Month: October 2017 (page 1 of 1)

After a 14-hour voyage in a cramped speedboat traveling upriver from Santa Rosa, I arrived in Iquitos – the largest city in the Peruvian Amazon, and accessible only by boat or plane. There were some beautiful views from the boat, but it was also very sad to see all of the pollution on many long stretches of the Amazon River.

There is a lot of tourism in this city, which I usually try to avoid, but one advantage is several good (although more expensive) restaurants with healthier vegan options. Some of the tourists are here for the Ayahuasca experience, which along with the hallucinogenics, involves a healthy, cleansing diet, catered to by some of the restaurants. There are also a number of small NGOs working on environmental and indigenous community projects, which I hope to meet with and may be able to help.

I’m now at the only point on my route that intersects the route of my map from 2 years ago. This is also where the Amazon River crosses the border between Peru and Colombia on the west, and Brazil on the east. Leticia, Colombia is on the north shore of the river, and Santa Rosa, Peru is on the south shore. I arrived at the airport in Tabatinga, Brazil, then crossed into Leticia by taxi and to immigration in Santa Rosa by motorboat, or lancha. After staying a couple of nights in Leticia, I’ll travel by ferry to Iquitos, Peru.

This large city in the north of Brazil lies about 100 km from the Atlantic Ocean, along the Rio Pará, which feeds into the same delta as the Amazon River. Although it’s about on the equator, it doesn’t feel quite as hot here, due to frequent evening rain showers and more shade along the streets.

I’m now in the main city of this department of France in South America. It’s odd that Guyane seems to be much more connected to France in Europe than it does to neighboring countries Brazil and Suriname. Today I went to a Guyanese cultural museum, which I was surprised to find had exhibits only on the cultures of various groups of Asian immigrants, who arrived in the 18th and 19th centuries, not those of the indigenous or Afro-descendent peoples. However, I also came across a store with some incredibly intricate and beautiful native artwork, jewelry, furniture and other crafts from many parts of the Guyanese Amazon forest. Better than most museums.

After arriving in French Guiana, or Guyane, I’ve now visited all the countries in South America!

While the other Guianas – Guyana and Suriname – seem culturally distinct from the other South American countries, French Guiana is like a world apart. Politically it’s a part of France and the European Union. The country is much more expensive than any of the others on the continent, about the same as the US, and transportation options are even more limited than in Guyana and Suriname. Taxis are difficult to obtain, and very expensive. The ferry that crosses the river between Suriname and here was not running when I arrived so I crossed in a small boat, then met a driving instructor parked by the side of the road near the boat dock, who kindly offered to let his student drive me into town.

Not many people speak English here, so I’ve been scrambling to learn more or relearn the little French I once knew. Enjoyed some great French cuisine, and was pleased to see the French ban on plastic bags in grocery stores enforced in this small corner of South America. Hope this spreads to the rest of the continent.

Went on a long day tour and steep, sweaty hike through the rainforest in the Brownsberg nature reserve, situated by the shores of an enormous reservoir created in the sixties to provide hydroelectric energy to a bauxite mine. From the road and overlook, we saw some of the effects of bauxite and gold mining, as well as timber harvesting activity in the area.

Paramaribo, or “Parbo” for short, is home for about half the population of Suriname, the smallest sovereign country in South America (French Guiana is smaller, but is a department of France). Dutch is spoken here, although fortunately for me, many people also speak English.

Stayed overnight on this small island on the mighty Essequibo River, southwest of Georgetown. To get there I took three boats and a taxi between ports or “stellings.” On the island the guide spotted two sloths I could see from our kayak, but from the skiff cruise around dusk we saw thousands of congregating parrots and other tropical birds on “Parrot Island,” as well as amazing swarms of hundreds or thousands swallows flying in unison high above the river then swooping at extreme speed before settling on another nearby island. Also visited a nearby Amerindian village, with several fishing boats under repair or construction using local wood.