at different times. Amazing how one can bond here via sports. And we all agreed: it would have been nice to have a South American team in the final--now it's just Europe. Apparently Spain won the European championship so that is what people predict as the outcome.
I rose early to be at breakfast at 7 am which, by the way, was again a delight. I then joined a canoe trip tour for reconnaissance of the surrounding archipelago. The lodge is located at an archipelago counting about 400 islands; there is another archipelago in the vicinity counting in excess of 800 islands. All this in the Rio Negro. The river here is enormously wide and I don't think I got a good sense of its width yet. I thought I see the other bank of the river (and thought that was wide, lol), instead it is archipelago next to archipelago. Life clearly has to be lived in and on boats.
The water levels are never the same: they are either going up or going down. So, there is no normal water level. This area of the Rio Negro is currently experiencing its dry season; it started just this month. Thus the river here will be losing 4-5 inches per day to evaporation. One can actually trace the highest level of the waters on the tree trunks. So far, the river lost about 50 cm after the highest level of 2010. The year 2009 showed an all time high water level at roughly 2.5 a 3 m higher than that of 2010. A high water level can be a sign of more deforestation since more water turns into runoff on the nearly bare soils. Even so, the water is high and we found ourselves canoeing with the paddle and machete through pretty much what could be termed tree canopies. That's what the archipelagos are at this point: flooded islands with waters standing about 6 m above ground, at some places more.
There is an enormous amount of palm trees here which is the work of a certain fish species. When the palm trees stand under water their coconuts will ripen, their color will turn from green to yellow and then they will plop into the water. The fish get attracted by that plop and they come in droves and eat up the coconut leaving the Very hard and heavy core wherervere they spit it out. Once the land eventually dries up, the core has a chance of sprouting giving rise to a new palm tree!
I was subjected to a long speech in Portuguese some of which I actually understood. Well, the history...I could make out names like Pizarro and the like. I, however did not know that Jacques Cousteau did a lot of rersearch here. It was he who taught the people here that the pink dolphins arr friendly creatures intersted in contact with humans. Before that people killed these gentle creaturrs. Cousteau also did some other groundbreaking work here which I will elaborate on another time.
The palm trees are heavily armed with spikes so that animals don't get to their precious cargo: coconuts. We were also shown a tree the bark of which can be made into a tea.
When women drink this tea, they do not get pregnant. If they drink a lot of it while pregnant, it will cause an abortion.
I spent the afternoon watching the Spain Germany semi-final game with for me disappointing result. However, the Spanish were better, I think,
Of course I was the only one rooting for Germany (the Urugayan family commiserated)--we all made unhappy noises at different times. Amazing how one can bond here via sports. And we all agreed: it would have been nice to have a South American team in the final--now it's just Europe. Apparently Spain won the European championship so that is what people predict as the outcome.
Thursday July 8
July 8
Rose at 5 am to go onto a sunrise canoe trip. I was lucky enough to again get the canoe with all Portuguese speakers which meant I got to practice my listening skills. Am getting pretty good at guessing and people are asking whether I understand a lot. Not really.
The trip in the dark this time through the flooded archipelago was intense; one could hear the birds stir. Then we 'parked' the canoe and waited for Madame sun to appear. She took her time; quite a peaceful experience. And then there was light. On the way back we heard a parrot calling but we didn''t get to see the bird itself.
As a matter of fact since the waters are so high the food resources for birds is diminished. It's harder to find fish in more water (we are speaking a difference of about 7 - 15 m in height on average) and insects are missing as well. Since the trees are often somewhat submerged the water turns more acidic than at low heights which also discourages creatures to be present. Thus, there are not many birds in the archipelago at high water levels.
This is quite the opposite at lower water levels. It is hard to imagine that the flooded islands through which we canoed will actually turn into land--in one area actually turning a section of the river into a rather big lake complete with beaches. And a name: lago ......... The dock for the lodge's canoes is actually a floating dock and it will be moved much further out into the river. Mindboggling, really.
After breakfast and packing up we took a jungle tour. When we set out at 8:30 am it didn't seem so hot particularly since the forest provided cool cover. Nevertheless, the humidity is about 90percent so we did get our sweating in! High humidity compared to the open rivee because the plants transpire the water. Also, on the river the is a breeze. The tour focused primarily on plants and their use as well as some animals. Some jungle survival skills were taught to the kids' delight.
