| Week 1 | |
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We made it safely to Brazil. It took right at 24 hours to get to Barcelos. We were greeted by the Amazon Queen and left promptly for the waterfall. We were going against the current on the most winding river I have ever seen. It is very interesting to watch the way the men navigate the river. They do not drive down the center; they weave side- to- side following the banks. It took 3 days to get to our destination.
The group of people on the boat and taking part in the expedition was larger than anyone anticipated. We have shared the boat with two state policemen, a film crew (3), a helicopter crew (3), two divers, a scuba expert, and three biologists. We also met up with another boat of biologists, cave experts, pilots, etc. There was enough equipment to construct a small city and at least 50 people including the staff members. Because there were so many "official" people, we did not get to go and explore the mountain and waterfall. Scott flew over once and was able to spend a few hours exploring the top. Phil was onboard for a couple of days and he was able to make sure that Scott and his son Andrew saw the mountain. He took Dr. Gibson and me in his float -plane to the Lodge. The Lodge staff obviously did not expect him. Phil was pretty angry with the condition of the Lodge. Dr. Gibson's clinic had been looted and someone had stolen the bed out of his cabin. I saw our apartment. There were squatters living in our apartment, but it was in good shape. I think they were sleeping on Dr. Gibson's mattresses! They still need to complete the kitchen for our apartment and make the furniture. I think it will be quite nice when all is said and done. We will live on the Amazon Queen for about a month until everything is complete at our apartment. That is not a bad thing the Queen is quite nice. We have had a shortage of fuel because of the distance we have had to travel. A fuel barge should meet up with us today or tomorrow. As a result, they are only running the generators from about 6:30- midnight and again from 5:30-7:00 am. It's a bit warm but nothing unbearable. During the day, we have not seen any rain. But several nights it has really come down. The rain comes fast and hard, and it goes as quickly as it came. The first day was pretty miserable heat wise. It was hot and I think the fact that we were exhausted, hungry and all around off-kilter made it pretty tough. But since then it has been pleasant. There is a nice breeze, and as long as you are in the shade it is comfortable. I have been fishing twice. Scott came with me once. I caught a nine- pound peacock bass. I don't think that I could have been any more excited if I had caught a nine- pound chunk of gold. The guides had me fishing on a small underwater lure for paku and piranha. We saw a peacock rolling under the water so I asked to switch lures. On my third cast….whoosh! Scott had to help hold the end of the pole and I got a blister on my thumb reeling it in! Everyone knows that I don't like to eat fist and I was informed that I had a moral obligation to eat my first catch…so I did. The kitchen staff saved MY fish and served me the best cuts…it was pretty darn good. It didn't smell bad, had a thick meaty consistency and…well… it tasted like chicken. So I may become a fish eater after all. We have learned a lot from the biologists on board, from Dr. Gibson, Armando (boat manager) and the staff. We are both working on our Portuguese and several of the staff members spend as much time with us as possible working on English. Everyone has been very nice, and we have had a good time thus far. We are getting plenty of rest. Because it gets dark by six and light by 5:45 it is very easy to go to bed early. We are sleeping from about 9:00 until 6:00 and we have both worked hard to squeeze a nap into our schedule. The food has been good, and we are being well taken care of. The general attitude is mellow and the theme has been "there has been a change of plans". So we are going with the flow and could not tell you what we will be doing this afternoon, much less in the weeks to come. We are loving each other and loving Brazil. |