Then next day in the jungle, we trekked back to our canoe where we had lunch. OK that took one sentence to say but the truth was, it was a massive trek with changing scenery and different parts of the jungle that change from one type of land and soil to another. In the deeper parts, the soil is super rich with lots of leaf litter and really thick jungle. You can be in one place and not see the people that might be surrounding you about three meters away. It is really dense. The jungle towards to canoe had more sandy river soil and the trees were less thick and the forest had a different structure.
On they way back we saw a tortoise (not as big as Galapagos but it had cool red scales on its feet). The guides have no problem manhandling the animals. This was a huge difference from the Galapagos where we were told to leave them alone etc. And you kind of have in the back of your head that the guide will tell their families that there was a tortoise nearby and they will go and find it and there will be joyous celebrations around a bubbling pot of Tortoise soup. I must let it go.
We went further into the tributary by about an hour where we camped next to a jungle waterfall. The journey there was interesting because they had to clear a path through the tree strewn stream up to the water fall. It involved cutting, macheteing (not a word but it means the action of using a machete) swiveling a canoe, jumping into the water, killing other spiders as big as my hand that weren't tarantulas but just as scary and general prayer rituals to the various Amazonian gods. It was very cool and I had the theme from Indiana Jones playing in my head.
Sandra and I played in the water and generally messed around while our guides fixed up the camp, made fire, created a tablecloth, fixed us food, fought swarms of termites and caught our dinner (it was a sausage so there was no real skill involved there, but they sharpened a stick, I guess i could have done that but they would no let me play with the machete).
That night we saw a toad the size of a football. You think cane toad are bad. These are disgusting.
The next day we went out to cut some bamboo so that I could make a blow dart gun. It was a super touristy thing to make but I am a tourist despite my constant denial (when did being a tourist become uncool). On the way home to the jungle lodge, I sanded it with a knife and cleared out the pipe using reeds. If only my wood work teacher could of seen me. When we got back, i made the blow piece for the mouth and then i gave my darts some string stuff that is used to give the dart some momentum when it is put in the tube. Making the gun was a kinda relaxing and therapeutic. Customs will never let me in the country with it cause it is made of untreated wood and a type of bark with beetles and stuff, but it was a lot of fun to make.
Anyway, we are in Rio now with Carnival but I know that Sandra wants to write about that so I will not preempt her (and she writes better than I do so it would be embarrassing.
But we are off to Copacabana this arvo (go on I know you are jealous) and i am going to have to listen to Sandra sing both The girl from Ipanema and Copacabana in this weird Rio medley she has in her head when she is not distracted but big Brazilian booty or taking photos or street vendors trying to sell sarongs or people in costume.
I love my life
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