Travel

Amazon River

Kruse Leave a comment

Thank you all for your messages of support/derision after my recent ordeal.  Sorry parents if I worried you, but I thought it best to describe the event properly.

And – am just making quick update to let you know that I will not be giving updates for 4 or 5 days.  Catching boat down Amazon, which should take 4.5 days or so.  Leaving tomorrow, will update from Belem as soon as I can.  Have new camera – so will get boring photos of ridiculously wide river for Nathan.  Spent today drinking with locals on side of street.  Apparently, the Brazilian tradition for a birthday is breaking raw eggs on one’s head.  Got action photo.

Am currently carrying iRiver in pocket, with only backups of photos from stolen camera.  Hopefully won’t get robbed in Manaus tonight.

Am expecting more messages of sympathy or laughter in 5 days time.  Cheers.

UPDATE: morning of trip.  I went to the port, and slung up my hammock on my riverboat.  The smallest crappiest ship in the port – and certainly not the one in the photo shown to me by the nice unofficial hawker man who sold me my ticket.  I also have to go to a different port and catch a speedboat to the ship – rather than using the official port entrance.  Pretty sweet.

And I know you’ve all been worried – so thought I should let you know I’ve now replaced my compass & thermostat keyring now as well.  And my voice is back – with only some lingering sexy huskiness.  Only things left to replace now are a bottle opener (just remembered that, will try to do that now), and a wallet (not sure if I’ll bother).

Back to Brazil

Kruse Leave a comment

Hi all, have returned to Brazil.  Without camera, wallet, watch, or voice.  But we’ll get to that soon.

After a rather productive afternoon on Friday, despite decent sized hangover – I was feeling pretty happy with myself.  Had done the internet update thing, backed up all photos to my iRiver (timely, as it turned out), and done a little sewing.  I then rewarded myself with a few drinks.  And, told there was a ‘club party’ at the Blue Iguana (the bar owned by people on drugs/firearms charges) – decided to check it out.  Had been told it was a must-see part of Georgetown.  I went there – very large establishment.  But, got told the ‘disco’ doesn’t open until midnight.  So – just had a couple of beers in the sports bar, then walked home.  Early night before the cricket final.  Didn’t quite make it home.  One block before the guesthouse, I heard two bikes coming up behind me.  One came in front, and pulled in.  I thought “Hmmm…. this could be trouble.”  Just had enough time to finish that thought, but not do anything about it – when I was hit on the back of the head, and as I staggered a little, a forearm placed around my throat, and pulled to the ground.  The guy behind me kept choking me with his forearm, while the guy in front ran up and went through my pockets.  After about 10 seconds of struggling, I realised I could’t do anything.  Tried to give them my wallet, while trying to keep hold of camera.  The fellow choking me was doing it very hard, and very effectively – so I quickly decided to try and show that I wouldn’t resist anymore – so that at least I wouldn’t die of strangulation.  No avail – the bastard kept choking very hard.  Eventually they got everything they could find – and took off.  Leaving me on the ground, struggling to breath.  So – they got my camera, my wallet (with about $1000 Guyanese dollars – NZ$7, and debit card), and old semi-broken watch.  Funnily enough, I’m most annoyed about my keyring which was attached to my camera.  Compass, thermostat, bottle opener.  Useful, and may be difficult to replace.

Also, I’m a little embarassed to admit I shat myself.  Not figuratively, neither.  Only a little embarassed, though – as it was bound to happen.  I’d had dodgy guts for the entire week, with the sudden shock of being pulled to the ground, lying in a rather uncomfortable situation, and spending all my bodily strength trying to get enough oxygen to stay conscious – I don’t feel overly ashamed at doing pooey-pants.  Feel free to comment.

