Sunday, January 14 Manaus, Brazil

 As usual on a cruise, I jumped up (well, that's a stretch) and opened the drapes to see where we were.  The view was very similar to the last few days.  The weather is the same.  I'm very glad I came here.  I'm very glad we have a few more days on the river.  But it is not for me.  It's not the weather.  I enjoy clouds and rain.  It is not the river itself.  I love water of all types.  I think it is the sameness and sheer immensity. When I visit a new place I try to envision myself living there.  I usually can.  Not the Amazon.  The isolation.  The vastness.  

We've traveled about 900 miles from the Atlantic Ocean to Manaus. What strikes me most and makes me so glad I came is the sheer size of the river.  I've looked at the Amazon on maps since I was a kid.  I've seen videos and photos.  But, like Antarctica, until you are here it is impossible to understand the scale.  

Having said all that, I'm on a cruise ship and haven't bothered to get off yet.  I will today.  I knew seeing the river on a Cruise ship was "Amazon Lite".  To truly to get a taste of the area needs more time and effort than I'm willing to give.  Fly to Manaus.  Take a slow trip on a small boat on the river.  

I'll be getting off soon and will let you know if I change my mind.  Ok - back on the ship.  It was a great day but I'm still not ready to move to the Amazon.  Lovely people, good food but the jungle is not the place for me.

Photos!

How do you like my HAL robe?  Not slimming but comfy

I love the clear blue waters of the Caribbean.  Have I mentioned how much sediment is in the water here?  More about the confluence of waters later

Seeing this light in the middle of seemingly nowhere gave me feelings

Verdant, a word I rarely have a chance to use

The water is filled with debris.  Most of it natural, although as we get closer to the city there's some trash mixed in.  In 2020, on another river in Brazil, I saw a man's body float by the ship.  Long story shortish, police didn't want to recover the body because it is a common (cheap) way to dispose of a body.  What could be worse than sending your loved one's body down the river?  Having someone bring it back.

The Rio Negro has very dark water.  The Amazon has brown water.  Due to differences in temperature, density and current speed, they tend not to mix.  It looks a bit like oil and water

Weirdest dock I've ever seen

Weird cloud?  Smoke/steam creating the clouds?

They look like lovely apartments with water views.  Thinking of relocating?

Ah, the cause of the steam/smoke is a power plant

I'm hoping to find one of these today.  Sort of like a Tucson green corn tamale, made of ground sweet corn, masa, coconut cream and steamed in a fresh husk. Update - didn't find one but will keep looking

Ok, I'm back onboard after an excellent day.  Jolanda (my Canadian buddy from Vancouver) and I hired a private guide for $140 for four hours.  Hudson spoke some English and some Spanish and had Google Translate so we got along fine.  Sorry but the photos are in reverse order.  My brain is too tired to figure out how to switch them around.

After getting back on the ship I spent some time in the sauna (my joints were grateful) then had a much-needed shower followed by room service.  Shrimp cocktail, French Onion soup and Dutch Almond Fruit Cake

Since covid, a change I adore is that you can order the Main Dining Room menu for room service.  No additional charge.  Fabulous!

I bought some snacks for me and my cabin stewards.  I kept the juice and the Brazilian version of dulce de leche.  The candy, Pringles and local banana chips went to the guys

Our last stop was at a crafts shop.  The owl is a painted gourd.  And a decorative ceramic plate.  $13 for both

Roof of the opera house, which was closed for repairs

Most things were closed because it was Sunday, but some stores and cafes were open.  Loved all the open-air restaurants

The opera house

These appear to be thin tiles that were used to patch some large holes in the wall.  I also saw whole houses made of the same tiles

 

Traffic was relatively light and moved smoothly, in a Brazilian kinda way.  But I wouldn't want to ride a bike with the cars.  Nope, no way

We asked Hudson to take us to a local place where he would have lunch.  This was the HUGE grill they used for the whole fish.  The large fish were over a foot long

The excellent open-air place we had lunch.  Lots of large families enjoying grilled fish.  No other tourists and great food.  Leite is the name of the owner

