After the boat to Manaus I took a plane to Salvador. While it has nice beaches and ocean views, I have to say that the city and nearby towns did not live up to my expectations for this region of northeast Brazil. From what I had heard and read, I expected to see more traditional Afro-Brazilian culture and to find people more happy, relaxed and friendly. Although I met some nice people and heard some good bossa nova, my impression from observing and talking to people here is that they are more distrustful and stressed out about crime and violence than in other parts of Brazil I have visited.
I read that Salvador has the highest level of economic and social inequality in the country. It was also the center of the slave trade in Brazil until slavery was officially abolished in 1888, 25 years later than in the US and 55 years later than in the UK. I’m sure that extreme inequality and violent history have a lot to do with the ongoing crime problem.
Month: September 2015 (page 1 of 1)
Watching the sunrise over the Amazon from the boat between Tabatinga and Manaus. I took the fast boat, which made the trip just 32 hours. It was fairly comfortable, with air conditioning but without reclining seats. The views were spectacular, but could have gone without all the dumb and most violent Hollywood movies. Of course the boat was stopped and thoroughly searched for drugs en route.
The city market by the wharf.
The malecón (boardwalk) in Leticia.
Parque Santander in Leticia. Those blurs are pericos (small parrots), which filled the sky at this city park around sundown.
The dock at Puerto Nariño, about 2 hours up the Amazon River from Leticia. At this time of year, the water level of the river and its tributaries is very low. Most of the population of the town are indigenous Ticuna. There are no motorized vehicles except a tractor to move trash and an ambulance.
The border between Leticia, Colombia and Tabatinga, Brazil. One side speaks Spanish and the other Portuguese. You can freely move across the border without passing through immigration, but for exit and entry stamps to travel from one country to another outside of this zone, you need to visit immigration offices on opposite ends of each city.
The Calle Real in Salento. Those old troubadours were awesome!
Hot and dry Cali, as seen from the park in the San Antonio district. I heard it hasn’t rained here in about 10 months. Water rationing is in effect, so water was available only in the mornings and for 2 hours at night.
View from the hostal in Popayan.
Laguna de la Cocha and Isla Corota, near Pasto.
Returned to the Sarita farm, near the small town of Calceta, to visit Servio and his family, and get updated on his new projects.
The new secadora (drier) for cacao beans used to produce the world’s finest and most expensive chocolate, with the brand name To’Ak.
An experiment with the pitahaya (dragon fruit) plant, originally from Central America.
Helped harvest papaya with Servio’s oldest son. Surprisingly hard work, lugging heavy bags of huge papayas down a steep slope and trying to avoid getting stung by the latex sap dripping from the papaya trees and stems.
The view from my room in the mango tree.
Baños de Agua Santa – hermosa y tranquila.
View of the simmering volcano Cotopaxi from the bus to Baños.