Skater Land - Manaus

Despite the dreary, rainy concrete drudgery of Manaus, we have had the pleasure of running into the group of Skate boarders from the States again and hooray for fluent English, intelligent conversation!
They are a group of sound, straight up quality guys all in Amazonia to document their skating, leaving a trail of inspiration behind them.
Contrary to popular stigmatisation that skaters are merely pot headed drop outs who have nothing but a board to occupy them, this is a group of well travelled, passionate and exceptionally interesting guys who have, in living their dream, travelled, seen, experienced and contributed to the world more than all the other travellers I have encountered. 
I am nigh on heading to the local skate store and kitting myself out to turn my hand at it! After encountering so many stale travellers, with no direction and minimal passion let alone interest in what they are doing, it has been refreshing to meet people with such energy.


We have spent the past two days recovering from the boat trip up river and planning our next marathon leg out of Brazil.
Encountering another $800 transport cost to boat upriver then fly to Bogota had me returning to the drawing board and rerouting us (again).
Tomorrow we catch a bus to Boa Vista (20 hours) then get on another bus to Ciudade Boliver in the middle of Venezuela.  A colonial city surrounded by national park.  We will spend three days there, then bus to Caracas and straight onto another bus across the Colombian border to Caratagena! I CANT WAIT! An old Spanish city fortified and still retaining its beauty and splendour situated on the Carribbean coast!

It is surprising how quickly travel has become second nature, homesickness has faded with each day and whilst I miss the people, I am engrossed with the journey ahead and excited to see what it will present.
Gone is the hurried stress and panic that accompanied transition and change, and we now approach each move with a relaxed methodology, happy to accept that the only constant is change. 
Learning to relinquish control and live in the now is the key to enjoyable travel.

I will write more when I have scenery and experience to share!
xx Aroha Nui

MANAUS

We survived another boat trip!
This time a lot faster than the trip from Belem to Santarem but nowhere near as comfortable and complete with on board molester, drunk crew and blaring music at all hours in the morning!
We arrived  at  6 this morning,  were extorted by the taxi driver and had to sit in the hostel waiting area until beds were freed up for us BUT we made it!

We are probably rerouting from here to Boa Vista then on to Venezuela and into Colombia as it is 1/3 the cost of boating to Tabatinga then flying to Bogota and a lot more scenic!

Absolutely exhausted so time to hit the sack but safe and well

<3 xx

10 UNUSUAL THINGS...

10 Things that are unusual, entertaining and just a bit odd ball that we have consistently come across in Brazil...
(this will be completed over the next couple of days before we leave)

1/  TV AERIALS
No matter where you go in Brazil, streets are lined with people hawking wares - from umbrellas to pirated CDs to fly zapping tennis rackets and underwear, however, the most unusual thing (and the most abundant) is those selling TV AERIALS...hanging from trolleys or make shift carts, bundles of aerials!
Heaven only knows where they get them from OR, for that matter, where they end up (as we havent seen lots of aerials on houses here)...WEIRD!

2/  THE ONLY WAY IS LOUUUUDDDD
At any given hour on any given day of the week, particularly in Santarem, there will be a cacophony of sound, all coming from the RIDICULOUSLY huge speakers tied (literally) onto the roofs, racks, backs, sides and tops of anything that can be wheeled around.  Cars, motor bikes, trolleys and push bikes!  With no apparent sound restrictions here, people park up along the river, meters apart, doors akin, speakers on the only volume they know, FULL, having mini parties (a couple or a few people) sitting on the pavement screaming at each other to be heard, all oblivious to each other (apparently, or perhaps all competing) and unaware at the ear exploding distortion being generated.
We cant quite get over it and wonder why noone has cottoned on to the idea of just turning it down a touch so the music is actually clear, OR just shutting up altogether!

3/

AMAZONIAN PARADISE

I have had the two most amazing days of my life - never before have I seen or experienced such amazing beauty as I have here.

I feel a true, overwhelming sense of personal fulfillment and achievment, coupled with sheer delight and amazement at the magic that is the Amazon.

