Day 142 - Arrival in Manaus

Fast asleep, we hadn’t realized our river barge had already docked at the port in Manaus. A rattling sound from under the camper woke us up. The crew was removing the safety chains tied around the front and rear axles.

After a cup of coffee and breakfast, we said our goodbyes to the crew and paid the captain the agreed-upon 250 Cruzeiros.

Wally started the engine and carefully drove the camper off the barge over thick wooden planks and up a steep embankment. From there, we followed signs to the airport, where we acquired a map to orient ourselves and figure out where we wanted to go.

Manaus felt like a rough, isolated city to us. Many buildings and streets looked run-down, and the city seemed poorer than what we were used to. It was strange to know that we were surrounded by the vast Amazon jungle, with the river being our only means of transportation for the moment.

Manaus had grown wealthy during the rubber boom, but much of that prosperity disappeared soon. By the time we arrived, the city was trying to rebuild. The government had established the Manaus Free Trade Zone in 1967 to attract businesses and industry, and we could see signs that it was beginning to change. The relentless heat and humidity were intense.

We spent the whole afternoon at Punta Negra, a river beach where a lot of locals were hanging out. We enjoyed watching the activity and eventually settled in there to camp for the night.

We hung out the whole afternoon with the local crowd at Punta Negra, a river beach where we also camped for the night. Stats: Miles 38, Expenses $97.90

September 22nd
The night at Punta Negra wasn’t very peaceful. It was the weekend, and the locals partied all night with samba music.

We spent the entire day swimming and relaxing. The Brazilians are a lively bunch. Music, dancing, and having fun seem to come naturally to them, and they were easy to talk to. A group of locals was grilling a large fish over an open fire and handed us some leftovers to try. The three of us were happy to accept because we had no food other than bananas and were pretty hungry.

That same evening, our Büsi (our cat) passed away. It was heartbreaking. I dug a grave high on the Amazon Riverbank and marked the spot with a makeshift cross. She is in Büsi heaven now. It hurts to think about how much she had suffered because of an accident in Venezuela. Maybe her life would have been better in Guatemala.

Stats: Miles 0, Expenses $0.30Meer informatie