Anyway – neighbours had watched this happen – and called the police.  The woman who came down and gave me a glass of water seemed more shocked that they’d do this to a foreigner, than anything else.  Repeatedly shrieked indignantly at the cops “He’s a foreigner!”  The cops did respond fairly quickly, and in force.  Two cars, and the local version of a SWAT team.  A ute with four guys on back in full body armour, and automatic weapons.  Probably would have been fairly effective against two guys on bikes.  And then, the bit that made it worth being robbed started.  I’ve only really lost a $500 or so camera.  So – $500 for the story of the robbery, and for experiencing the Guyanese police force.  Firstly – taken to gang house.  Despite me telling cops that there is no way I could identify either of the guys.  Taken into gang house, probably making many enemies in the process, as the cops weren’t particularly polite to the people inside.  Then – taken to police station.  Have to wait for detective.  A guy, obviously drunk, wants to interview me.  I finally figure out he’s the head detective – but works dayshift.  Is very drunk, and as the people here do when drunk, told me “I’m a detective sergeant” multiple times, and repeated himself several times on other subjects.  Was suspicious of my struggling to speak in a husky whisper.  Night-shift guy turned up, apologised for his boss – and took statement.  Slowly – as because I was a foreigner, certain people had to be alerted immediately.  And as other people around the town found out, they kept telephoning for details.  Useless details, that could obviously wait until after statement was taken (thereby only needing to ask me once – as it would be all on record) – or even the next day.  I was, of course, very tired, with pooey-pants, and just wanted to get back to guesthouse.  Eventually – statement was written, for me to check & sign.  I didn’t point out the numerous spelling mistakes.  Eventually, I could leave.  They were initially going to let me walk home.  Which would have taken me along the exact same route as I’d used earlier in the evening.  But – the night-detective suddenly thought about it, and offered me ride.

So – that was Friday night in Georgetown.

28 April

Got up, went to police station as requested.  Nothing happened, as expected.

Went to a hotel, booked minibus to Lethem for 8pm that night.  Was planning on leaving tonight or Sunday anyway – and turned out they were only driving tonight – so took that.  Does kind of feel like I’ve been run out of Guyana, but isn’t really the case.

Went to the Windies Sports Bar to watch cricket.  Watched replays of the two semifinals while it rained in sunny Barbados.  Eventually – watched Arsetralia perform their normal boring thrashing of another team.  The farce at the end was spectacular.  I only discovered a couple of days later that Sri Lanka actually had accepted the bad light.  At the time, I thought somebody had forced it on them, and it was even more of a farce than it really was.

But – took minibus that night.  Much more responsible driver (although still 120km/hr on dusty potholed road).  And, leaving at 8pm from this end (8pm actually meaning 9 or 9:30), meant we got to the region of National Park which is closed overnight just as it is due to open.  Much better system than the northward trip, waiting for 4 hours at a roadside restaurant/bar.  As usual, we had to stop about 5 times for beauracracy to check the passenger list against our passports.  Not including being stopped by police car in Georgetown to do the same thing.  I was pretty angry at that point.  Car with 4 police, stopping buses to check passenger lists against passports – when they could be patrolling their infamously dangerous streets.  When the same thing is going to be checked multiple times later.  But – we got through, after pushing a truck through a lot of mud, and then our minivan and another.

29 April 

Got to Lethem, immigration guy thought he recognised me.  I reminded him, and saw in his eyes “ahh yes, you tried to sneak into my country after I told you to leave”.  No problem leaving though – crossed river in speedboat.  American who was in other minibus joined me to take taxi – through Brazil immigration, and onto Boa Vista.

Spent 6 hours in Boa Vista bus station – as 6pm bus was full, along with all others until 8pm.  Drank cerveja with american Will, and chatted to my Boa Vista barmaid girlfriend.  With the aid of a translator, discovered that “Lindo” means beautiful.  She called me that a lot this time.  A pair of swiss girls turned up, without any cash.  We bought them food.  Started getting frostier reception from bargirl.  But – they left on the 6pm bus, having recently bought tickets for it.  The same one that we were told was full.  Then, bargirl warmed up again.  Found out the reason my voice was gone – and stroked my hand sympathetically.  Then – american girl turns up – again, no cash.  (ATM’s at bus station don’t accept foreign cards)  So – lend her money for bus ticket – and drink some more cervejas.  Eventually, say goodbye to Boa Vista girlfriend, and get on bus.  Arrived safely in Manaus, hopefully to replace camera, and other stuff that has gone.

