Manaus, Brazil

Manaus slideshow

On Saturday, October 3rd, , close to midnight, Peter and I were embracing at the International Airport of Manaus for the first time in six months. He looked traveled out as he waved through the glass at the baggage claim. I could see that the 30 hours of travels from Vancouver to Sao Paulo, plus the ten hours of wait at the airport and finally the four in the air to Manaus wore him out.

It was hard to get used to the hot and humid weather in Manaus, so we stayed in our air-conditioned room most of the day after Peter arrived. He needed to get over jet lag and I needed to rest from three months of almost non-stop travels. We did go out for food, juices, air and water though. We tried regional juices and Popsicles from several local fruits like Caja, Acerola, Cupuacu, Acai, Graviola and other less exotic fruits. Peter was disappointed with his first barbecue in Brazil though, but on Sunday, there were not many choices. We tried Tacaca, a gummy soup made from manioc root, dried shrimp and jambu leaves. It was very different and surprisingly delicious, and the local fish is always good.

On Monday we went to the beach at Rio Negro. The coffee color of the river looks cleaner and more appealing than the muddy Solimoes river. From Ponta Negra, the upscale beach front area in Manaus, we took a small boat to Praia da Lua (Moon beach.) It was pleasurable to cool off in the water, sit by a restaurant/bar right by the river and swim, although our bodies were prickly afterward. Not sure the reason, but we were told it could be little pieces of wood in the water.

Although hot and humid, there are no mosquitoes in October, because it is the dry season. We truly appreciated the lack of mosquitoes and bugs. But we found out, the ants bite year round. It would have been difficult to combine heat, humidity and mosquitoes, although I was prepared for all three in the Amazon area. In any case, we decided not to take any jungle tours leaving from Manaus, since we planned to go to many places in the north region with pristine forests and wild life.

The Teatro Amazonas is a real jewel, and I was so lucky to be able to see the Philharmonic of Manaus perform a beautiful piece by Villa Lobos. It was quite a show, incorporating percussion instruments that blended in the full orchestra with less traditional instruments. Sitting at one of the box seats on the right side of the theater, only a few feet away from the stage was a real treat.

The city is working hard on becoming a cultural center. The restoration of Palacio Rio Negro, a rubber baron's mansion turned cultural center is getting its final touches. Praca da Policia in the center of town looks really nice with brand new fountains and a cluster of remodeled buildings around it, including four museums. The historical building next to Mercado Municipal, imported from Europe during the rubber boom is in shambles but it's supposed to be restored by the World Cup in 2014. Right now, Manaus is still a pretty unattractive frontier city. But I think we'll see some glitter by the time the World Cup arrives.