Ryte nuvaziave nusipirkti bilietu i laiva, eidami atgal sugebejom pasiklysti. Klaidziojom karstyje ratais, miestas kaip ir visi matyti Brazilijoje - didinga kolonijine praeitis, padengta margaspalviu bardaku. Kelione upe i nediduka miesta Santarem trunka beveik tris paras, laivas turejo isplaukti sesta vakare, mes prisistatem pries pietus. Galima uzsisakyti kajute, bet tai nuobodziausias ir lengviausias variantas. Kabinom hamakus zemutiniame denyje, zmoniu ir lagaminu kiekis daugejo kosminiu greiciu, pries isplaukiant nedideleje patalpoje isitaise pora simtu keleiviu. Hamaku virves sugule skersai bei isilgai, pasiekti kaimyna tereikejo istiesti ranka. Zinoma, keliones startas nusitese pora valandu, laivas buvo prigrustas ivairiausiu prekiu iki negalejimo, virsutiniame denyje-bare sugule matrasu kalnas.
Palike zuvimi dvokianti, maitvanagiu nusesta uosta, pirma vakara plaukem upes viduriu. Visu dziaugsmui laive sutikom pora turistu - airi Dave ir prancuze Ann is Dublino, menesi keliaujancius po Brazilija. Dauguma zmoniu, atrodo, niekada ir nepalieka hamaku. Kaimynai pasitaike draugiski, priziurejom vienas kito daiktus, nes saugyklu nera ir, ypac kai laivas sustoja issikrauti, mazesne kuprine gali lengvai nugvelbti is kranto uzsuke vietiniai. Bare pardavinejo alu, kur greit susiformavo grupele brazilu, lakusiu visas tris dienas non stop. Pirma nakti sunkiai pavyko uzmigti bangu siubuojamame hamake.
Once again 4x4 jeep, bus, Fortaleza airport, late flight to Belem, the city on the banks of the Amazon estuary. We stayed there only one night, got the tickets in port for the boat to Santarem and managed to get lost on the way back to hostel (it was kind of sightseeing of downtown). The trip on a boat to Santarem takes three days and the boat had to leave at six pm. We got there before lunch to get a better place for our hammocks. You can get a cabin with air conditioning but that's cheating. More and more people showed up and when we finally left two hours late the place was jammed with hammocks, people and luggage. On the top floor half of the space was occupied by mattresses.
On the boat we met Dave and Ann from Dublin and four of us were the only tourists on the boat. It seems that most of the people just stay in the hammocks all the time, there is no storage space so you need to be friendly with your neighbours who will look after your backpacks. There was a group of brazilian guys who drank all three days non stop, myself after few cans tried to get some sleep in the hammock. It wasn't easy I would say.
Laive yra mini valgykla, kur pusryciams siulo sumustinius su cukrumi, uzpiltu kava, pietums ir vakarienei - ryziai, makaronai, mesa ir pupeles. Maistas nesikeicia visas tris dienas. Salia valgyklos issirikiave pakankamai tvarkingi tualetai ir dusai, i kuriuos kartais tekdavo prasibrauti pro hamaku jura. Plaukeme arciau kranto, pralenkdami medines sodybas su satelitinemis antenomis, kitas be elektros. Laivo lauke valtyse susedusiu vaiku buriai, kuriems brazilu latru saika mete kepures ir marskinelius. Kai kurios valtys, prisigretinusios svartavosi prie sono, o vaikuciai siule suriu veziu, limonado ir kazkokiu saknu. Latrai, kai kurie jau numige posma prie stalo, jaunuosius Amazones verslininkus vaisino ledais bei saldumynais.
Vaikuciai, net ir maziausias pirskelis nusmukusiomis kelnemis, profesionaliai valdo valtis ir i placios, banguotos upes viduri plaukia be suaugusiuju pagalbos. Vakare bare alaus megejai labai jau norejo bendrauti su uzsienieciais - is pradziu portugaliskai, po to labai letai portugaliskai (tarsi tai padetu), didejant alaus kiekiui - sudetinga vaidyba. Po siek tiek lengvesnio miego paskutine diena voliojomes hamake, skaitydami knygas. Pute malonus vejelis, latrai, noredami nusipirkti daugiau alaus, pardavinejo marskinelius ir ziedus. Mes laukem kol kas pasiulys inksta uz kelias skarbonkes.
Grazus saulelydis, deja, lievas miegas persikreipusiame hamake, o ryte istiese kaklus laukem kada pasirodys Santarem. Pasieke miestuka pries pietus, tiesiu taikymu su naujais pazistamais sovem i Alter do Chao, kaimuka prie Tapajos upes.
There is mini canteen on the boat - sandwiches for breakfast, for lunch and dinner - meat, rice, pasta and beans, same food all three days. Next to the canteen - clean bathrooms and showers surrounded by hammocks. Second day the boat was sailing close to the shore with wooden house close to the water. Kids on little boats were waiting for t-shirts and caps the drunk brazilian bunch was throwing into the water. Some kids came to the boat to sell snacks. Even the smallest one was so good at driving the boat in the middle of wide river.
In the evening the drunks were so keen to talk to foreigners, of course in portugese, after while in slow portugese (like it helps), finally in sign language. Last day on the boat was spent lying in the hammock, reading books and doing nothing. The drunk company was selling t-shirts and rings to buy more beer, we waited till somebody will offer a kidney for a six pack.