Cricket

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Well – I watched both semi-finals at the Windies Sports Bar in the Windies.  And both times regretted telling people which team I supported, as both times my preferred team lost.  Dumb.  Made myself feel better after the 2nd game by commissioning a homeless guy to write a poem for me.  Phil Collins continuously preaching to me to “Stop, think twice” finally had an effect, I guess.  Don’t have my notebook with me, so can’t publish a copy of the poem just now.

26 April 

Yesterday – went to Kaieteur Falls, the tallest single-drop waterfall in the WORLD!  Unfortunately, there had been a plane crash the previous night, and all the planes were involved in a air search.  So, myself – who figured that hunting for their workmate & friend was probably a little more important than a tourist flight - and a group of americans (guess what their reaction was), left for our trip about 2.5 hours late.  As such, it was a very abbreviated visit.  Ten minutes from one vantage point – usually one spends two hours walking around – getting to see the falls from about 5 different spots.  That would have been good – even from the one spot, this waterfall was awesome.  Good waterfall.  But – decided to take the abbreviated option, so we could still visit Orinduik Falls, where one can swim.  And some people said were better than Kaieteur.  Those people were crazy.  For my ’swim’ – I wasn’t allowed past the area where the water was at most 2cm deep.  The ’swim’ was actually just standing/sitting in one spot where you could get underneath part of the waterfall.  Nice enough – and served as a long-awaited shower/massage – but…

Turns out that the crashed plane had been discovered while we were there, 4 fatalities, and we flew directly over the crash site on the way back to Georgetown.  Possibly explains the pilot’s not so forgiving attitude on the tenth time he had to explain to the americans that if we didn’t leave Orinduik by 4pm, we couldn’t – as the plane wasn’t certified for night flying over bush.  Trying to hurry along stupid young seppos, when you’ve just found out that one of your co-workers/friends is dead, and you’re about to fly over the site.

Anyway…. that night I went along to the Sidewalk Cafe & Jazz Club – and enjoyed live jazz while drinking El Dorado 15 year old, apparently the best rum in the WORLD!  While there, some other folk I’d met at the Windies over the last couple of days turned up.  Turned into rather a late night.  And when I left, I went to a pool bar, and had drunken conversation (ie: listening and nodding) with local.  Got to the guesthouse about 2am.  Landlady scolded me this morning for walking home late by myself.  Fair enough, I guess – the drunk guy at pool bar was telling me his friend had been murdered nearby last week.

But – either Guyanese really are extremely friendly, or the government’s campaign to convince people to treat foreigners well for the World Cup has worked extremely well.  Every block I walk, one or two strangers ask me if “everything good mon?” or similar.  At bars, locals insist, really insist, on buying me beer, even while talking about how poor a country Guyana is.

Georgetown

Kruse Leave a comment

Am in da Windies, mon.  Minibus up from Lethem to Georgetown was one of the most continuously ridiculous experiences in my life.  An 11 hour trip which turned out to be 19 hours – despite being in a minibus driven by a maniac rather than the bus.  Entire road was dirt/dust and pot-holed.  Yet – van was continuously at full revs, except when crossing very very dodgy looking bridges.  Imagine a home-made bridge on a New Zealand farm – every bridge on the main North-South route was exactly like that.  Gate on road closes overnight, apparently.  So – we stop at restaurant/bar at about 11:30 – and I’m told that we can’t leave until 4:30.  Driver doesn’t bother telling anybody else in van – so they’re sitting there waiting while we’re drinking.  Eventually, of course, I’m the last person up – except for three or four indigenous locals.  They are all christian, love to use the word ‘fucking’ a LOT, very very drunk, love to rubbish each other’s arguments, and very much love to explain their own arguments or greivances.

