Day 46 - February 18, 2008 - sailing up the Amazon River and Alter Do Chao

Alter do Chao photos
So, you may have guessed that Debbie and Margie did not make it to the Liars Club at 10:45pm. Even though we are on a river, the ship was rocking pretty well side to side last night and they weren't feeling all that well anyway. So, we really all did have a long night. Really long, in addition to the extra hour, they were both up half the night yakking their lungs out. Debbie woke up still without her voice. According to Passages there is really nothing of interest going on today until we anchor at Alter do Chao at 4:30pm. So, everyone still has a lot of quiet time to rest up.
We all went to a late big breakfast in Compass Rose. Debbie and Margie went up to check out the new jigsaw puzzle while we waited to get back into our cabins. Debbie decided she should go back to the Doctor since her voice went. Debbie got a shot in the butt for her trouble. She has to go back tonight and get another shot. She is instructed to stop trying to speak and to rest. She also got a box of Cipro to try to knock this thing out. As Margie and Debbie were exiting the Doctor's office, the Captain was speaking in the ship. We did not hear all of the announcement, but we will be in Alter do Chao around 12:30pm now instead of 4:30pm. Guess we have been making good time. They tell us that now we will have lots of time to swim in the Tapajos River there. We'll see. That is probably not on Debbie's list of approved activities for today.
Tapajos River at Santarem is a clear water river, which means it has a neutral pH. Amazon is a white water river which means it is alkaline. Black water rivers are acidic. When the rivers of different pH values come together, they do not mix immediately, but flow side by side for a while. This happens a few times on the Amazon River.

We did see the meeting of the waters off Santarem, a stop on our next segment, sailing back down the Amazon River. That was at about 10:30am. By about 12:30pm, we had arrived at our stop of Alter do Chao. It looks like a little beach resort from a distance. It looks like a long tender ride too. It is about 90F here and there is a nice breeze, but it is really humid. After lunch in Compass Rose, Margie and Clay decided to go in to shore on the tenders, but not swimming. Debbie decided that she couldn't handle the tender ride and the humidity and stayed behind. Bob got to go with Clay, but Roy really rubbed Debbie's nose in it!
We got cards this afternoon inviting us to the next Full Circle Guest Event. "Sounds of the Amazon." Pasted below is the RSSC website description of our day tomorrow. We got our tender tickets for this yesterday and we are on the 9:05am tender ride.
"Excursion Detail for Boca Da Valeria
Choose Excursion: Tender Ride Through Channel
Duration: Varies.
Seated.
Code: BOC-3637
There is no official tour program scheduled for today.
The ship drops anchor in the Amazon River, and a colorful picture unfolds as the local people come out in canoes to meet the ship, providing an added bonus to your Amazon adventure. The ship's tender will transport you through the 200 meters of channel and pass the primitive Caboclo Village, which consists of just a few wooden houses. While it is not possible to go ashore, the tender ride will take you nearby for a close up view of life on the Amazon.
Please note: Lightweight clothing is recommended, as are closed shoes with socks. Wear sunscreen and a hat"
This is what the "Sounds of the Amazon" invitation says: "After a tender ride in Boca da Valeria and experiencing the local handicraft market onboard Mariner, immerse yourself in sights and sounds of the Amazon with the music from the amazing Band Raizes Caboclas. Their instruments are - Apitos (art bleeps that produce sounds for around 25 birds); Cuias and Pau d'agua (produces the sound of rainwater); Tambor Regional (Regional drum); Flauta Regional (Regional Pipe); Violao (guitar) and Berimbau. Terry Breen will be on hand to provide personalized commentary. Join Hotel Director, Cruise Director and social staff for Brazilian drinks and scrumptious desserts.
Meeting Time: 1:45pm
Meeting Place: Horizon Lounge
Date: February 19th, 2008"
So tomorrow will wind up being a pretty busy day. With the stop from 7am to 2pm with only tender rides allowed and the special musical event and the Captain's Farewell Party and our hosted dinner in Compass Rose. Hope we are all up for it by then.
Not sure we are looking forward to tomorrow's tender tour. We were told when tickets were issued to us that only 30 people would be allowed per tender. That is good, but here is the weird thing. You usually cannot see anything from them. As we had been warned, while Capt. Romeo let us sit on the roof seats in the open air, Capt. Delavault does not allow guests up there, only crew. So, not sure what is up with all the clothing and sunscreen and a hat warnings above, if you are going to be inside those stuffy enclosed tenders. We'll have to see and report later.
Margie and Clay caught a tender to shore around 2:20pm to see what could be seen in Alter Do Chao and spent 2 hours on shore. It was hot and not much to see. You had to walk through ankle deep sand for aabout 40 yards to get from the tender dock to the street. There was a convenient bench you could use to get the sand out of your shoes. After a 200 yard walk, we came to the town square right on the river bank. Along the way we saw some interesting things. There was a beer joint right close to the tender dock, but their limited seating was filling up fast. We also saw a unique fruit tree. It had green balls that sort of looked like green tomatoes, but some of them were bigger than basketballs. It was really strange. There was also a little beach on a sand bar in the river that was completely separated from the mainland. But there were some enterprising people who would row you out to the beach for a fee. A lot of passengers did this, but Margie and Clay opted to stay on dry land. The square had a couple of souvenir shops and some restaurants as well as an old church. We bought some tee shirts and then started back. The new captain no longer lets you ride on top of the tender. This makes tender rides a hot affair in this weather.
In the evening we opted to have a room service meal and look at a DVD instead of going out to eat. The movie we saw was "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou". This was a Bill Murray spoof on Jacques Cousteau. The main reason we looked at it was the DVD cover had a picture of Bill Murray driving a small submarine and the picture looked just like Jean-Michel Cousteau who is currently on the ship talking about the Amazon. The movie is just kind of silly.
Alter do Chao photos