Here is a listing:
Seen:
Curare- liquid from a tree, used for paralyzing animals when the little needle hits the muscle. Stuns animals for about 1 hour.
Rosewood bark. -- several species (there are many)
Clove bark--really smells like cloves.
Lianas - store water for the tree from which they are growing. The trees' roots are wide for support and for uptake of whatever little nutrients the soils contain. The lianas, however, go dig deep into the soil and will provide the tree with water during the very dry times. A true symbiosis--one cannot really live without the other. This doesn't hinder the lianas to strangle the tree leading eventually to their own demise. If cut open for human water consumption, the bark will close up an opening after1 hour.
Bark of tree that looks like caimans skin.
Magnesium milk from tree.
animals:
Green tree boa--was on a trunk in the middle of our path.
Tarantula-- elusive but home. Walked a bit for us.
Bull ants (natives' glove test). -- these are tiny ants. The Indios used them in their manhood ritual-- a glove was filled with these ants and the soon-to-be-man had to keep the hand inside the glove for an hour. This made him immune to many things in the forest; unfortunately some boys also died. Probably due to an allergy.
Big ants - I forgot the story.
Ants fabricating cellulose- really, they had these funny little bark-like homes usually at a tree. Natives use this cellulose and are thus protected from insects. Nobody seems to want to have anything to do with ants.p
Eaten:
One larvae of fire fly (did feel sorry for it). Was good.
This concluded my stay at the Anavahinis Jungle Lodge.
The 3-hour drive back to Manaus was uneventful and fast. Again, everybody around me talked animatedly for a while in Portuguese, and I didn't listen. Then, some fell asleep. At the ferry most of us got out and the Brasilian girl who lives in Australia told me the story of one of our guides (but not mine) which, of course, I missed. Turns out he is one of 25 children (not sure whether they were produced by the same woman). His father is from India, his mother a native Indian. So, he grew up speaking Hindi and a native Indian language and English, the latter he learned at the mission. Apparently the boys on the streets taunted him because he could not speak Portuguese; to this day his Portuguese is accented (not that I would know). Well, his great English skills got him the job at the lodge, he is also passionate about birds. Some teacher in Rio de Janeiro is writing up his story--apparently she thought that his experiences were amazing.
My Portuguese companions assurred me that that was not a common story and they were as dumbfounded as I was. As a matter of fact they all agreed that the Amazon region is very much NOT like Brazil!
Rose at 5 am to go onto a sunrise canoe trip. I was lucky enough to again get the canoe with all Portuguese speakers which meant I got to practice my listening skills. Am getting pretty good at guessing and people are asking whether I understand a lot. Not really.
The trip in the dark this time through the flooded archipelago was intense; one could hear the birds stir. Then we 'parked' the canoe and waited for Madame sun to appear. She took her time; quite a peaceful experience. And then there was light. On the way back we heard a parrot calling but we didn''t get to see the bird itself.
As a matter of fact since the waters are so high the food resources for birds is diminished. It's harder to find fish in more water (we are speaking a difference of about 7 - 15 m in height on average) and insects are missing as well. Since the trees are often somewhat submerged the water turns more acidic than at low heights which also discourages creatures to be present. Thus, there are not many birds in the archipelago at high water levels.
This is quite the opposite at lower water levels. It is hard to imagine that the flooded islands through which we canoed will actually turn into land--in one area actually turning a section of the river into a rather big lake complete with beaches. And a name: lago ......... The dock for the lodge's canoes is actually a floating dock and it will be moved much further out into the river. Mindboggling, really.
After breakfast and packing up we took a jungle tour. When we set out at 8:30 am it didn't seem so hot particularly since the forest provided cool cover. Nevertheless, the humidity is about 90percent so we did get our sweating in! High humidity compared to the open rivee because the plants transpire the water. Also, on the river the is a breeze. The tour focused primarily on plants and their use as well as some animals. Some jungle survival skills were taught to the kids' delight.
Here is a listing:
Seen:
Curare- liquid from a tree, used for paralyzing animals when the little needle hits the muscle. Stuns animals for about 1 hour.
Rosewood bark. -- several species (there are many)
Clove bark--really smells like cloves.
Lianas - store water for the tree from which they are growing. The trees' roots are wide for support and for uptake of whatever little nutrients the soils contain. The lianas, however, go dig deep into the soil and will provide the tree with water during the very dry times. A true symbiosis--one cannot really live without the other. This doesn't hinder the lianas to strangle the tree leading eventually to their own demise. If cut open for human water consumption, the bark will close up an opening after1 hour.