Tuesday:

We went to Alter Do Chao (the Carribbean of the Amazon) and true to its reputation, this white sand river lagoon paradise is breath taking.

(Copy and paste this link and check out some images) - http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&q=alter+do+chao&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=i27QS5T5EYinuAeqr4EN&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CB0QsAQwAw

We arrived in torrential rain, after an hour long rickety rumbling bumpy bus ride through the forrest, and after some emergency loo stops (the dreaded lurgy has plagued me for the past few days) we whiled away the rain (Amazonian rain, as in Auckland, is thick and heavy but fleeting) playing cards and picking which canoe the boys were going to row! 

True to form the rain passed in an hour and we paid for our canoe and rowed out to the peninsula like sand bank.  The afternoon was spent in blazing heat, rowing, swimming, making up many ditties about rowing and swimming (we are going to write an Amazonian tunes album...we figure it will reach the Top 10!) and we were elated and exhausted by the time we got back to the hostel! 

 The best time of year to visit is June, however, although half the sand was under water (incl. the cabbannahs) we had an amazing day basking and revelling in the splendour of the place.

Wed - THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!

I have spent the past 12 hours trying to figure out what to write that will even remotely describe and express the day I had yesterday.

Amazing, incredible, momentous, overwhelming, cataclysmic...nothing seems to come close to the immense emotions of the day.

Yesterday we went to FLONA - A forest reserve preserved for Agriculture and for the self sustaining communities that live here. A way of exploring and experiencing untouched Jungle and some of the history that abounds there.

** Insert from a write up on FLONA (just FYI)

The National Forest is an area with forest species predominantly native and has as its basic objective the sustainable multiple use of forest resources and scientific research, with emphasis on methods for sustainable exploitation of native forests (Federal Law No. 9985 of 18 / 07/2000).

The TNF is owned and public domain, and the particular areas included within its limits must be expropriated in accordance with what the law provides.  FLONAS is permitted in the permanence of traditional peoples who inhabit it, when it was created in accordance with the provisions of Regulation and Management Plan for the unit.

The research, inclusive, is encouraged, subject to the prior authorization of the agency responsible for administering the unit, conditions and restrictions established by it and those provided by regulation. The TNF will have an Advisory Board chaired by the body responsible for its administration and comprising representatives of government agencies, civil society organizations and, where appropriate, traditional populations living.

All this versatility makes the establishment of the complex process of managing the National Forest since it requires the improvement of mechanisms of access to renewable natural resources, demanding, including creating incentives for sustainable social actors involved, since the activities developed there are cycles and long term.

 **

We were collected at 8 am by our Portugese guide Isabella and our driver (who navigated the hole ridden dirt roads with all the skill and speed of a rally driver/professional drifter) and, hammer and tong, sped 1.5 hours out of Santarem into the ´Heart of the Amazon´.

Our first stop was the community of Jamaracua (which, as recently as Oct 2009) had electricity and one outdoor communal bathroom with running water).  

We were greeted by a group of wide eyed locals (the most beautiful girls I have ever seen) and our local guide (Hosevelte) and headed into the forrest for our 4.5 hour explore.

The secondary forrest is hot, thick and reminiscent of N.Z bush in places. The primary forrest however, is unlike anything I have ever seen.  It is cooler and lighter on account of the gigantic trees (including the bohemouth ´sumauna´, a ceiba tree that reaches further than we could see!).  The guide kept us well informed as to the uses for plants as we came across them and even had us crush live ants onto ourselves to ward off mosquitos (ironically, none of us got a single bite in the jungle, yet have been feasted on nightly in our window shut hostel! hmmm) 

We were all amazed and impressed by the way the Latex rubber is collected from the trunks of the trees - using knives, the locals carve diagonal lines about 2 cm deep, into the trunks of the tree releasing the latex which then runs down into a primitive funnel and bowl.  VERY COOL! 

We didnt encounter any major (or huge) creepy crawlies (thankfully) however, the life we did see was beautiful (bugs, butterflies, birds and plant life) all of vibrant colours and such beauty (we took a combined total of 1500 photos in 4 hours)! 

