Fishing for Piranha

Today we were in Santarem, a bustling port city on the Amazon. Actually, it sits on two rivers, the Amazon and the Tapajos. Here is where the Wedding of the Waters can best be seen.....the brown of the Amazon and the deep blue of the Tapajos, that run side by side for about 10 miles before the water blends. It is quite the sight. This is also the home of the pink dolphin. We did see dolphins, but they did not look too pink to us. There is a lovely legend about dolphins here, one that is perpetuated in an annual festival. According to the legend, the dolphin will come to land disguised as a man. Dressed all in white with a white hat to hide his blow hole, he seduces one of the village's prettiest girls. Nine months later, a child is born. Even today, some children claim they are the son/daughter of the dolphin. Dolphins are not allowed to be hunted, for obvious reasons!

Steve and I took the shuttle bus into the bustling downtown area and watched as dozens of riverboats were being loaded with every type of consumer good/foodstuff that you can imagine. This is the only mode of transport for people living along the banks of the river. Santarem is perfectly situated to be a supply stop for people going up or down the river.

We walked for several miles in the heat and high humidity looking for a post office. By the time we got back to the ship (mission accomplished) we were both soaked. We quickly showered, changed and headed off on our next adventure....cruising down the river in a riverboat, visiting Maipa Lake and fishing for piranha.

The scenery was just exactly what I had always thought the Amazon would be like. Lots of trees and bushes with flood waters covering many of them. Very basic and rustic houses on stilts....as we passed, some people were moving their chickens from the yard into the outer room of their stilted house in anticipation of the river rising even more. We saw beautiful butterflies flitting around, and a number of birds were calling to each other in the jungle. We saw several people in small dugout canoes fishing. When it came time for us to drop our lines into the river, we were rewarded with two piranha (albeit small ones) being landed into our boat. Even though they were small, their teeth were impressive.

We have now departed from Santarem, and will not stop again in Brazil. We will be out of the Amazon Basin by tomorrow, and will make a short visit to Devil's Island on Sunday. To get into the mood for Devil's Island, Steve and I are going to see Papillon at the movie tonight!

 SANTAREM IS A BUSTLING PORT CITY THAT MANY RIVERBOATS USE AS A STOCKING PLACE. THIS BOAT IS GETTING READY TO LEAVE FOR UPRIVER, WITH MANY PEOPLE AND LOTS OF SHOPPING ON BOARD. NOTE THE HAMMOCKS HANGING....THIS IS HOW MOST PEOPLE TRAVEL. THE JOURNEY TO MANAUS, FOR EXAMPLE, TAKES TWO DAYS AND TWO NIGHTS. THERE IS ONE SMALL TOILET ON BOARD.

CRUSING ALONG THE AMAZON....LOOKED JUST LIKE I ALWAYS THOUGHT IT WOULD.

 EVEN THOUGH WE WERE IN A MAJOR CITY, THE TREES IN THE SQUARE REMINDED US THAT THE JUNGLE WASN'T FAR AWAY.

A MOST IMPORTANT CARGO....THE BEER BARGE!

THE FIRST, AND SMALLEST, OF THE TWO PIRANHA CAUGHT BY OUR BOAT WHEN WE STOPPED TO FISH FOR HALF AN HOUR ON THE MAICA LAKE. WE JUST DROPPED FISHLINES WITH A PIECE OF RAW MEAT ON THE END OF IT AND JIGGED.
 

A VERY TYPICAL RIVER HOUSE. ALL THE HOMES ALONG THE RIVER ARE BUILT ON STILTS. THE HOUSES ARE RUSTIC...OFTEN ONLY ONE ROOM, BUT EVERYONE SLEEPS IN HAMMOCKS SO THEY DON'T NEED SEPARATE BEDROOMS. WE DIDN'T SEE ANY GLASS IN THE WINDOWS, BUT THINK THEY MUST COVER THEM WITH WOODEN SHUTTERS IN THE EVENING TO KEEP OUT THE INSECTS.

 A WATER BUFFALO.....WE SAW ABOUT 8 OF THEM.