December 23 - Boca Da Valeria, Brazil (Amazon River)

on our first tender

Weather – 30º, humid, no rain, some cloud

JUNGLE!!!

Steps – 9,166

Today’s stop had no organized tours, no dock, no museums, and no crowds, but did have a super interesting look at how people live in the jungle and along the river. We were also as close as we’ve been this trip to actual jungle.

2 beers and 3 bags of snacks...$3!

Boca Da Valeria is an Indigenous

need to stay hydrated

village about 100Km upriver from Santarem where we were yesterday. It was about a hot, humid, 10 min tender ride (short in tender terms, thankfully) to reach shore from our Amazonian anchor. Mother Nature looked kindly upon us again today with no rain …will tomorrow be the downpour, or will the only wetness be thanks to the humidity?

village

We had a bit of an idea before we arrived

a bit of a contrast

that Boca de Valeria would be basic – it was. There was a path that led from the tender dock through the village past a church, a school, a few homes, numerous chickens, and a snack shack. They had electricity, not sure about running water.

try to find 4 chickens

Boca de Valaria

We also knew there would be villagers (mostly kids) wanting to have their pic taken with you and their animal…sloth, turtle, bird, armadillo, or large rodent type animal. These kids basically wanted to take you by the hand and wander the village with you, ultimately for a few dollars. We didn’t participate at all in the fee for photo.

Amazon sunset 

We supported the economy with a couple of local beers and what we thought were chips but turned out to be corn snacks – all of this for $3!! Second cheapest to the 60-cent gas station beer we bought in Cambodia!

more sunset

We couldn’t help wondering if people actually lived here, or if this village was for show. It seemed like at least some people lived here from the looks of the houses. There was a school, but I’m not sure if anyone actually went to it. I wonder if these kids actually go to school at all.  I wonder if these kids actually go to school at all. They didn’t seem downtrodden and almost seemed to be competing to see who could earn the most money from the tourists.

I often think about how I might be exploiting or taking advantage of people in places I visit – today was one of those days. Of course, I try to convince myself that my tourist dollars help people, but do they???