I dont think any of us spoke a word for at least an hour as we were all spellbound by the overawing sense of wonder and peace that overcame us all - the peace of the place was unnerving in a sense, and the soundtrack of birds was stunning.  It was the most surreal experience and one, that even in retelling, has me in goose bumps and misty eyed.

I felt utterly blessed to be in such a miraculous place.

Four weary (but elated) trekkers emerged four hours later soaking from the humidity and physical exertion and enjoyed a delicious lunch prepared by the local matriarch.  

Then we were off on our second adventure...and one that can, again, only be described as an experience of immeasurable beauty and incomparable to anything I have (and will ever) ever done.  

Hosevelt (our amazingly fit guide) took us in a traditional canoe through the ´Flooded Forrest´.

As the name indicates, it is a part of the forrest that is on the bank of the river and, is flooded until June.  

Rowing on glass like, mirror reflective water thru vines, and trees was like something out of a fairytale.  The eye couldnt see where the trees entered the water and the reflection began so it was a sensation like flying.  

I wish I could describe it and do it any kind of justice, however, once we have some kind of reliable internet connection, I will post some photos so you can see it.

From Jamaracua we headed to Maguary - another community - and visited the only manual, locally run, Latex factory.  Using basic manual machinery they collect the latex and press it into sheets and use it for making bags, wallets etc...again, we were very impressed.  Proof that large scale industry is not the only way to do things, and that these lower scale, human driven traditional methods require a lot more skill and result in much more beautiful products.  

We then headed back toward Santarem stopping in at Belterra (the village/town) founded by Henry Ford for the manufacture of Latex products, and later abandoned by him and the workers due to illness and expense.

Walking up colonial American streets in the Amazon jungle was another surreal experience.  Red fire hydrants, bleachers and picket fences seemed comically out of place! 

By the time we got back to the hotel at 8pm we were all elated, exhausted and totally inspired! 

I feel fulfilled in a whole new way, that I have finally seen some of our great world in its simplest, most pure beautiful form.  

Blessed are we!

 

Floating Children

A baby in a rowboat
Canoeing deft as walks
Day afloat the Amazon
Boat wake they paddle stalk

Manouvering with agility
Ropes flung with perfect skill
Pirates inside toddlers
Lightening quick and so nimble

Lashing, tying and binding
Canoes fill with froth and foam
Clambering up the boat side
To sell and trade goods from home

The floating river children
Angelic tiny beautfy
Innocent souls compliment
The breathtaking scenery

Amazonian Night

I laid at your feet tonight
Breathed in your grandeur
You inhabit my soul
Infinite night sky to sandy bottom
Igniting my imagination
Sitrring my passion
So insignificant am I
A speck at your threshold
Surrounding me my spirit releases
Your halo is light I bask in
I am still in your majesty
Rock me gently
Roll me lightly
Tonight I sleep peacefully

Mirror

O mirror mirrow where are you
Im desperately trying to find myself
I cant see me without your glassy view

Like stumbling blindly in the night
Hands outstretched fingers reach
Groping looking for switch for light

With nothing my reflection to create
In dark internal self I sit
To introspect and contemplate

Mirror mirror off the wall
How blind was I looking to see
Your image wasnt the real me at all

Self confrontation darkness lit
And no longer searching, self been found
In peaceful illumination I do sit

BELEM - SANTAREM (2 days, 3 nights by boat)