Michael, told by the tall chap that I didn’t like (first thing I heard him say was something like “Shut up Michael, he doesn’t want to listen to your bullshit.  No wonder you’re such a farking awful christian.”) – anyway – Michael was really really not happy about a bowler being sacrificed for Brian Lara.  “How, tell me, how – can you justify sacrificing a bowler for a batsman – and he bats at Number 8?  Tell me that?  How?” – repeat several times.

The beekeeper chap was very concerned/angry about  the US$100 that has gone missing – donated by some international beekeeping federation  Another chap kept telling me that the others knew nothing about cricket – but HE, he would love to talk to me.  And all of these people are so close to me that I couldn’t move an inch in any direction without touching somebody inappropriately.

I was still awake when the driver woke up, and immediately decided it was time to go.  From drunken slumber, to 100km/hr on dirt road in the space of two minutes.  Elderly lady and I swapped glances of “This guy is loco” and “We are going to die”.   Would die in style though. Van was bright pink, and according to the windshield named “Godfather”.

Finally got to Georgetown.  Just in time for me to drop off stuff at overpriced guesthouse – and go across the road to watch the 2nd innings of England vs West Indies, at a bar named “Windies”.

22 April

Moved to a cheaper guesthouse.  Walked around town a bit.  Sat at a few different pool bars, drinking beer & playing pool.  And that was about it.

23 April

Went for a walk.  Saw the Georgetown Cricket Club/Ground.  Pretty cool – but couldn’t go inside.  Instead – went to adjacent zoo.  Bloody snakes.  Two large boa constrictors asleep in tree, coiled together.  (I think there was two – I’m pretty sure I saw two tails.  Otherwise, one very very large snake.)  On the ground – two live chickens.  One had the sense to look rather concerned.  Next cage – two bloody huge anacondas.  Anaconda is big.  Really really big snake.  I immediately became glad that I didn’t see one in the wild.  All the other normal zoo stuff.  Birds.  Some pretty cool birds.  Weasel, ugly tapir things, and the cats.  Zoo staff happened to have a ocelot cub out of enclosure with them, while feeding giant river otter.  Asked if I’d like a photo holding it.  Cue very cheesy photo.  Little thing kept biting me.  Not particularly pleased about being held by big white man when there was obvious big fresh fish on the ground.

And now – researching pubs to watch cricket at tomorrow.  Was suggested one by a guy on the trip up.  The guy wasn’t particularly pleasant – but seemed to think the Blue Iguana was a ‘must-see’ in Georgetown.  My research shows that owners are currently on bail for various drug/firearms charges – after a raid last week which was searching for 33 stolen AK-47s, among other firearms.  Several articles about the army being ‘posted’ there for different reasons.  Sometimes with the police – but usually, it seems it’s an army job.  Sweet.

Beer slogans in Guyana:  “It’s brewery fresh!”  “The best reason for beer.”  “Drink <brand> …because it’s good.”  And others.

Today I saw: birds – pretty birds, ugly birds, big birds, little birds; cats – big cats, baby cats, vicious nasty jungle cats; monkeys – dirty monkeys, playful monkeys, boring monkeys; turtles – smelly turtles; tapirs – ugly tapirs; weasel; alligators; fish – big fish, ugly fish; snakes – bloody big nasty snakes; giant river otter; Georgetown Cricket Ground.

I didn’t see a manatee.

Bonfim/Lethem

Kruse Leave a comment

Hi all. Got kicked out of my first country yesterday.

But, Bob, you’ll be pleased to know that I started heading in the right direction. It was Guyana that I got kicked out of. With the phrase “I thought I told you to go back to Brazil?” To be fair, the man HAD told me to go back to Brazil. And as an immigration officer, he was entitled to do so. He happened to visit the restaurant/bar that I was sitting at, in Guyana, a couple of hours after turning me back at the border for having no visa.

But – after a long walk back to closest town in Brazil, staying at a mosquito-infested hotel (after wandering around for a very very long time trying to find the centre of town – apparently I was in it), and another very long walk back to the border – I paid my exorbitant fee for a visa, and am now legally in Guyana. Only to find that there is no TV coverage in this town, and to then find an internet cafe just in time to catch the final wicket fall in NZ’s biggest ODI defeat ever. Great stuff. Well – will probably head up to Georgetown tonight – so that I should be able to watch our final hopes crumble live on television.

