Crocodile hunter

Arriving at the Amazonian hotel the first day, it was late as the boat pulled up to the dock and the sun was already falling in the sky. Having got the keys to the room I went straight to the shower to wash away the tiredness I felt from a day travelling. I was not prepared for the shock I got as I entered the bathroom. The bathroom itself was very simple with no windows, just a mosquito net separating myself from the trees that stood close by. As the cold water cascaded on me I watched the sun go down, the sky an explosion of orange and red. Definitely the best shower I have ever taken.

After a quick bite to eat I was back in a boat, a small long boat, and I set out on the river once again, this time in search of crocodiles. The boat was full with about 10 other guests, one man driving the boat, one at the front with torch in hand searching for the glowing eyes of the caymans, and another ready to jump in the water and catch the crocodile. As we went along small rivers with trees either side and the sound of frogs croaking, I looked up at the sky to see thousands of stars twinkling in the dark sky.

After searching many areas of the river I heard a loud thump as the young boy, who was our crocodile hunter for the night, jumped into the river and caught a small Cayman. With crocodile in hand our guide explained about the animal, before we each had a turn to hold it. I was one of the last to hold the small creature and as I felt its hard but also soft skin I could also feel a warm liquid trickling down my arm as it urinated in my hand! I guess it was trying to tell us something and two minutes later it was released back into the river.

Each time a crocodile is released back into the river two minutes of silence is held, and as I sat in the small boat looking at the stars reflecting on the dark waters surface, large fireflies flew by, their bodies a bright light. In our silence we could hear the noise of the forest and the many animals living within it. It was an emotional moment for me as I realised how far I had come in the last year since I had been in Brazil.

Ariaú

Ariaú was the name of the hotel in which I stayed on my visit to the Amazon, north Brazil. It is an isolated hotel, built in the tops of the trees, in the Amazon jungle. Constructed almost entirely of wood it has eight towers which house the reception, restaurant and many guest rooms. Each tower is connected to the next by long wooden walkways, which sway and creek as you walk over them, whilst underneath them the runs the dark river Negro. It is not a particularly handsome structure, but then again I did not expect luxury in the jungle.

I spent 4 days and 4 nights in Ariaú, each day packed full of activities, so much so it felt like the 4 days were doubled. At the end of my stay I had no desire to leave. Not only had I fallen in love with the Amazonian rivers, boarded by trees of the greenest green, which were inhabited by natives, but I also felt a strong connection to both the hotel and its staff.

My three days were spent with a guide and a boat driver, both of which were born and raised in the Amazon rain forest. My guide was a native Indian, born into a large family who lived of the land and because of this he had a great knowledge of his surroundings. Although he spoke English we often found ourselves slipping into Portuguese to talk about his culture and my work here in Brazil. He took great pleasure in telling those with whom he worked about my work with disabled children and adults, about Conductive Education. As a result the staff would often shout hello and ask how I was as they passed by me in the hotel.

I went to the Amazon with a desire to see its vastness and swim in its rivers with the dolphins swimming alongside me. What I did not realise before I arrived there was that I would leave not only with satisfaction and pleasure at having done these things, but also with sadness at having to leave behind the many Amazonian people I met. I have left Ariaú, but I am taking with me many special memories.

Only rivers and trees

It is almost five weeks since my holidays ended and six weeks since they began. I spent nine days dividing my time between two places, the Amazon and Bonito. The two places differed greatly in terms of terrain, the Amazon being masses of trees separated by huge rivers so wide it was at times impossible to see the other side, and Bonito with its dry earthy land, of soil an unimaginable bright red.

Leaving the small island on which I live I flew from one end of the country to another in order to reach the Amazon. High in the sky and looking down at the land as one manicured field met another, the fields formed a patchwork quilt stretching as far as the eye could see. Uninterrupted land for miles, with not one building in sight and very few tracks snaking between the fields. As the plane crept closer to the Amazonian region small rivers began to penetrate the land, creating an appearance of a tree in winter without it leaves. The larger of the rivers formed the trunk of the tree, and the numerous small streams leading from it the bare twisted branches. And then the fields stopped and the forest began, a sheer blanket of green.

The size of the Amazonian forest is truly unimaginable to those that have not visited it, as is the size of its rivers. One hour and thirty minutes past from first sight of the forest to landing in Manaus, in the middle of the Amazonian region. Leaving the plane the humidity hit me like a brick wall, and came as a welcome relief having come from a cold winters day in the south of Brazil. Within half an hour of landing I boarded a boat and begun the two hours boat ride to the hotel in which I was to stay for the next 4 days.