No words can express the grander, majesty or sheer size and wonder that is the Amazon river, nor will any experience ever come close to that of rocking to sleep in a hammock alongside 200 people on a boat.  People literally strung within inches of each other, staggered hammocks from floor to ceiling, bow to stern, a chaotic mess of limbs and string and colour. 
The noises and smells were overwhelming at first - a sensory overload, however, they became backdrop within the first 24 hours, and tangled rocking sleep soothing and peaceful.
We left Belem on Tuesday night and rolled down the Amazon in torrential rain and pyrotechnic lightening. It took a few goes to master the art of clambering in and out of a hammock without breaking a limb or standing on the person below. 
The scenery encountered on the trip was utterly amazing - never could I have imagined the variations in landscape, the houses on poles literally meters away from the boat as we sailed down tributaries...people living waterbound in the jungle will never cease to amaze me! From narrow tributaries to endless river where we couldnt see either side, dense jungle to flat marshland and swamp, cliffs and mountains to flat nothing...sky meeting river meeting jungle...for the first time in my life I was truly awe struck by the majesty that is nature.
I think the two most mind blowing sights for me were the hundreds (literally) of children (tiny children) rowing solo or in pairs up river and chasing the wake of the boat in an attempt to clamber on board to beg or sell Coconuts and bags of shrimps. Nimble toddler pirates...utterly breathtaking and nerve wracking to watch these tiny children brave the wake of our huge boat and with lightening speed lash onto the side of the boat and shimmy up to clamber on board all the while carrying bags of food to sell...(I manged to capture it all on film and got chatting - in my very broken Portugese - to the kids. They left me moved, inspired and filled with a new found sense of thrill and joy and appreciation for the way they live).
The further upriver we went, the more índigenous´the people became, I can quite honestly say, the people I saw are the most beautiful I have ever seen, and the more incredible the way they survive in such a watery environment.  Farm life (pigs, donkeys, buffalo and cows) literally up to their necks in water munching on what I can only describe as Amazonian grass, satellite dishes dangling precariously on thatched rooves all perched on poles, canoes tied afront and thick impenetrable jungle directly behind them...I stared in amazement (and shamelessly took hundreds of photos) as we sailed past. 
The last night onboard was the first without rain so we lay up deck watching the stars rocking lazily...nothing compared to such an experience - Realising the scope and infinity of the night sky, and our tiny selves afloat the huge river had me speechless and awestruck - I am indeed blessed to have experienced something so magical and so great.

We will spend the next few days in Santarem exploring, going on a jungle tour, going to a couple of river side villages, visiting the wondrous Altar Du Chao (Carribbean of the Amazon) and sailing up tributaries into more dense jungle to see untouched Amazonian Wildlife.

Love to you all!
PS at this stage uploading photos is proving to be difficult and we have over 3000 now so I will do my best to get some up asap.
xxx

FAREWELL BELEM ...

Its hard to believe we have already been here four days but it is time to farewell another wonderful city and begin the next stage of the adventure...sailing up the Amazon river!
Hammocks are hung, bags are packed, supplies (including Machetes) are replenished and mossie repellant liberally doused...
We will spend three nights sailing from Belem to Santarem where we will disembark and begin a four day jungle exploration! I am tingling with excitement and a healthy dose of apprehension.  The boat is a monster of a thing but very basic and will no doubt yield no sleep, plenty MORE smells to tantalise and smash the senses and a mixture of people to keep us entertained.
The thought of lazily swinging in a hammock whilst keeping eyes keenly peeled for Bull Sharks, Pihrannahs (sp) and Monkeys (no real hope of seeing these whilst sailing) has kept me awake all night (child the night before Christmas-esque) ...
I wont be online until we dock in Santarem but will let you all know we are safe and sound on arrival!
CANT BELIEVE THIS IS HAPPENING WOOOOPPPP
xxx
<3 to you all
BRING ON THE JUNGLE YAYYYYY

Rendered Speechless

I looked you in the eye and saw
Naked and real
Unashamed humanity and soul
It moved me
Rocked me to my core
A spirit transcending
Hopelessness to live empassioned
I am humbled

So overwhelmed i am brought to my knees
You fill my senses
Surging real compassion thru the need
A sensory overload
Inspired and overwhelmed
Whilst heartbreaking
Such breathtaking beauty
Such mind blowing misery

I am rendered speechless
In the presence of raw human spirit

Bla Bla

Quick rant...WE  are still in BELEM! the port city at the mouth of the Amazon...a chaotic, hustling town that, as I~ve found in every place so far, the passion, intensity and raw humanity that seems to pervade this nation.
Standing on the banks of the Amazon was breath taking...and last night we went to a reggae gig ON A BOAT in the river...mental! Belem is another mixture of new, old, poor and ridiculously wealthy...commerce runs with markets on its door step, beggars litter pavements walked by business men with cell phones...I will never adapt to the poverty or the smells!