It was just the result to cap off spending nearly two hours earlier listening to Celine Dion on repeat. The woman seems to determined to metamorphise into a drill. Constantly losing weight to achieve the right shape, and using that bloody voice to drill inside your head and twist your brain into a mushy mess. It did make my approximately 50 new mosquito bites become forgotten. So that’s good.

Anyway – I’ll be watching the cricket finals in the Windies. Cool. And maybe visiting the highest single-drop waterfall in the world. Apparently pretty cool. Also pretty difficult to get to. But, after paying US$100 for a visa, think I should make the most of it. And Guyana seems pretty cool so far. It’s in South America, but everybody is very very Caribbean, mon, and they speak English.

The Amazon

Kruse Leave a comment

Well – finally got website back working.  So – for all you worried folk out there – yes, I’m still alive.  Although, yesterday morning, was very very close to standing on a Bushmaster snake.  Guide was walking in front of me, I think he realised it was there just as he stepped over it, and leapt forwards with a yelp.  I was right behind him, and figuring that if he was scared of something, I was probably not the right man to deal with it.  Took a half step backwards, hoping he wasn’t concerned about something he’d heard behind us – then saw a bloody snake stretched across the path.  Bang on where my next step would have landed.  Don’t like snakes.  Especially ones with a reputation as a “nasty brute”.  Goddamn snakes.

Anyway – lots of news to make up for.  Will describe Amazon, then create new posts for previous days/adventures, and hopefully can change the date on them to reflect the order of events.

14 April

Picked up by guy who sold me tour.  Put into car with new guy.  He drives me to another hotel, saying that we’re going to do a tour of hotels, picking up other tourists.  Then, told to get out, into minibus with nre driver.  A little worried at this point, but ends up all good.   Arrive at docks.  On way, passed a table on which was sitting 12 empty 600ml bottles of beer.  3, maybe 4, people at table.  Well before 9am.  Sweet.

Onto boat – went to the meeting of the waters.  Where Rio Negro meets the Solimoes (Amazon).  Very distinct line where black meets brown, kinda cool.  Makes for some pretty boring photos though.  Then – on to look at some giant water lilies. The’re water lilies, but big.  Saw a monkey though.  A couple actually, fighting.  And a sloth – from a considerable distance.  Makes for some pretty bad photos.  Then – up the Rio Negro.  Very very large river.  And it’s just a sidestream off the Amazon.

Got to ‘river lodge’ – floating structure where we’re to stay.  Floating on the flooded forest.  (We left the Rio Negro, and went down a maze of streams, which is actually the flooded forest.  On each side – the tops of trees.  Below us – submerged forest.  Pretty cool.)  Went piranha fishing.  After 30 minutes, the group of Sri Lankans who arrived with me (along with their brazilian workmate), and will therefore form my group, get scared of the thunder, and a little rain.  Want to go home.  Apparently, weren’t expecting rain in the rainforest.  So – only one piranha caught by the guide, and thrown back.  After dinner – ‘alligator spotting’.  Drove around in the dark, in a canoe, looking for alligators with a torch. Sri Lankans didn’t want to come.  Scared it would rain?  Not sure.  Just me, brazilian, guide, and a girl who works at the lodge.  Saw the eyes of one gator reflecting torchlight.  And guide caught one very small baby alligator.  Pointed out it’s features, etc.  Released.  Also saw snake.  Tiny tiny snake.  Still don’t like it.  Back to lodge.

Today I saw:  monkey; sloth; alligator; piranha; snake; weird water-crawlie thing, looked like scorpion.

15 April

Heavy rain overnight.  Kind of hope the clouds stay, so don’t have to get up at 5am to go in boat to watch sunrise.  Seem to have caught Sri Lankan.  Hope comes off.  Take little motorboat across the main/actual river – and short walk through jungle.  Pointed out various medicinal trees, hallucinogenic vines (have to be harvested on a special day of the month), a rubber tree, etc.  After lunch, to a very touristified ‘native people’ village.  They perform their little dances for us, including one where the guests take part, of course.  All the women topless.  The teenage girl with an obvious bikini line across the back didn’t seem too comfortable with this, but – it’s her culture.

