Into the Amazon Jungle

The dye is cast!
This will be my last post for about ten days or so!
I´m going off line and into the jungle. I leave tomorrow and return to Manaus on the 27th. I´ll try to do a post then, if possible, but it might not be possible, since I have my next flight to Cuiaba and the Pantanal leaving Manaus at 3:00am on the 28th (it was the only flight I could take that would get me to Cuiaba in the daylight hours - I always like to arrive in a new place during the day).
I spent the morning going from one agency to the next seeing what they had to offer. All three agencies I tried were recommended and also in and around the hotel.
I spent the first few hours of the day searching fruitlessly for the agency that seemed to be offering the trip I was most interested in. Obviously, the fates did not want me to go with them. Turns out the reaon I couldn´t find their office is because they´ve gone out of business!
After weighing up the various options, I´ve settled with Amazon Backpackers. I had a beer with the guide who was born in the area South of Manaus about 100km that we are going to explore. His name is Elso. He speaks excellent English and seems to be a decent chap. His company is the youngest of the three, but he clearly undrstands that if his prtnership is to grow, he needs to make sure the tourist has a great time. The facilities might not be quite as comfortable or organized as the other two agencies I tried, but I liked the guy enough to give it a shot with him as my guide.
We set off tomorrow morning to the port where we get a speedboat past the ´´meeting of the waters´´ (where the colors and shapes inspired the patterned sidewalk in Ipanema that I photographed early in the trip).
We then travel 65 km on one of the few roads, then get another speedboat to the jungle lodge which we will use as a base for the first few days. After four or five days of activities here with other tourists (there are currently seven other tourists at the camp) in relative comfort - meals, accomodation, soft drinks and all activities included, Elso and I will strike off deeper into the jungle for four days, or so.
Some of the activities we will take part in include: canoeing in dug out canoes, piranha fishing, caiman spotting, day walks into the jungle, night walks into the jungle, sleeping in hammocks in the jungle, meeting and staying in the homes of traditional people living in the area, and river dolphin watching.
Some of the animals I might see include, caiman, dolphins, monkeys, sloth, millions of birds, fish, and, of course, insects.
At the jungle lodge, I should be able to recharge the camera batteries, but I´m buying some spares just in case. Other than that, and some more toothpaste and soap, I think I have everything I need.
Elso says he only really feels at home when he gets back into the jungle.
As for me?
I´ll let you know in ten days or so!
All the best to one and all.
See you on the flypaper,
mike
Pete, if you´re reading this, I hope the procedure went well yesterday.

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Part of trip: Brazil 2008

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