I am still adapting to travel and the lessons that go with it. Lessons hang on every experience, and for all the awe and joy and elation, there is also the frustrations and homesickness that from time to time pop up...I think even the most seasoned travellers feel the same sometimes.

Realising how selfish, impatient, intolerant and reliant I am on creature comforts, that the only constant is change, and that the very things we use at home to measure life and importance, matter not on a global scale.  The facade that is wealth and success counts for nothing...I never realised how lucky, blessed and smugly content we are at home - I am confronted daily with human suffering, yet the fearless raw energy of human determination, and the joy and vibrancy that pervades, what I would have (until now) seen as being hopeless situations.  The judgemental frameworks that are so ingrained in coming from a rich country have become so glaringly obvious to me that I am now determined to immerse myself further here to really learn the places from a soul point of view...
I am re-contacting the people re volunteer work in Colombia and Peru cos I~m feeling like I~m stagnating here, I dont want to travel just to see stuff, I wanna have purpose and serve, not just take as a tourist. The arrogance of tourists astounds me here, and I am NOT going to be the same.  It is hard to know what to do - I buy food for the homeless children but I know that there is such a greater need here that I cant begin to fathom...
I am moved daily and have been mesmerised by the resolute faith of people in this country.  I have been spiritually brought to my knees witnessing the grace, compassion and love people have here...despite the danger, the crime and the poverty, there is something that underpins it all and it is the human spirit, and to look it in the eye has moved me to tears here...

ANYWAY we are leaving tomorrow to go down river to Santarem so I am not sure when I will be online again...I miss you all and love you xxx

Belem - The Mouth of the Amazon

OLA!
We made it - survived a 36 hour bus ride with nasty locals, blaring music and toilet overflows to Belem! Standing on the bank of the Amazon river today was the most amazing experience! I was leaping out of my skin with excitment and awe...it is mind blowing how huge it is.
Belem is all hustle and bustle - ruin amidst the sky rises and hotels, street hawkers, men carrying baskets of shrimps, live poultry in cages on the road side waiting to be someone~s lunch, and the smells that no words can describe - people, salt, electric air, waste.
Beggars are everywhere, on the doorway of the main church here all praying for a donation, and SUV~s drive mercilessly round narrow streets air con wound up and tinted windows - oblivious.
I am so moved, so excited, and again, so aware of the level of need in this massive country.  I am still sad that I haven~t had a chance to help yet I am excited to be moving on to a place where I can do some good (I hope!) - my purpose has yet to be fulfilled on this trip.
We will spend 4 days here then boat (2 days and 3 nights) to Santarem - a jungle village - for two or three days. 
Just so you all know we are safe and sound! The adventure continues, and perhaps the biggest one of my life is about to begin!

<3 you all x

Olodum - Baihian group!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bEFQc9N70A&feature=related

A video I found on youtube of the live drums in Pelhourino

This is where I am staying in Salvador! Now you get a glimpse of the atmosphere that is literally here every night!
IT IS AMAZING

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaR0IAmF1rk

The excitement never ends

Quick update:
We hastily relocated from our hostel in St Antonio to Cobreu Hostel in Pelhourino (down the road and still in Salvador) as the hostel manager is violently angry and kicked us out when we asked to pay for two nights NOT another five! (we have just given him ten days worth of custom) ...
Gemma is unable to walk due to an ankle injury so we are not sure what this means for the Amazonian excursion as we are having to carry her and her pack.
I am still nursing two rather large open graze wounds on my back and knees thanks to a rainy night in jandals dancing the Samba on a cobbled hill! In this heat the healing process is slow so we are staying put until Wed before going on to Belem (36 hour bus ride) at the mouth of the AMAZON!! Once there we will spend 2 lazy weeks getting down to Manaus and then on to the basin and up to the Colombian border! YAYYYY
I am really sad that no volunteer work has eventuated thus far, however, once we are in Colombia and henceforth, it will all go ahead as planned!
I am missing home quite a bit, but it is restlessness I think!
Please send me your SKYPE details (if you have SKYPE) or a contact phone number as I will be calling home in the next few days.
:)
Love to you all xxxxx

