Apocalyse Now, pink dolphins & stupid

We are 50 hours into our 2nd Amazon boat ride. Today was much the same as yesterday till about 4pm.

I was up front next to the bridge, and I heard the skipper on the radio. Ahead, I could see a large fast boat moored at the riverbank, and after the radiotalk, we headed in its direction and moored alongside.

Surprise on close inspection, its the military police, all dressed up and armoured to the teeth, with shiny new handguns and automatic rifles...and a sniffer dog.

The police board the ship and get all the bags in lines, and then the dog goes to work. He pees on the floor, but then bingo he finds a suitcase that smells good to him, and he gets a tennis ball as a reward. The suitcase owner, who must have a very low IQ, because there was nothing to stop him hiding stuff in places the dog didn't go, was handcuffed and marched off the boat. The police shook down most of the men, except me, as I clearly looked angelically honest.

Whilst all this is going on, we have to stand at the side of the boat, and low and behold, two pink dolphins appear. They really are pink. Everyone is caught by the weird mix of simultaneous events. Next , the thriller needs to combine rambo cop scenes with pink dolphins, and then it's sure to win an Oscar.

Talking to some locals, they think the whole thing is a bit of a show because this kilo or so is a miniscule part of the total trade. When I look out to see the police chief, I notice he is sniffing. Coincidence? We shall never know.Read more