Bark of tree that looks like caimans skin.
Magnesium milk from tree.
animals:
Green tree boa--was on a trunk in the middle of our path.
Tarantula-- elusive but home. Walked a bit for us.
Bull ants (natives' glove test). -- these are tiny ants. The Indios used them in their manhood ritual-- a glove was filled with these ants and the soon-to-be-man had to keep the hand inside the glove for an hour. This made him immune to many things in the forest; unfortunately some boys also died. Probably due to an allergy.
Big ants - I forgot the story.
Ants fabricating cellulose- really, they had these funny little bark-like homes usually at a tree. Natives use this cellulose and are thus protected from insects. Nobody seems to want to have anything to do with ants.p
Eaten:
One larvae of fire fly (did feel sorry for it). Was good.
This concluded my stay at the Anavahinis Jungle Lodge.
The 3-hour drive back to Manaus was uneventful and fast. Again, everybody around me talked animatedly for a while in Portuguese, and I didn't listen. Then, some fell asleep. At the ferry most of us got out and the Brasilian girl who lives in Australia told me the story of one of our guides (but not mine) which, of course, I missed. Turns out he is one of 25 children (not sure whether they were produced by the same woman). His father is from India, his mother a native Indian. So, he grew up speaking Hindi and a native Indian language and English, the latter he learned at the mission. Apparently the boys on the streets taunted him because he could not speak Portuguese; to this day his Portuguese is accented (not that I would know). Well, his great English skills got him the job at the lodge, he is also passionate about birds. Some teacher in Rio de Janeiro is writing up his story--apparently she thought that his experiences were amazing.
My Portuguese companions assurred me that that was not a common story and they were as dumbfounded as I was. As a matter of fact they all agreed that the Amazon region is very much NOT like Brazil!
Tuesday July 6
July 6
Another early morning! I rose early to meet my driver to take me to my first jungle lodge at the Rio Negro. the drive started out with a ferry trip from Manaus to the other side of the Rio Negro where one can still see floating houses. Most of them were dispersed by the government a few years ago because they cause a lot of pollution.
The drive for the most part of the 78 km took the route parallel to the Amazonas which remained invisible. We passed many a house and lots that were settled by the poor from elsewhere in Brazil--the settlement strategy is ongoing causing major deforestation along the roads. Just like the transamazonian highway-- roads help deforestation along. The agriculture in this particular region is for fruit some small cattle ranchers and fish by means of aquaculture. Fish apparently is the latest craze: there are plenty of them, they don't require all that much care and they bring in a lot of money. At a road stand one could try coca milk from a green-colored coca nut.
Once arrived at the very nice lodge ( with wi-fi in the common area) I was subjected to one of the best lunches in my life-the food is amazingly tasteful!
With others forming a small group we set out to feed pink dolphins. OMG--they are amazing. Much bigger than I pictured them, the longest can get 2 m. these guys were almost as big as the manatees in Florida. Huge beaklike mouths with little teeth, very tame and loving human contact. There were many--ten were given names since they are regulars.
I didn't mention that I am emerging myself in Portuguese --understand now quite a bit (sometimes I can detect Spanish words and sometimes French and there is also the Italian element) and then somehow I am trying to make sense of what is being said around me. Our guide speaks good English but since I seem to be the only one in the group requiring English, he forgets. The group helped me out tremdously; one couple with two kids lived in Lexington, Kentucky for three years and I ended up talking to their 15 year old quite a bit. They come from Sao Paulo. Another teenager lives in Switzerland with a German father and Brasilian mother so she helped out too. During this particular trip we watched the end of the soccer game Uruguay - Holland with its graceful but disappointing ending. The couple from Uruguay was quite excited, so were all Brazilians.
We also walked for at least 45 minutes in the middle of the day to the foundation where a tour guide started a local craft shop plus training for the locals. There they use old wood and make it into beautiful object (animals, salad spoons, little jewelry boxes). We got back to the boat via motorcycle taxi... I was glad to be offered a ride in a car.
The evening saw me on a canoe yet again, this time to observe animals at night. We didn't see all that much but just to be on the Rio Negro at night is pretty daunting. We did see a tree boa, several tree frogs which happen to be the food source of those boas, a sloth, a tarantula-like spider and a young little caiman.