A Brief History of Pelourinho

First a little background of Salvador's European/African history. Around 1510, Portuguese settlers arived in the area around what is now Rio Vermelho, and by 1540 a government was formed. By 1550 settlers began importing slaves from Africa. Salvador was the first capital of Brazil and remained so until 1763. The city of Salvador de Bahia, (São Salvador da Baía de Todos os Santos, in English: "Holy Savior of All Saints' Bay") was divided by the upper city and the lower city. The upper city, which is where we are located, was the religeous and administrative area where most residents made their homes. The lower city, exactly as it is used today, was the financial district with ports and markets. The market São Joaquim is one of the oldest markets in Brazil and although it smells like it, it's also a facinating and worth the ensuing vegetarianism that often follows a trip there. The vast majority of Salvadors population (80%) today has African roots from Salvadors devastating significance as the main port of entry for the slave trade. I've heard it said from many people who have traveled both continents that Salvador feels more like Africa than it does South America. Within this context is the picturesque colonial gem called the Pelourinho, which literally means "whipping post", which was where slaves were tied and tortured publicly. Pretty heavy. Especially considering the cobblestone streets are framed by some of the most beautiful churches in the New World. Pelourinho was once the wealthiest area of the city when Salvador was the country's capitol, and the wealthiest of the heavy-weights (sugar barons, slave traders, etc...) made their mansons here until an outbreak of cholera evacuated the wealthy and they abandonded their beautiful mansions. Anyone who was willing to live in a toxic atmosphere moved in. The few visitors the Pelourinho received were seeking drugs or prostitutes, as it was cosidered too dangerous; desperate people lived short lives of suffering and despair. Although some capoeira academies were functioning in those days (Academy of Mestre Bimba was in the Pelourinho) history doesn't paint a very pretty picture of daily life. It's easy to imagine what sort of place the Pelourinho was as parts of it are still unchanged (please see our Pelourinho Survival Guide). In 1985 UNESCO declared Pelourinho a World Heritage site due to it's collection of colonial architecture trumping any other city in the world. In 1991, the renovations began. Millions of dollars have been dumped into cleaning up the Pelourinho, making it now the 3rd most visited site in all of Brazil. Modern day Pelo is a magical and thrilling place. Kids can be seen rushing out of a noisy capoeira school, drum troops fill the streets with random parades for no special occasion, and at night theres no other part of the city that can even come close to the live music (usually free of charge). African culture and traditions that were oppressed for years are celebrated here in tireless homage. There are countless dance and capoeira schools, bars and restaurants, and more holidays than anyone can keep up with, and honestly, what better way to recover it's sad and tumultuous past than to live in a constant state of celebration?

STILL IN SALVADOR

OI OI
A quick update...
Sorry been a bit off the radar this past week - I'm utterly immersed in the life here! I dont want to leave! I would love to come back here and live for 6 months and study Samba and Capoiera properly.


It is forever sunny and super hot so we spend the days at the beach and then the nights are alive with music and dance.

I finally heard re volunteer work and at this stage I wont have enough time before I go to get stuck in (considering they are a week and a half late I'm very disappointed).

It's made a massive difference having jeremy here. I think the fourth person, and a second boy, has helped Neil feel more relaxed and less like a chaperone for us girls.
We are aiming to leave here bout 10th April and head north to Belem to begin our amazonian adventure...i'm so excited about the next leg of the journey. It's awesome being settled here but I am getting too comfortable already and we have so much to see! Itching to get into working when we reach Colombia as it'll be the best way to really get to know people and the 'culture' especially if we are staying for a full month.

Anyway I don't have much to tell atm...I'm safe, happy and loving it :)