On the other side of the parking lot is a large "football" field

Me, Jolanda and Hudson.  And a guy in the background who was playing with his very cute toddler

Hot peppers and limes to go with the fish stew

Fish stew with rice and farofa, which is toasted cassava flour

The fish stew had a boiled egg in it and was served with a mild salsa

That's rice and a combination of falofa and broth from the stew, I think.  It was tasty and something I'd never heard of

Hudson had fresh juice from a fruit I'd never heard of.  Because of the ice in it, I passed on tasting it

More farofa!  It came with every dish.  This is a piece of cooked banana, coated in farofa.  Tasted like dessert but was served (and eaten) with the fish

This fish was mild and tasty.  A whole fish this size was for one person and cost about $5

We got a whole bowl of the bananas.

The fried fish was served with a tasty rice dish that had these small beans.  Similar to Spanish rice but different

Told you the photos were backwards.  This is the fish before we dug into it

I thought the guy in blue looked like a young Elton John

I had a Brazilian Coke.  Served in a cold glass with a wedge of lime

This is the logo of the restaurant.  This is a fruit juice/hot sauce that I'd buy in a heartbeat.  Very spicy and flavorful.  And commonly served with fish, apparently

A bowl of farofa.  Hudson had us put spoonfuls of it on the fish.  Mild in flavor and very crunchy

Most tables were for at least 10 and were full of families

We had the Pacu, a type of fish

The giant fish grill behind the restaurant

I just thought this sign was funny because I have the sense of humor of an eleven year old boy

This was a fast food stand outside the Supermercado (grocery store).  The shapes are filled with meat mixtures

I thought these were oranges but weren't.  It is tacuma a popular fruit that is commonly used in sandwiches.  It had a very mild taste

If you're a member of the Supermercado's club, you can just scan the code.  I didn't expect to see this kind of technology in the heart of the Amazon

All the snacks, plus a few more that weren't pictured, cost about $10

The sodas were 3 liters

There were a lot of garlic, fresh herbs and whole black pepper corns

We don't have this many fresh herbs in my grocery store.  There was a wide variety of vegetables, most local, some imported

Anyone know what this is?

Most of the fruit is locally grown and less expensive, overall, than fruit in the US

Tiny bananas.  Lady fingers?

About $2 for a kilo of mangos

Cassava

A cheap, lightweight coffee maker for a single cup

About $5 for a flat of eggs.  It would take me six months to eat that many eggs

Fish was plentiful and dirt cheap compared to Florida prices

Under "acougue" are photos of meat.  Right under that, what looks like pictures are actually pieces of beef.  A LOT of beef

Hair dye.  Almost all for brown hair.  Blondes are on the bottom

This, and the photos below are from MUSA - Museum of Amazonia.  An outdoor museum showcasing the flora, fauna and indigenous people of the region

If you look carefully, you can see what appears to be coconuts suspended from this tree.  They're actually bird's nests

That's a wasp nest

For whatever reason, they required close-toed shoes.  Because of my foot deformities that's a problem.  So Hudson paid for socks to wear with my sandals.  I'm ready for the beach in Florida!

Giant water lilies

Supposedly, these leaves are strong enough to hold a human.  I suggested Jolanda give it a try but she declined

Tik Tak Toe at the MUSA

Bromiliads

A list of all the indigenous tribes in Amazonia

If you don't like spiders, the jungle might not be the place for you

I saw spiders but no monkeys or sloths.  I've petted a sloth, in Orlando (Discovery Cove) and I've seen a lot of monkeys.  Some who threw poop at me

Big tree!

It was hot, humid and steamy in the jungle

Looking up

We docked at a floating dock then took a bus to the main terminal

It was a bit of a cluster, getting all the shore excursions off.  It didn't take long before everyone was on their way, though

Notice the stationary dock in the background.  It gives you an idea of how low the water levels are in the river.  They used these tracks so the buses wouldn't bottom out

Downtown Manaus

These double-decker boats ply the river.  Tomorrow we'll be using them as tenders in Parentins