Met large riverboat in mid-stream, got rid of everybody.  Just me & guide left.  A rather quiet and peaceful ride back to the side passages.  Rubin takes me to an actual native village.  (ie: actual natives, living in a village.  Complete with the hated TVs, and the omnipresent hated church.)

Today I saw: river dolphins; topless native women; fire-ants; parrot; “night-owl”; lots of bugs & ants, bloody big ant bit me.

16 April

Loudest thunder I’ve ever heard overnight.  “Paddle Canoe Trip” – just me & Rubin paddling a canoe through the forest.  Pretty cool.  Piranha fishing – I catch one on my second cast.  Turns out to be the biggest of the day.  I am good at piranha fishing.  I catch one more reasonable size one, and 4 little ones to be thrown back.  An overall tally of 9 decent sized ones to take back for eatin’.  Paddle onwards.  See a sloth.  Catch it.  Sloths are slow, and dumb.  I found it’s movements comical.  Paddle into trees.  Cool.  Big trees above you, around you, and deep in the water below you.  Some points, where it becomes shallow, can finally see through the water just enough to see the ferns below the water surface.

Ate piranha with lunch.  Yum.  Motor back across the main river, to where we did the ‘Jungle Walk’ yesterday.  Walk into jungle, just Rubin & myself.  Much quieter, and faster than yesterday, despite carrying all my stuff, and other stuff for camping tonight.  After a couple of hours – get to campground.  Skeleton of shelter already set-up with branches/trees.  Just spread a tarp over the top, sling up hammocks/mosquito-nets, and we’ve got a new home.  Barbecue chicken for dinner.  Recipe: cook chicken over heat.  Once fluids run clear, put on rice, while placing chicken on higher heat.  Once rice is cooked, leave to cool.  Continue to barbecue chicken.  Once rice is cool – give chicken five more minutes on each side at maximum heat.  Serve with salt.  Yum.

Today I saw: hummingbird; mockingbird; snail eggs; spiders, lots of bloody spiders; giant earthworm – huge.

Today I heard: howler monkeys; stupid giant beetle flying straight into a giant bright blue tarp.

17 April

Not much sleep.  Go for a walk through jungle.  See some kind of monkey.  And a hole, which Rubin seems intent on scaring something out of.  With his face very close to the hole.  Gotta admit his dedication to his single guest.  Nothing came out.  Also, at some point, he stops.  Says to me “There’s a wasp nest ahead, we’ll have to walk very very slowly.  Okay?”  Yep – sure.  Can do that.  “Okay… RUN!” – and he starts running.   So, I ran, but a little slower than usual, as was trying to figure out what had just happened.  Back to camp – raining very heavily by this point.  Use my jacket to cover my pack, rather than myself.  Rubin uses a couple of big fern leafs as an umbrella – discarded after 20 or 30 minutes.  And – after some time, the goddamn bloody bushmaster as referred to above.

Back to lodge.  Swim in the piranha infested flooded amazon forest.  Shower.   Cervejas.  Catch the riverboat back to Manaus.  Fairly cool sunset on the way in.  Some more river dolphins.  Swedish girl reckons she saw a pink one jump out.  I didn’t see it, so I reckon nah.

Back in Manaus, checked back into my hotel.  Expensive Churrascaria restaurant for dinner.  But they had peas!  And beetroot.  Awful awful beetroot.  And sushi.  And sushimi.  And, of course, lots of meat.  But – most importantly – no rice that I was forced to eat or go hungry.  So sweet.  But, after a while, neither my cerveja nor my drinks menu turned up – so left to find a cheaper place for several more cervejas.

Today I saw: monkeys, bloody stinking Bushmaster snake.

And that was my trip into the Amazon basin.  I also saw some wild duck.