Beautifull sunset, last night on the boat and long wait in a morning to get to Santarem. From there we took a bus to Alter do Chao, little town near Tapajos river.
Amazones regiona isivaizdavau kaip drumzlino vandens ir apzelusiu upes krantu derini. Ne velnio, Alter do Chao apylinkes primena atvirukuose matytus Karibus - skaidrus vanduo, baltas kaip pirmakursis po astunto alaus smeliukas, spiginanti saule. Tapajos upe, isiliejanti i Amazone, uzriecia vingi prie kaimuko, sudarydama Ilha do Amor (Meiles sala) bei Lago Verde (Zaliaji ezera).
Be musu keturiu nauju atvykeliu hamakuose miegojo cilieciu pora, vaikinukai is Kolumbijos ir Argentinos, keliaujantis po pasauli ir duona uzdirbantys zongliruodami stikliniais rutuliais, bei Kanadoje gyvenantis jamaikietis Rojus, besiruosiantis savaitei trunkanciam dziungliu maratonui.
Totali ramybe, hostelyje tvarka priziurejo penkiu centu dydzio rastamanas su kupeta dredu bei jaunas, nuolatos apsiputes vaikinukas. Maisto atliekas mesdavom uz tvoros, kad siuksliadeziu neatakuotu skruzdeles. Likucius patvarko zaliais svarkais ir rudomis kelnemis pasidabine driezai. Daznai isgirsi zioplius, krentancius is medziu - duslus garsas ir po keliu sekundziu drieziukas nuskuodzia tolyn. Pramogu kaimuke nera, sestadieni vienintelej kaimuko aiksteje ivyko religinis koncertas su israiskingais vaidinimais ir prastu garsu.
Atsizvelgiant i tai, kad prie hostelio baltavo ezero papludimys pagrindiame apsilankeme vos viena karta. O jei pas jus uz lango siaucia lietus turbut sunkoka isivaizduoti kaip pries pusrycius galima pasipliuskenti ezere, diena gulineti hamake, juokiantis is nevykeliu driezu, vel pasinerti i silta kaip arbata vandeni, vaikscioti pakrante leidziantis saulei bei vilketi vien sortais. Kudikeliui Jezui si vieta patiktu dangiskai.
Alter do Chao looks like Carribean I saw on postcards. White sand, clear water, sunny all the time. Tapajas river surrounds Ilha do Amor (Love island) and goes into Lago Verde (Green lake). There were only few people in a hostel and here having more space sleeping in hammock was great. It's so chilled out, no nightlife whatsoever, on Saturday night on a main square (only one square I guess) religious concert took the place.
We even didn't have to go to main beach, the lake was a minute away from hostel and before breakfast I would always go for a swim. No shoes or clothes, just shorts and barefoot. Very warm water and deserted beaches. All the food we didn't eat was thrown over the fence for lizards. Funny creatures kept falling from the trees all the time.
Swimming, listening to music, talking to people, going for a walk on the beach. Amazing place, with just few tourists around. Not the first time I'm pretty sure even baby Jesus would love the place.
Porai dienu su Alter do Chao gyvenanciu ciabuviu Robertho is Jamaracua genties nuplankem aplankyti jo kaimo.
Kelione birbiancia valtimi, sustojant atsigauti tusciuose papludimiuose, neprailgo. Apsistojom vietiniu sodyboje, pasiureje pasikabine hamakus. Indenai nebevaiksto lapais uzsidenge uzpakalius, bet vis dar priklauso nuo pagautos zuvies ir turistu perkamu suvenyru.
Abi dienas maitinti zuvimi su Robertho patraukem zvejoti (t.y. mes irklavom, o jis bande pagauti vakariene) i nedideli upeli, kur vietinis drasuolis musu dziaugsmui, isilipes i medi, lazda nudauze biciu lizda.
Plaukioje iki saulelydzio zuvies nepagavom, o musu gidas zuvi konfiskavo is jaunu vaikinuku, po vandeniu nakti prozektoriaus pagalba saudanciu laimiki. Ko gero skaniausia vakariene Brazilijoje, ypac iskepus riebia zuvi ant lauzo papludimyje.
Sugulus miegoti isklausem dziungliu koncerta, ryte estafete pereme naminiai pauksciai. Atejes diedukas pravede pagrindiniu taku per dziungles. Deja, didesniu gyvunu nepamatem, norint tai padaryti tektu keliauti kelias dienas.
For couple of days we went to Jamaracua tribe village few hours away by boat from Alter do Chao. Indians are the poorest people in Brazil surviving on fish they catch and crafts sold to tourists. We stayed in local family place, of course in hammocks. Went for a boat trip with our guide Robertho trying to catch a fish, no luck and Robertho took one from local boys diving at night time trying to shoot some fish.
That was the best meal I had in Brazil, cooked on the fire on the beach, no salt or herbs but so tasty. Jungle concert before falling asleep and in a morning farm birds took over. We did a short trek in a jungle, no big animals around, for that you need to go deep in the jungle.
Robke, nepasidaves vilionems testi kelione, isplauke namo (iki kaledu turetu grizti). Dave ir Ann isplauke anksciau i Manaus, as, praleides dar pora dienu Alter do Choa, rytoj tesiu kelione Amazone.
Robbie flew back to Dublin, Dave and Ann went to Manaus earlier and I stayed in Alter do Chao couple days more. Tomorrow I'll continue my trip. Dave had an i-pod with some decent music on it and we listened a lot to brilliant irish band.
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