Quite an eventful and amazing day! Needless to say, I slept extremely well.
Another early morning! I rose early to meet my driver to take me to my first jungle lodge at the Rio Negro. the drive started out with a ferry trip from Manaus to the other side of the Rio Negro where one can still see floating houses. Most of them were dispersed by the government a few years ago because they cause a lot of pollution.
The drive for the most part of the 78 km took the route parallel to the Amazonas which remained invisible. We passed many a house and lots that were settled by the poor from elsewhere in Brazil--the settlement strategy is ongoing causing major deforestation along the roads. Just like the transamazonian highway-- roads help deforestation along. The agriculture in this particular region is for fruit some small cattle ranchers and fish by means of aquaculture. Fish apparently is the latest craze: there are plenty of them, they don't require all that much care and they bring in a lot of money. At a road stand one could try coca milk from a green-colored coca nut.
Once arrived at the very nice lodge ( with wi-fi in the common area) I was subjected to one of the best lunches in my life-the food is amazingly tasteful!
With others forming a small group we set out to feed pink dolphins. OMG--they are amazing. Much bigger than I pictured them, the longest can get 2 m. these guys were almost as big as the manatees in Florida. Huge beaklike mouths with little teeth, very tame and loving human contact. There were many--ten were given names since they are regulars.
I didn't mention that I am emerging myself in Portuguese --understand now quite a bit (sometimes I can detect Spanish words and sometimes French and there is also the Italian element) and then somehow I am trying to make sense of what is being said around me. Our guide speaks good English but since I seem to be the only one in the group requiring English, he forgets. The group helped me out tremdously; one couple with two kids lived in Lexington, Kentucky for three years and I ended up talking to their 15 year old quite a bit. They come from Sao Paulo. Another teenager lives in Switzerland with a German father and Brasilian mother so she helped out too. During this particular trip we watched the end of the soccer game Uruguay - Holland with its graceful but disappointing ending. The couple from Uruguay was quite excited, so were all Brazilians.
We also walked for at least 45 minutes in the middle of the day to the foundation where a tour guide started a local craft shop plus training for the locals. There they use old wood and make it into beautiful object (animals, salad spoons, little jewelry boxes). We got back to the boat via motorcycle taxi... I was glad to be offered a ride in a car.
The evening saw me on a canoe yet again, this time to observe animals at night. We didn't see all that much but just to be on the Rio Negro at night is pretty daunting. We did see a tree boa, several tree frogs which happen to be the food source of those boas, a sloth, a tarantula-like spider and a young little caiman.
Quite an eventful and amazing day! Needless to say, I slept extremely well.
Monday July 5
Got up at 3 am for a 6:30 am flight. everything went acc. To schedule.
The plane to Panama city was full, most people slept as did I. The plane to Manaus was pretty empty--just a handful of people, some of them long-time travelers. Sat next to a guy from Israel who roamed Patagonia for a while. Another guy entertained us with his recent visa problems--clerical error, Brazil turned him right back onto a plane home. Home is L.A., but in Panama City he went to the American consulate... ; we all hoped this will get solved at immigrationc since he has to catch a boat where he is part of a medical team. One woman knew somebody in the American consulate in Manaus and called there once we landed. He had to pay a hefty fine for an error he didn't commit but then he was in. Nice to see that young travelers still help each other out.
Copa airlines provided great food--sort of unseen in North American airlines.
The plane to Panama city was full, most people slept as did I. The plane to Manaus was pretty empty--just a handful of people, some of them long-time travelers. Sat next to a guy from Israel who roamed Patagonia for a while. Another guy entertained us with his recent visa problems--clerical error, Brazil turned him right back onto a plane home. Home is L.A., but in Panama City he went to the American consulate... ; we all hoped this will get solved at immigrationc since he has to catch a boat where he is part of a medical team. One woman knew somebody in the American consulate in Manaus and called there once we landed. He had to pay a hefty fine for an error he didn't commit but then he was in. Nice to see that young travelers still help each other out.
Copa airlines provided great food--sort of unseen in North American airlines.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Eve of trip to Brazil
7/4/2010
It is the eve of my trip to Brazil--tomorrow morning at about 6:30 Copa airlines will take me to Manaus via Panama City. That's where I plan to spend the first week of my Brazil trip. Hope to see the Amazon rain forest and some of its creatures before going to Recife--the site of the soccer World Cup 2014. Let the adventure begin.
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